Anyone else 'litter trained?'

[AnimaniacAmy]

Hello!

I'm really pleased to say that my girls are litter trained, makes cleaning A LOT easier and the fleece isn't smelly anymore.

I was wondering if any one else managed to do it too?

Here's my method;

* Buy a small cat litter tray
* Fill it with hay
* Cover the litter tray area with a sort of large tunnel thing, & some fabric

I learnt somewhere that in the wild guinea pigs wee in hidden areas to cover up their scent from pray, so I thought I'd adapt this to their C&c cage and have found the results really great. Because the litter tray is hidden the girls urinate there now and I haven't come across barely any wet spots on the towels or newspapers!

I know for a fact they urinate there as I clean out the tray 1-2 times day (A quick 3 minute job compared to throughly cleaning the cage after day 4!).

Spot cleaning is a bliss now as they also poo inside the tray and only poop outside of it occasionally.

It's a godsend!

Here is my setup.

Hermione told me off for taking a picture while she's doing her doodoo haha

I'd like to hear if anyone else has tried this?

 

[Rachel2709]

Thats a fab idea, do you think doing this with those corner thingies would work as well?

 

[vickie016]

Might sound like a silly question but don't the piggies want to eat the hay they have just wee'd on? Surely that's not good :/

 

[AnimaniacAmy]

Thats a fab idea, do you think doing this with those corner thingies would work as well?

Can't see why not : ) just make sure to 'hide' the area that's the key to it all really.

I prefer the small cat litter trays as you can put more hay in, all personal preference really. Cheaper too mine cost £1 and it's quite small, I think it's kitten size.
xx

 

[AnimaniacAmy]

Might sound like a silly question but don't the piggies want to eat the hay they have just wee'd on? Surely that's not good :/

They would do that regardless of a litter tray, they did it when the hay was on the floor in a pile and in a hay rack (When hay fell down they pee on it). Not sure why but yes you're right. I clean the tray out 2 times a day at least and top up with fresh hay throughout the day.
xx

 

[Rachel2709]

I was thinking the corner thingies because my 2 seem to pee mostly in the corners so I might get a couple and throw in abit of litter and cover with straw

 

[Pink Jumper]

I found that when I put a tray down they used it a lot as a toilet! I was cleaning it out about twice a day! I originally put it down to catch the hay to save too much mess on the fleece - but they liked to poop and pee in it also. It wasnt covered though. They still liked to poop and pee in their hidey houses though...which is where I would prefer them not to go as they sleep in there at night mallethead

I could try the tray thing again but covered this time. How excited would they be....|)

 

[vickie016]

Definitely sounds like it's worth a try

 

[Julesie]

Ohh thats a good method to try.

I think a few peopel should try this and post the results on whether it worked or not. =)

 

[AnimaniacAmy]

The cleaning of the tray isn't so much of a task for me as I have spare time. But I can see why busy people would be deterred from it. As for the corner thing, my girls pee'd in the corner too but the litter tray is in the main corner they do their business so it's not much different to what they're used to. Move room for them too in this tray.

I agree with the not liking them sleep in it at night, I just clean it in the night before I go to bed and top up. I then clean it around 10am or noon the next day.
What you might find usefull is shredded newspaper at the bottom but my girls just ate that so stopped using it. Thankfully their tray isn't too soiled when it comes to cleaning that they don't pee much.


But yeah, try again with it covered up!

 

[AnimaniacAmy]

Ohh thats a good method to try.

I think a few peopel should try this and post the results on whether it worked or not. =)

I'd love to know the results of everyone who tried! ^^ I found myself cleaning the cage thoroughly after day 3-4 which was a pain at times hehe

 

[Pink Jumper]

Could I use cat litter with hay over the top? Or can guinea pigs not use cat litter as they might tend to want to eat it more than a cat would?

 

[AnimaniacAmy]

Could I use cat litter with hay over the top? Or can guinea pigs not use cat litter as they might tend to want to eat it more than a cat would?

I was told that it's safe, I think the one to use though is wood pellets which is what I use for my cats. I'm not 100% sure though sadly. x

 

[Hc1]

I have one of those grassy hideout things in the hutch and there is always a terrible mess under there. Maybe I should move the hideout into the litter tray...........

 

[Shellza]

Could I use cat litter with hay over the top? Or can guinea pigs not use cat litter as they might tend to want to eat it more than a cat would?

I wouldn't use ordinary cat litter for this reason, just in case they try to eat it and it gets stuck in their throat, however I have used to wood pellets before which worked well. I know some people don't agree on using it though.