Another question from a confused newbie

[T.T.]

I'm very confused now, I've been reading through these boards and some people were making very good points about hay and where it should be kpt and were talking about a "hay tray".

The pet shop told us to put down woodshavings then cover with hay and put some fresh hay in once a day and clean everything out completely twice a week. Is this completely wrong or am I not understanding? ?/

 

[woolie]

Hi, I've not been here long myself either, but the way i see it is that the piggies prefer to 'eat' fresh clean hay which is best served from a hay rack or similar. Piggies tend not to eat the hay they lie, wee & poo on!

I dont use wood shavings or hay as bedding, i use only a vetbed, i tidy it & remove the poo & soiled litter everyday and clean/ disinfect their entire cage and replace the vetbed about twice a week, and i have 3 piggies. My 3 have constant hay provided in their hay rack.

Hope this helps x

 

[jane28]

Mine have newspaper and i cover the floor with hay with a big pile on one side for them to burrow in... I clean them out every other day and always put a good handful of hay in twice a day, once in the morning when i feed them and once in the evening when i feed them...
I dont have a hay rack and never have and mine are fine without...

 

[Laura-CCC4]

The "hay tray" applies when you're not using hay as bedding; usually when fleece or Vetbed are the main bedding. Hay racks ideally should be used at all times, as fresh and unsoiled hay should always be on offer.

Woodshavings shouldn't really be used for piggies - not healthy for skin or respiratory tract - so lots of newspaper and plenty of hay would be an option for bedding, or an alternative like CareFresh or Megazorb used in place of woodshavings.