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Carefresh? Auboise?

Jesse's pigs

Jesse's pigs

Adult Guinea Pig
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Hi guys I'm looking for an alternative to fleece bedding. I do love the fleece and will keep them on it from time to time but the number of fleeces I go through in a month is high and the washing can be a painful task lol- especially when the washing machine isn't really yours and your mum doesn't approve of piggy items being washed in it...Also when I do go away, the people who look after the boys aren't a fan of the fleece either and I sometimes come to collect them and they're on newspaper.I don't want to get sawdust or shavings because it's too dusty.

So I was just wondering whether you guys would suggest carefresh or auboise and which is the better alternative? Or if there's an even better bedding youd suggest? Ideally I want the one that's the least dusty for my boys but also stays clean for more than 5 seconds lol. I will still put them on fleece but at least then I can have a break from washing them constantly and mum can have her washing machine back for a while lol.

Just a few questions though-
1- how did you piggies find either bedding? And did they try to eat it?

2- for boar owners does it tend to get stuck in boys 'bits and bobs'?
 
I use Auboise, Flaxboise & Miscanthus chips for all our furry family & always recommend them highly, wouldn't use any thing else now. The piggies didn't like Fitch (cheaper but same as carefresh) as the lumps can be a little large underfoot but it wasn't a huge problem. They never even tried to eat any of it. Never had issues with it sticking to them at all, even the long haired ones.

I get mine from equibox, all around £8-10 for 20kg so really cost effective. I find them so absorbent that I could leave them a whole week & not smell them, whereas with wood shavings I can smell the pee after 3 days max.

Remember that when fleece is washed it releases tiny plastic fibres into the water supply, it's one of the leading causes of plastic pollution in the oceans. Pretty much an environmental disaster all round. I don't like the idea of polluting the planet when there's alternatives. All hemp, flax & miscanthus (elephant grass) chips can be composted so that's another plus if your family has a keen gardener who wants it :)
 
Morning,
I’m interested in this also. I’ve been using Auboise for at least 10 years now I think. I’ve never had any issues with it, I like that it comes in a 20kg bag which I can get for £11.50 at my local pet shop and it lasts for months. It wicks the wee downwards, so it stays dry on top, I put it on top of newspaper to make clean out essier. Downside is that it seems to get everywhere, one of my piggies likes to flick it around!

Recently I noticed some hard skin areas on my boys front paws, they are 5 years old now so I’m wondering if Auboise is just to rough on their paws now, as it’s not soft. So I was considering trying carefresh but not sure how good it is at wicking wee away?

Would be good to get some views on this from anyone using carefresh
Thanks
 
Guineautopia said:
Morning,
I’m interested in this also. I’ve been using Auboise for at least 10 years now I think. I’ve never had any issues with it, I like that it comes in a 20kg bag which I can get for £11.50 at my local pet shop and it lasts for months. It wicks the wee downwards, so it stays dry on top, I put it on top of newspaper to make clean out essier. Downside is that it seems to get everywhere, one of my piggies likes to flick it around!

Recently I noticed some hard skin areas on my boys front paws, they are 5 years old now so I’m wondering if Auboise is just to rough on their paws now, as it’s not soft. So I was considering trying carefresh but not sure how good it is at wicking wee away?

Would be good to get some views on this from anyone using carefresh
Thanks
Click to expand...

I'm veering towards auboise myself after comparing reviews of both apparently carefresh isn't as good at absorbing the wee and is dustier in comparison. They also say that the bigger bags don't last nearly as long- but then as you've said it is much softer for the piggies. I think some people just mix the two beddings so you've got the absorption and the comfort
 
Aubiose is considerably more cost effective since you buy it in big bales designed for horses, not piddly little ones. You need to make sure you give a deep enough layer though, otherwise the designed effect where liquid soaks through to the bottom layers can't work effectively.

If you want something of the Carefresh-type texture I'd go for Megazorb instead - it's also wood pulp fibres. But it's sold by the large sack again for horses etc., so more cost effective.
 
