Need Bedding Alternatives, Please Help!

[Yorisou]

Hey all, so i'm in a little bit of a pickle with what to use as bedding.
I was using sawdust, but i have an allergy to it, and also the hay they eat. I switched to orchard hay and it seems to have helped although its a lot more expensive! But i'm still rather allergic to the dust with sawdust and i tried to just put up with it for as long as i could but i can't any longer.

I have two guinea pigs, they are separate for their own safety after previous scuffles.
So they are currently in a stacked 2x3 cage each.
I tried fleece a while a go when I only had the one piggy and I honestly didn't enjoy it at all, it got all stinky in a day or two because of all the wee. And this was with them lined underneath, plus i found picking up all the poops and then trying to wash the fleece a nightmare. I have enough washing to do haha.

I just went to the pet store and picked up a 30L bag of back to nature bedding for £13.. Now it just about managed to cover both cages, with a tiny bit to spare for a couple of spot cleans. 30L is the biggest they do, and honestly it is not cost effective and I just can't afford to spend £13 every few days on bedding!

I came across this


And i'm considering buying it, in a hope that 20kg will last a decent amount of time!
Has anyone else used this? I want to be sure before purchasing.

If not, can anyone please help me out and recommend some alternatives?

 

[Yorisou]

for some reason i can't get the link to work but its the ''
20kg Bales Paper Pet Bedding'' via amazon

 

[3 Musketeers]

Sawdust is terrible for guinea pigs, please never use it again!
I agree on the fleece, i also struggled with it
I would not use paper bedding, wee would destroy that, and cut guinea pigs.

I go for a really light cedar bedding, they are not shavings either, i cant seem to find a link though, and my boys never get infections ect over it, my vet says it sounds pretty good!

Definitely go for a huge bag on your next buy though !
This bag lasted me a long time!

 

[Jennybug89]

Sawdust is terrible for guinea pigs, please never use it again!
I agree on the fleece, i also struggled with it
I would not use paper bedding, wee would destroy that, and cut guinea pigs.

I go for a really light cedar bedding, they are not shavings either, i cant seem to find a link though, and my boys never get infections ect over it, my vet says it sounds pretty good!

Definitely go for a huge bag on your next buy though !
This bag lasted me a long time!

View attachment 70562

I use this stuff I find it quiet good though I'm now constantly go over it as she's runs around so much she kicks it out of the cage haha

 

[Flutterby]

Fitch bedding is a great bedding and I use it for my small animals. I have never tried it for my pigs though, as with having 16 its too expensive per bale to have down. I use chopped rapeseed straw which I find very good. Also Aubiose and other hemp based beddings are very good.

 

[Jennybug89]

My last reply made no sense. I really need to reread before I post! I meant I find this quite good but I find I'm constantly hoovering as she's always running around the cage and kicking it out the bars!

 

[Betsy]

My last reply made no sense. I really need to reread before I post! I meant I find this quite good but I find I'm constantly hoovering as she's always running around the cage and kicking it out the bars!

I knew what you meant @Jennybug89

 

[Lady Kelly]

I use aubiose which is hemp based. I buy 3 lots of 20kg each time I go and it lasts me a reasonable amount of time. I last brought 60kg on the 24th April and I need to go again this weekend. Usually I remove any dirty/wet stuff and sweep the clean stuff to one side while I clean the other part of the cage. I then move it over to clean the other side. Spread it out and top it up. I have a 2 storey 6ft hutch. Since my last purchase I have gone through it a touch quicker as I had a ringworm outbreak so regular binned all the bedding to get rid of the fungal spores.

 

[Emmamarie123]

I used to use back 2 nature but I also found it too expensive for all my piggies. I was buying the 30l every week and my bank definitely felt it !

At the moment I am using Fitch and I find it very good absorbency wise. It is also very easy to spot clean. I got mine in the 20kg bag also. I also use the Fitch bedding for my hamsters and they love it for building nests.

I am also going to try megazorb soon as I got a little to try. However be aware that it does have a sort of smell to it according to other forum members . I haven't used it yet so I will see whether I notice it the next time I use it.

