The Fleece Project: The Study

[luvmyzoocrew]

i am very glad i gave in to my resistance of using fleece and tried it, i am now hooked. Everytime anyone on here would suggest it i would knock it down right away. Even after reading this i still wasnt convinced, it seemed like too much work, spot cleaning, whisking the hay off, and everything else that comes along with it, so wasnt i suprised the first time i used it. It doesnt smell, how can animals peeing and pooping on fabric not smell? So i have to thank this board for introducing me to this, and my piggies want to thank you too, one is an elderly pig and he appreciates it very much. I was so suprised at the instant love my pigs had for it. I put them in the first day and they were lounging all over the cage , they looked so comfy, laying on there side with there leg stretched out and that makes me happy. I want to appologize to anyone who has suggested fleece to me , i appologize for not even give it the time of day.

[ctinaw]

I switched to a C&C and fleece at the same time. I would have never even thought of this as an option if I hadn't seen it here! I was intrigued as soon as I saw photos of people's cages lined in pretty fleece!!! I *had* to check that out. I am so glad I did. It doesn't smell, it is environmentally friendly, it is much more clean and easy to clean and I'm sure the pigs will tell you how comfortable it is to live on!!

(not to mention that the girly-girl in me likes to decorate - I've already started creating seasonal and holiday themed sets of fleece, cuddle cups and sleep sacks! LOL)

[wheekypigs]

Originally Posted by Slave to the Wheek

If you sew extra loft quilt batting betweeen two layers of fleece, then you have what I am finding is Perfect.

I sewed pieces of fleece sewn into strings onto the sides (like a chair pad) to attach it to the cage floor.

It was a simple project that turned out to be perfect and solved every single problem I had. The hardest part was fitting 4 layers of high loft polyester quilt batting and 2 layers of fleece in the sewing machine. I had to go a bit slow, but it worked. I was really worried it wouldn't fit in the washer, but it's about like washing a queen sized comforter. It's smaller, but thicker. My cage is 3gridx4grids. Larger cages could be done with several of them that pull apart to wash.

• No more disposable pads newspapers, towels, or mattress pads
• No more fleece getting sucked up while I vacuum
• No more wet spots
• No more bricks or rocks or clips or tape to hold it down
• No more dealing with hair stuck to the fleece[FONT=Arial Narrow] since the fleece is held down tightly the vacuum sucks it up when I do the poo[/FONT]

I also made and bought some thin style fleece pads that I use under hidey's. I even made a thin one that is tied to the ramp. It catches the urine and washes with everything else.

It's never wet in more than one pee spot, and lasts over a week in a 2 story 3grid x 4grid cage with 2 pigs before it starts to stink like old urine.

Flipping it over midweek makes it even easier to keep the buildup off the top layer.

Hi there,

My husband and I just adopted 2 beautiful new piggies, and with the 2 we already had, we will have 4 piggies!! I am anticipating a whole lot of cleaning to do, because my piggies eat all day and poop all day! Right now we use pine shavings on top of newspapers, and I've recently put in a hay box to minimize the mess and the piggies get changed x2 a week. I would like to find a more efficient way to keep the piggies clean and comfy (i think the shavings are a little prickly for them).

I've been reading as much as I can about using fleece and am going to try it out for the first time. I am taken by your suggestion of sewing quilt batting(extra loft) in between 2 fleece layers (crossing my fingers that I get the right kind of fleece - I am thinking NOT Microfleece, but the really soft comfy kind 100%polyester that they sell as throws for about $20 at BBB).


Back to the quilt batting inquiry:

- How many layers of quilt batting do you use?

- Are they cotton? I don't know what quilt batting is, really, but so far I only seen cotton kinds online)

- would you be able to point out exactly where you bought your quilt batting? if you have the online store or retail store name etc. I really want to make sure I get the right stuff.


btw: This thread is really soo helpful in clearing any misconceptions and confusions I initially had about using fleece. Everything seems so much clearer now! Thank You! Tuppy's so cute and such a cute name too! I'm thinking of names for our 2 new piggies

[luvmyzoocrew]

Wheekypigs, i dont know where you are from but you can get fleece pretty cheap at Walmart, if you have a walmart that sells fabric. I can use i yard of fleece in my cage and i got 4 yards, in different patterns and colors, for under 15.00 so you might want to check there. Also walmart, and i have seen them in kmart, has the fleece blankets that you can sometimes get on clearance for 3.00. Good luck with the fleece, i have just switched over and it is great, i was very resistant at first but have seen how my boys just love it and i can tell they are so comfy i will never go back.

