What do you put on their cage floor?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Joeychan
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
J

Joeychan

I've seen so many different materials for the bottom of the piggies cages and was wondering whats best. Currently I have sheets of newspaper on the bottom then a layer of meadow hay. I put some hay in theire house aswell.

Is this ok to do or should I try something else?
 
Right now I use CareFresh and newspaper. It works really well for me. In the past I've used newspaper with hay (like you do now) and towels. Both of those things worked well too as far as the piggies go, but they were bad for my allergies so I had to switch. What you are using is perfectly fine if it works well for you. Piggies love living in piles of food.

-kkat
 
I've tried wood chips, makes them sneeze a bit, paper shreds gets a bit soggy, carefresh, too small a bag.

Am just awaiting a delivery of Megazorb, so will let you know :D
 
I used wood chip but Misty has an allergy so then I used hay but it wasn't absorbent enough.. So the guy in the pet shop said I should try wooden cat litter pellets and it's been the best so far.
 
I don't really like wooden products like wood chip, shavings or cat litter pellets etc as they can cause respiratory problems and may aggravate skin problems.

Hay and papers is very good bedding. If you want something more absorbant there are things like Russell Rabbit bedding which is lovey soft chopped straw. Other options are megazorb, medibed and Aubiose which are all horse beddings.

Whatever bedding you use there needs to be fresh hay available for them at all times!
 
I have a huge bail of wood shavings that I use for the bottom of the hamster cage and was wondering if I could use these for the bottom of their cage. Reason I'm asking is that the new cage I'm building is 5ft x 2.5ft so a bag of hay won't last long.
 
Shavings alone is not recommended.

I have a bin liner, newspaper, small covering of shavings, hay and shredded paper.
 
Hay and Paper is just fine... perfectly safe for piggys and they love it. I you ae wanting something more absorbant that is still pig safe try megazorb- its a paper pulp product used for horse bedding you can get it in huge sacks from agricultural suppliers. I grabbed a phonebook hinking nobody would have it and the first place I rang did at just over £5 for a huge sack. So give it a go. Otherwise there are a few other safe absorbant things, carefresh, aubiose, vet bed (like fleecy bed).
 
Joeychan said:
I have a huge bail of wood shavings that I use for the bottom of the hamster cage and was wondering if I could use these for the bottom of their cage. Reason I'm asking is that the new cage I'm building is 5ft x 2.5ft so a bag of hay won't last long.
Click to expand...

do like i do and buy your hay from a farm mines £3 a bale and last me ages and I do have 33 pigs in 2 sheds with hugh runs so need a hguh supply hubbys even built me a seperate shed for hay storage, on top of thick papers I get from locals mine are happy piggys
 
i was thinking of buying a bale (as long as I can find somewhere to keep it) but do you get problems with mites more than you would with petshop hay?
 
Personally where I live the baled hay is much better quality, than what I can buy in Petworld the last bagged hay I got was horrid and quite dusty.

didn't use it and took it back

at least the bale you can sniff before you buy haven't had anymore probs with mites

karen
 
never have any of mine had any problemns with mites except one pig who I brought and he already had them but ivomec got him clear, I have found a dead mouse in the hay but the good outways the odd mouse and would never use anything else, the pigs love it, no dust just sweet smelling fresh hay, you cant beat it
 
ugh! think that might put me off.

although my last bag of hay from the pet shop has been awful. so dusty and bitty.
 
I use newpaper and hay too for my piggies, also straw when I can get it and Bed Xcell on the bottom. It is like chopped cardboard and very absorbant. I have ponies so I have all these things anyway. I have never fouund anything dead in my hay yet but wil be watching out now, lol!
 
I use newspaper or sometimes the free papers that sainsburys have on the way out.. it seems a little thicker than ordinary newspaper... I then put shredded paper down sometimes, as they love to play in that and i use Hay.. I havent really had any problems from using PaH hay yet... :)

x
 
I use carefresh over newspaper. funny you should say that, barmy4 bears, I found a mushed up bird in the forage from p.a.h.! It was yuk. I now use gloves when putting my hand in the bag I can tell you. :o
 
Barmy4boars said:
I'm still getting over the dead mouse story! :(
Click to expand...

if you have use fresh farm meadow hay you have to be a tough old bird like me when it comes to wildlife burrowing in the stored hay in barns when it comes to you after a while being stored its likely to have all sorts in it, but to get it fresh I am willing to find the odd dead mouse, I do throw away the bit it was in and soppy old me I also bury the dead mice, they are tiny little field mice and to be honest you risk it in most hay you buy,
 
Hi use shavings underneath then a layer of newspaper (keeps shaving away from pigs skin) then lots and lots of hay seems to work OK.l
 
michellemuffin said:
Barmy4boars said:
I'm still getting over the dead mouse story! :(
Click to expand...

if you have use fresh farm meadow hay you have to be a tough old bird like me when it comes to wildlife burrowing in the stored hay in barns when it comes to you after a while being stored its likely to have all sorts in it, but to get it fresh I am willing to find the odd dead mouse, I do throw away the bit it was in and soppy old me I also bury the dead mice, they are tiny little field mice and to be honest you risk it in most hay you buy,
Click to expand...

On the subject of mice, does anyone know if they harm guineas? I've had mice coming into my guinea shed for quite a while now (I've found their droppings). The guineas live loose in there - I've never seen any evidence of bloodshed. I haven't worked out exactly how they get in - must jump up into the outside hutch and come through the entrance the guineas use to get into the shed. Mind you, we've had them in our larder and they live under our kitchen floorboards - perhaps I shouldn't have admitted that!
 
We get plagued by mice in Autumn and last year my son thought he'd seen a rat so pest control came out and they said mice only need a hole bit enough to fit a biro pen into in order to get in, so it's pretty much impossible to stop them.

Dreading this time of year, we had them everywhere last year and we're doing the house up so there's holes everywhere.
 
A biro? Blimey! That's a small hole! Our house is really old and there are holes everywhere. We had mice in our larder so I put down a 'friendly' trap with cheese in. I'd come down in the middle of the night and take the trap (complete with mouse) down to the bottom of the garden to an old shed where I think they live. I did this several times. When I told them at work I was the laughing stock for ages - they were all convinced it was the same mouse who was onto a good thing - it came up for its dinner, then got a lift back down the garden to its home - I'm still getting teased now. Never mind, I can stand mice but don't mention spiders!
 
Yes it is a small hole! I like mice too, had 2 pet ones a while back. However we had mice everywhere and it wasn't nice and I went right off them. My little boy had one scampering around his bedroom at night, ate his collage ;D, but he was really scared of going to bed. Last night we got into bed and heard a scratching and thought, not again! They were on the worktops, popping up through holes in floorboards, running past and going back down. Droppings everywhere. I used to collect teddy bears (stuffed ones not guinea teddies!) and they ate some of their clothes, it was a complete nightmare. We tried live traps but they just didn't go in. Pest control put poison down but they didn't eat it. In the end we set snapper traps which was awful, we caught 2-3 a night for about 3 weeks. The downside of living backing onto fields I guess whilst doing up a house which is a dump with loads of holes. I keep wondering about a cat, but we live on a main road and really can't face losing a cat on it.
 
As long as your little boy doesn't say the mice have eaten his homework! What a great excuse. I expect if you're doing loads of work on your house the mice will probably move out in time. I had 2 fancy rats a couple of years ago (yet more unwanted pets) and one got out and got under the floorboards. She kept poking her head out of the meter cupboard - she was very nervous so wouldn't come out - we ended up sitting on the floor in the half dark one night with a stick ready to slam the door shut behind her once she came out - luckily she did!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top