I have also used aubiose as well and found it a very good bedding. (I did put a thin layer of back 2 nature underneath). I did however notice that my boys seemed to erm get it up there you know what lol. But its not the same for every guinea pig and it hasn't been a problem for me as I always check them to ensure it would never lead to impaction.

 

[rome_italy]

you have had a lot of new ides for your bedding. But I don't understand the reason why you have found the fleece so difficult to be used.
I also, like you, hate washing and tiding up the house (in fact I don't do it often...) and for this reason I find the fleece absolutely perfect and no cost at all (another very good reason because I am spending only some penny for my piggies so far).
Of course it is not for making you change your idea, but I want to show what I do:
first of all, as a floor for the cage I have put some old towels, so that the floor is comfortable:

these towels are always clean and dry.
On this layer of towels I have put a layer of paper (supermarkets' leaflets... I can get tons of them)

on this layer of paper (you can use newspapers as well) I put the fleece and the piggies can pee and poo on it. It remains dry because the fleece does not absorb the wet, but the pee goes through it and is absorbed by the papers underneath:

when I move the piggies to the kitchen for their floor time I remove the fleece, with leftovers and poo:

and I shake it on the floor:

with a simple broom all of that goes to the bin...
I put the fleece outside if there is sun, but it is not necessary because it is dry

when I want to wash the fleece (once or twice a week) I put it into the washing machine... with other laundry!
Before laying down the fleece again I remove the wet spots of the paper (maybe two or three leaflets, not more). I can also check the quality of the wee, if it has calcium residuals, because the paper shows exactly everything, also the colour.
You can also show the paper to the vet, if necessary...

Of course this is a job to be done every day, but I sometimes cannot do it every day and nothing bad happens... I have no smell in the living room where my piggies live and I don't spend any money for their bedding. Their fur is always dry and their feet are clean.

 

[Jennybug89]

you have had a lot of new ides for your bedding. But I don't understand the reason why you have found the fleece so difficult to be used.
I also, like you, hate washing and tiding up the house (in fact I don't do it often...) and for this reason I find the fleece absolutely perfect and no cost at all (another very good reason because I am spending only some penny for my piggies so far).
Of course it is not for making you change your idea, but I want to show what I do:
first of all, as a floor for the cage I have put some old towels, so that the floor is comfortable:
View attachment 70596
these towels are always clean and dry.
On this layer of towels I have put a layer of paper (supermarkets' leaflets... I can get tons of them)
View attachment 70593
on this layer of paper (you can use newspapers as well) I put the fleece and the piggies can pee and poo on it. It remains dry because the fleece does not absorb the wet, but the pee goes through it and is absorbed by the papers underneath:
View attachment 70597
when I move the piggies to the kitchen for their floor time I remove the fleece, with leftovers and poo:
View attachment 70592
and I shake it on the floor:
View attachment 70594
with a simple broom all of that goes to the bin...
I put the fleece outside if there is sun, but it is not necessary because it is dry
View attachment 70595
when I want to wash the fleece (once or twice a week) I put it into the washing machine... with other laundry!
Before laying down the fleece again I remove the wet spots of the paper (maybe two or three leaflets, not more). I can also check the quality of the wee, if it has calcium residuals, because the paper shows exactly everything, also the colour.
You can also show the paper to the vet, if necessary...
View attachment 70598
Of course this is a job to be done every day, but I sometimes cannot do it every day and nothing bad happens... I have no smell in the living room where my piggies live and I don't spend any money for their bedding. Their fur is always dry and their feet are clean.

You may be persuading me to change to fleece!

 

[rome_italy]

You may be persuading me to change to fleece!

I would build a monument to the owner who had the brilliant idea of using the fleece!
And my neighbours ( I live into a building with 42 families) are very grateful that I take for me the whole huge pile of leaflets left into the common mailbox every day

 

[flowerfairy]

I use fleece and hay trays. I out a hemp bedding into the hay trays (cat litter trays from poundland) and lots of hay. Most of the wees are in the trays which cuts down on how often I need to wash the fleece liners.