How do you do floor time?

[SallyM79]

At the moment, our babies are still too shy to pick up so I want to start doing floor time so they can get more used to us. I can't work out how to do it in our home though. I bought some bars that clip together to keep them contained but the space isn't huge so I may need to order more. What do you put on the floor? I don't want them peeing on the floor but I don't know what to put down that means minimal clearing up time. I can only really do it at weekends - will that confuse them? Do you fill the space with their hidey holes and toys?

All tips and advice welcome

 

[PigglePuggle]

We have a bunny business playpen (2 joined together actually for 6 pigs!), and put the wipeable mats sold to put under baby highchairs on the floor underneath with newspaper on top. We have a different set of hidey houses and tunnels just for playpen time, also we make cardboard box houses with little doors cut in the side, filled with hay. Mine get playpen time twice a week for 4-6 hours on cage cleanout days. They seem to like the novelty, especially the change of hideys!

 

[Willow&Sky]

I have a safe half of the room where there are no electric cables in reach or easily damaged furniture. I block the other half off with an old ramp they never used and their big box of hay and whatever else I can find! I lay down a couple of 'guinea pig blankets' that are just for them so it doesn't matter if they pee and poop on them. Then put down a few tunnels sometimes with an extra blanket on top of the tunnels so they can run underneath it (which they adore!). I let them out every evening after work whilst i spot clean their cage. They can still be a bit of a nightmare to catch which is why id love to get an enclosure with a door to let them in and out eventually. Its all good fun and worth it though!

 

[RosemaryM]

I use a big waterproof groundsheet that I got from Amazon, blanket, pigloo and couple of beds/hideys. Under the pigloo i put a puppy mat or childrens bed mat. I use a couple of playpens that join together that i got from Pets At Home. They are great because you can make them whatever shape you want. I have my piggies out in the pen for 2 hours most evenings and most mornings for 30 mins - 1 hour. They have a ball in the pen sometimes but are not fussed about it and would prefer a cardboard box to chew.