Fleece: The Fleece Project: The Study

[Ly&Pigs]

Fleece is not suitable for hamster bedding. They will chew it up and destroy it.

[eisaachsen]

Originally Posted by camende

I started out with long pieces of mattress pads covered with fleece. I used paver stones to hold everything down. Now I use mattress pads (or batting material that I got at the fabric store) that are sewn together with the fleece. Each pad is about 1x2grids or 2x2 grids in size. They are alot easier to deal with then the big pieces of mattress pads and fleece.

So the mattress pad replaces the towels and newspaper, right?

I was thinking about doing this, i.e., sewing fleece/padding sections that could be laid down edge to edge to cover the cage. Then if one section is more soiled than another, you could replace that one more often. Do you do anyting to securely fasten the sections together in order to prevent them from getting under them? I would think you could fashion a solution with velcro strips and have the sections slightly overlap and stick together.

[TikiTails]

i'm new here and have 5 wonderful piggies here at home with me. we are in the process of building them a mega housing area this weekend for them. i have used the cedar chips since april, and i found this forum about 2 days ago, since then, i have gotten rid of the cedar and put down fleece. not knowing how it really worked, i'm already sick of it . BUT, now that i have found this thread and read it.. i think i will give the fleece one more try in the new mega housing we are building to see how it works out. this definitely opened my eyes on how to use the fleece better. they are in pens right now with the tarp top on the bottom with fleece laid out.. oh yuck so, i'm looking forward to finishing the new mega house and trying the fleece the correct way! thanks again! (loving this forum!!)

[juliaaa]

I just got some fleece today, and I know it's best to wash it 2-4 times, but has anyone had problems with fleece that's only been washed twice? I've just finished my second wash, and I'm so eager to put in in their cage!

[wigglesgiggles1]

I would do at least four washes to break it in.

[vicky2]

I tried washing my Anti-Pill twice, and it didn't wick through at all. The third time really did the trick for my fleece.
Good Luck!

[juliaaa]

Thanks! I guess I'll wash it one more time for good measure

[wigglesgiggles1]

Yeah it will pay off. I know it is so exciting.

[juliaaa]

I know! I am really excited, but I decided to be smart and the fleece is now on it's fourth wash.

[wigglesgiggles1]

Cool. Let me know how it turns out.

[TikiTails]

what is wicking that you guys mention?

[Fudgenrolo]

Can I just say thank you very much for all this information? x

I got my Guinea Pigs from the rescue on Sunday afternoon. Thanks to all the advice on here my fleece is working perfectly and there are no 'damp spots' for the boys. I did exactly as instructed and washed the fleece four times before use and it's brilliant.

I wouldn't have had a clue about what to do nor would have felt nearly as confident in using it without all this information.

Currently I have layers of towels but I received my (delayed) parcel today containing machine washable incontinence pads which I am going to try underneath a layer of towels. I think they'll work just fine.

Sweeping the fleece is no problem at all.

I must admit that I had my concerns as I've never used fleece before and have always used 'traditional' substrate for my pets so I was a little dubious as to how it would all work but so far so good. So thank you!! x

[NikiE]

OK I want to make sure I understand this correctly...I put down newspaper or puppy pads, then towels and then fleece. How do I keep my pigs from going under? Do I make the fleece go over the 6 inch sides?

Sorry Im asking these questions but Im new to pigs and want to do my best with them!!

Niki

[HeatherBoo]

Wow, this is really cool. I'm definitely getting fleece for my new Pig's cage.

[wigglesgiggles1]

You could do just towels and fleece as news paper get smelly. You could use clips to clip it onto the coro or lay it flat. Wicking is when they pee on the fleece it goes down to the towels and the fleece stays dry.

[javim121]

Wow. This thread has explained so much. I am heading to the fabric store after work today. The plan is to get like 5 yards of fleece (in case i screw up) and some quilt batting and maybe towel material. I have never sewed before so this will be an adventure.

[distancel]

My fleece works well and looks great but it took a lot of washes and the laundry at my place has coin operated machines, so it turned into quite an expensive and lengthy process!

But worth it in the end although the piggers are driving me crazy they keep finding new ways to get under the fleece. Every few days I pass the cage and notice two pig sized lumps moving around under the fleece, and realise that once again they have outsmarted me.

I have like 20 pegs holding the fleece to the edges but I think I may need better clips for it if they manage to get them off again. Ah they just don't understand what a bad idea it is and are so cute and bewildered that I won't let them play their favourite game.

Apart from this I just love it.

[javim121]

Quick question: How much fleece will i need per liner? The c&c cage is 2 grids by 4 grids.

[javim121]

Ok i just ordered my sewing machine. I have never sewed before but i think i have the general idea down of how to do the liner. But it would be nice if there was a video of how they are made, stuck to this thread. Would help newbie sewers out on here. Again that is jsut my suggestion and request.

[vicky2]

Actually, I believe lissie has directions so you should pm her and ask for the link to her cage pads/liners.