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ourpiggypalace

New Born Pup
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i was just wondering which bedding you all use and what you think of fleece? i've got pine wood shavings and back2nature bedding at the moment, i've found that wood shavings get pretty messy while back2nature is great however it is expensive. i have a pair of baby piggies and a 2x5 c&c cage and i'm thinking of using fleece but i'm worried about the smell? does anyone have any experience with fleece and can help me out?
- thanks x
 
To start, if you’re using non-kiln-dried pine atm I would switch out right away. The phenols in pine can cause URIs and kidney problems. Kiln-dried pine is more debatable but I’d steer clear.

Fleece has never really given me any issues...whenever I used it with my pet-sat piggies I cleaned the fleece every few days and it never smelled too bad. Of course, that’s also with twice-daily spot cleaning, but still, much better than what you have now. I think my only qualm is how hay sticks to it but that can be solved by using a hay mat/tray.

Also—be sure to use an absorbent layer under the fleece. The fleece mainly keeps the urine off their paws; something like a towel should be doing most of the absorbing.
 
Biocatelet, is a cheaper alternative to back 2 nature, and is the same thing basicly, it said its small animal safe with a pic of a rabbit on the package.

Aubious hemp bedding if you can find it, is a low dust bedding that is highly absorbent, it's cheap to buy £ 10 for 20kg
 
Here is our bedding guide. It will hopefully help you.
Bedding For Guinea Pigs - Overview

My boys live in my shed and in winter I use newspaper and a thick layer of hay.
In summer I use fleece. It is swept twice a day and changed every few days. You need a good absorbent layer underneath (or use proper cage liners which have two layers of fleece with the absorbent layer in the middle). Pee pads are often a good idea for high traffic areas as they can be changed out more regularly
 
I use a towel with a fleece blanket over the top and have never had any problems with smells except a bit if i'm a few days late changing them but i usually sweep up daily and wash everything weekly. I've not tried pre-made fleece liners though.
 
I used to use back2nature but found the same thing, it's just so expensive. I've now invested in three sets of fleece which came to about £100 for my 3 x 2 plus 1 x 2 loft and I find it needs changing about every 3 days.

I bought premade liners with absorbent layers etc from ebay.
 
I was recently given some good advice & bought 2 looped bathmats which are brilliant and are saving me a fortune in wood shavings. I use one in the bed area and another to cover another large section & change them every few days for washing (just flap them clean each evening). The pigs love them.
 
I now use fleece with bath mats on top and washable puppy pads for the hay area. I absolutely loved aubiose but unfortunately it triggered my asthma, and made the kids cough as well. I used Biocatelet in the hay area but it would have worked out too expensive. I don’t have much experience with megazorb apart from the school guinea pigs having been bedded on it, but it led to itchy nose and throat for me.
 
I now use fleece with bath mats on top and washable puppy pads for the hay area. I absolutely loved aubiose but unfortunately it triggered my asthma, and made the kids cough as well. I used Biocatelet in the hay area but it would have worked out too expensive. I don’t have much experience with megazorb apart from the school guinea pigs having been bedded on it, but it led to itchy nose and throat for me.
Did you ever try using an air purifier with the aubious?
 
I use a combo of my own hand made cage liners ... fleece top and bottom with a middle layer of a incontinence bed mat - never smells and I change twice a week... I also use ikea bath mats with the fleece liner underneath... the hay doesn't stick much at all and pigs really like them as soft and comfy..
 
Did you ever try using an air purifier with the aubious?
No, I never thought to do so. If I remember correctly, I used it at a time when it was warm enough to open the doors and windows. I also used to wear a dust mask before starting and a little after is finished, but still reacted.

I didn’t think it was a good idea to continue with it, much as I loved it. If it were just me it would have been fine. But two of the kids have asthma, and mine returned (had it really bad as a child).

It’s a pity but it worked out in the end - I had tried fleece beforehand when they were still young ☺️
 
Darcey 15 - do you use an absorbent layer under your looped bath mat? I am using a lot of wood shavings and wonder if it might be the way forward for me.
 
No, I never thought to do so. If I remember correctly, I used it at a time when it was warm enough to open the doors and windows. I also used to wear a dust mask before starting and a little after is finished, but still reacted.

I didn’t think it was a good idea to continue with it, much as I loved it. If it were just me it would have been fine. But two of the kids have asthma, and mine returned (had it really bad as a child).

It’s a pity but it worked out in the end - I had tried fleece beforehand when they were still young ☺
Yea shame about the asthma, aubious is real cheap aswell for what you get. It makes me nose sting, but only when I first open the pack. My wife has just been diagnosed with asthma, but it's cats that she can't be around and any dusty surfaces, that's why I bought the air purifier as a back up bonus thing. It's for the rats too because they seem to be have breathing issues mildly
 
Darcey 15 - do you use an absorbent layer under your looped bath mat? I am using a lot of wood shavings and wonder if it might be the way forward for me.
Yes, puppy pads. I started with wood shavings but they were clean so didnt bother again 😊 works a treat & even the pads are pretty dry at the weekly clean.
 
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