Jesse's pigs said:
Hi guys I'm looking for an alternative to fleece bedding. I do love the fleece and will keep them on it from time to time but the number of fleeces I go through in a month is high and the washing can be a painful task lol- especially when the washing machine isn't really yours and your mum doesn't approve of piggy items being washed in it...Also when I do go away, the people who look after the boys aren't a fan of the fleece either and I sometimes come to collect them and they're on newspaper.I don't want to get sawdust or shavings because it's too dusty.

So I was just wondering whether you guys would suggest carefresh or auboise and which is the better alternative? Or if there's an even better bedding youd suggest? Ideally I want the one that's the least dusty for my boys but also stays clean for more than 5 seconds lol. I will still put them on fleece but at least then I can have a break from washing them constantly and mum can have her washing machine back for a while lol.

Just a few questions though-
1- how did you piggies find either bedding? And did they try to eat it?

2- for boar owners does it tend to get stuck in boys 'bits and bobs'?
Click to expand...
I use Back 2 Nature small animal bedding, I have 8 piggies so I used to have to clean them out twice a day, I decided to try this bedding and it was amazing, it lasts them about a week and a half before needing to be fully changed. I've had no problems with it and the piggies don't eat it. It's not at all dusty. :tu:
 
So I just went to the pet shop and I couldn’t believe how small the packs of carefresh were! One pack would do about one clean out. So Auboise is much better value, so I’m going to stick to that and put extra soft meadow hay on top to keep it soft on the feet.
If I can find a local megozorb stockists I’ll take a look. The only other one I’ve found if FinaCARD, which again comes in big packages.
Maybe it would be easier if I gave them little socks ha ha
 
aubiose is very good,you could use a little carefresh on top of the aubiose .aubiose is not so soft.fitch is very similar to carefresh but white,much cheaper.i use megazorb in my hutches,but put other bedding on top,eg fitch,flax,aubiose/aubichick.
 
Cardboard (any of the brands) isn't quite as absorbent. Fine as an option for other smaller rodents, but it doesn't cope with the volume of pee that piggies produce! I use cardboard in the carrier as it falls out less than Aubiose does, but even then it doesn't really work for any significantly length of time.
 
Incredipigs said:
I use Back 2 Nature small animal bedding, I have 8 piggies so I used to have to clean them out twice a day, I decided to try this bedding and it was amazing, it lasts them about a week and a half before needing to be fully changed. I've had no problems with it and the piggies don't eat it. It's not at all dusty. :tu:
Click to expand...

I use Back 2 Nature too and only clean out once a week. Never gets smelly. And it's environmentally friendly too.
 
Pigwhisperer said:
I use Back 2 Nature too and only clean out once a week. Never gets smelly. And it's environmentally friendly too.
Click to expand...
Neither me nor my piggies liked Back 2 Nature so I stopped using it. Am on newspaper, woodshavings and hay at the mo and when the woodshavings have run out will try Aubiose and see which we like the best. Have only just found a local supplier of Aubiose.
 
Betsy said:
Neither me nor my piggies liked Back 2 Nature so I stopped using it. Am on newspaper, woodshavings and hay at the mo and when the woodshavings have run out will try Aubiose and see which we like the best. Have only just found a local supplier of Aubiose.
Click to expand...
 
Oops! Meant to say, I want to try auboise & variations when I can drive again as B2N is a bit pricey. Can't find anywhere local that delivers.
 
The Back 2 Nature isn't dusty but I found once wet it started to disintegrate and left tiny bits of wee covered paper everywhere.:vom: It was very good with absorption but even with the hay over it I could tell my piggies weren't really fans which is why I went back to wood shavings.
 
I use aubiose and I have never had a piggy try to eat it. Donald is also a bit of a messy boar - he was left with an outey following his neuter so pee's down one leg a lot. Sometimes I will find one or two pieces of aubiose on him down there but they are usually just sitting on the hair and brush off easily
 
I use Shavings from the Local Supermarket but there dust free and it works for Subshine. I think Carefresh is a bit to expensive in the US
 
Hi, I’ve also been looking into auboise as a cost effective replacement to wood shavings. Am I right in thinking it’s like wood chip? I'm worried after reading some of the reviews above that it will be too hard for my boys. Has anyone got any pictures of their piggies on it to compare? Thanks
 
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