[wheekypigs]

Originally Posted by luvmyzoocrew

Wheekypigs, i dont know where you are from but you can get fleece pretty cheap at Walmart, if you have a walmart that sells fabric. I can use i yard of fleece in my cage and i got 4 yards, in different patterns and colors, for under 15.00 so you might want to check there. Also walmart, and i have seen them in kmart, has the fleece blankets that you can sometimes get on clearance for 3.00. Good luck with the fleece, i have just switched over and it is great, i was very resistant at first but have seen how my boys just love it and i can tell they are so comfy i will never go back.

Thanks luvmyzoocrew, I don't have a Walmart here, but I will get some from Hancock Fabrics,

My main concern is the underbedding. I am considering the quilt batting Warm and Natural from the Warm Company, although I think it mentions that it is a "thin based material"... I don't know how absorbent it is, although it IS cotton. The only batting I found that is described as 'extra loft' is polyester - is this ok?

[wheekypigs]

Okay I have things figured out! it only took an actual trip to Jo-Ann's to get it clear! *happy*

So now I have my batting and have prewashed it. I bought a lovely fleece(there were so many pretty choices I was almost paralysed with indecision! :P) and it is in its third cycle in the dryer. so far so good!

I'm so excited that the piggies are finally getting something nice and comfy to lie on! they really don't like the shavings, I can tell because they clear their hidey huts of the shavings to lie on the newspaper

yaaayyy!!

[KK<3cavies]

Originally Posted by fashion victim

I have some 4x4 fleece blankets from Walgreen's- they come bundled up into a small roll and cost about $10, and in K-mart I got a gorgeous one with Carebears for $13.

I just bought some today! They came 2 in a pack for $8!! They are a pretty lite blue with hearts!

Let me just say that I am new here and have gotten so much advice so far and I don't even have my piggies yet! I am working on getting everything together for their arrival! I had a "petstore cage" pretty much picked out, until I found this site!!!

[LadyBelle]

I just wanted to say thank you for this great thread. I have Amazon open in another window and was piling Ultra Carefresh into my cart in preparation for making my C&C cage. The cost was making me start to question if a piggy was really a good choice for the family. I buy small fleece blankets when ever I see them because I have found tons and tons of uses for them. So I just happened to have new fleece sitting around the living room all ready to use.

I am a quilter so sewing isn't to much of an issue. Now I just have to figure out what batting or absorbent material to place between the blankets.

[Jazz Mayhem]

Thanks for the info, that was a very informative post! Once the holidays have past and things have settled down a bit I think my piglets will be due for a home refurbishment!

[Jazz Mayhem]

So if you cut the fleece &/or towel to fit your cage, what about loose threads, do you hem the sides as well?

[luvmyzoocrew]

Originally Posted by Jazz Mayhem

So if you cut the fleece &/or towel to fit your cage, what about loose threads, do you hem the sides as well?

Fleece when cut will not have loose threads. As far as towels I would just fold them an place them so to advoid cutting them and having the loose threads.

[Cattiee]

Just curious, I work in a nursing home. When the pads we use under human rumps get faded or start looking bad, we toss them. They go through a LOT of washes. They have a flannel-like top layer, and a sort of "plasticy" feeling bottom layer to them. They too are meant to whisk away the urine from delicate skin. I'm just wandering if anyone has used/tried these?

Was curious as to if I could use these under a layer of fleece, seeing as how this is their purpose. But wasn't sure if it would be over doing it. Would this be like 2 layers of fleece? Double whisking? Only bad part is it would take quite a bit of tiling to them, or ripping and sewing. They're about 2'x2'. The place of employment has no objections to taking stuff that's going to the trash anyways. Cost effective for me!

I only have one pig currently and am looking to adopt or buy another. I also have a 4 year old and a 9 month old, so time is of the essence. As any one with little ones knows. And I'm tired of digging shavings from the baby's mouth. Anything I could just throw in the wash sounds worth a try to me!

OH and I forgot to mention ... I'm currently using a crappy and cramped up pet shop cage, and am trying to figure out if I can use just the wire with no coroplast. It was thinking fleece, absorbent material, and an old tarp, then placing the shelving wire over the fleece with a bit of an edge of fleece. I just can't find any place local that has any coroplast or anything even close to it. Just cardboard. Any issues with carpet here?

[Jenni_Feathers]

Originally Posted by Cattiee

Just curious, I work in a nursing home. When the pads we use under human rumps get faded or start looking bad, we toss them. They go through a LOT of washes. They have a flannel-like top layer, and a sort of "plasticy" feeling bottom layer to them. They too are meant to whisk away the urine from delicate skin. I'm just wandering if anyone has used/tried these?

Was curious as to if I could use these under a layer of fleece, seeing as how this is their purpose. But wasn't sure if it would be over doing it. Would this be like 2 layers of fleece? Double whisking? Only bad part is it would take quite a bit of tiling to them, or ripping and sewing. They're about 2'x2'. The place of employment has no objections to taking stuff that's going to the trash anyways. Cost effective for me!

I only have one pig currently and am looking to adopt or buy another. I also have a 4 year old and a 9 month old, so time is of the essence. As any one with little ones knows. And I'm tired of digging shavings from the baby's mouth. Anything I could just throw in the wash sounds worth a try to me!

OH and I forgot to mention ... I'm currently using a crappy and cramped up pet shop cage, and am trying to figure out if I can use just the wire with no coroplast. It was thinking fleece, absorbent material, and an old tarp, then placing the shelving wire over the fleece with a bit of an edge of fleece. I just can't find any place local that has any coroplast or anything even close to it. Just cardboard. Any issues with carpet here?

They might work, I'm not sure, maybe you could be our 'Guinea Pig' for us If it was double wisking it wouldnt work, because there would be nothing for it to abosrbe too. I used no cloroplast for a while, I used a contractor trash bag, they are heavy plastic and like 3ft by 5 ft. I just put it on the floor (spread out) and then put the fleece and underbdding on top of it and then I put the wire sides on it, I was just to be sure all plastic was covered and my plastic eater (Charlie) couldnt get to it. Here is a picture of it, I also didnt use grids I use wire shelving that we had left over from when we re-built our house. I dont use this cage any more, I now have a 2x8 true C&C cage
Here is the picture of the plastic/shelving/fleece one
http://www.guineapigcages.com/photos...00/ppuser/6820
Cardboard wouldnt be good since the pee would soak right through.

[piggly wiggly]

Cattie, those hospital pads you are talking about, are exactly what I use. They do work. My father gets them for me from where he works, and they are really absorbent.

[WheeksUnlimited]

I am still a little confused on what type of mattress pads to use. I bought my first one at Wal-Mart and cut it to fit my 2x5 CC cage. I have two males who pee a lot in their sleeping area. The pad is 100% polyester with a quilted top. The urine will only absorb where the sewing thread is. So I bought a different pad, not quilted, with a microfleece top, and regular polyester bottom. It seems to do better on the top, but urine doesn't wick thru the bottom, so I can't double it. I also have been using towels on top of the pads, but I seem to always be replacing them. I also bought the Gerber cloth diapers, but again I am always changing them. I use one layer of fleece, but I usually have to add a second to keep the areas from staying damp.

In a couple of weeks, I will be adding two more adopted males to the mix and will have a much larger cage-4x5. I expect I will have the same issues. Do I need a cotton topped mattress pad so I can layer, or ?? Help!

[firstguineapig8]

I have heard that you can get a foam bedding to make it more of a flat surface. Just be sure to put one of those water proof covers on it and then the towels and fleece. They wrote that at that point you can totally tuck the fleece underneath and it would be too much of a chore for the piggies to get under it. They tend to give up even trying.

I have not tried it yet but I am getting our first piggie soon and will be doing this.

good luck.

[LadyBelle]

I saw where someone had the same question I did, but I didn't see an answer.

When using batting, do you just use one layer between the fleece? Does the batting need to be washed on it's own first, or would it fall apart and you should wash the blanket all at once after sewing? Is the 100% polyester batting they sell at Walmart ok for this use, or should I be looking for an all cotton batting?

[firstguineapig8]

For myself, I think I am going to use the harder foam that you can cut to the exact width and length of the cage. I will be doing the foam in order to give the fleece blanket something strong and not flimsy to wrap around on.

I am going to wrap the foam in a waterproof covering just in case. but it really should not get wet because I will have several layers on top. I will put wee wee pads on top of that, then layers of towels and then wrap everything in fleece. I think the bulk of the mess will be right on the towels. If for any reason it seeps through..then the wee wee pads will be there just in case. I think you can find those for $25 for 100 of them. So that's not bad.

The biggest thing I have heard about fleece is to make sure you wash it several times to make it able to let wetness seep right through it onto the towels. Then once a week I will wash the towel and blankets. I will always have a backup too.

Hope that helps. If anyone has more suggestions or better improvements..do not hesitate to add those in.

thanks

[ladunn8@comcast]

Thanks so much for all this wonderful information. I can't wait to get something together!

[firstguineapig8]

Can I ask why you are using batting?

I'm just curious since I would think the most important thing to use under the fleece is something absorbent like towels.

thanks