What kind of mattress pad? If you use them...help!

[Barb1222]

So I am going to use fleece for the first time this weekend (yay!). I want to use mattress pads underneath. I read that they absorb odor well. What kind of mattress pad will work? I bought one from a thrift store and walmart, but they weren't absorbant. So I started to pay more attention to the fabric content and looking for cotton mattress pads. Found this one at target.com: 300-Thread-Count Mattress Pad - White : Target. Would this work? Have any suggestions or brands you can throw at me?

Thanks for your help!

[fiannah]

Hi
These are what I use and they a really good

140 Puppy Dog Trainer Training Pads 60 x 60cm for Pets on eBay, also Training Obedience, Dogs, Pet Supplies, Home Garden

I am just ordering my next laod in bulk and they arrive with in 2 days.
very good for smells too.

[Valerie B]

I tried fleece bedding and I had a problem with my pigs hiding under it. Then I used velcro to stick the fleece to the cage. But I noticed the poop and hay and etc would stick to the velcro making it not work after a while.
I used the thin matteress bad then I had sewed two pieces flannel together with batting inside like a quilt and put that on top of the pad. Then I used the sheep fur looking fleece { which works wonders}. I sewed two of them together like a pillow minus the stuffing on top of the flannel.
Maybe I made it to thick where they had a lot of thickness to find the end to get under. I would love to try it again but i am wondering if there is another way to keep them from getting under it.

[Peggysu]

To keep my pigs from burrowing under the fleece I just use a piece of loose fleece so they can hide under that and keep warm. They like and it keeps them from pulling up the sides. Some people use bricks in the corners. I'm sure you could figure something out. People use different toys as well to keep the fleece down so the pigs don't burrow under it.

[Barb1222]

I just put fleece and mattress pads in my piggies' cage. To keep them from going underneath it I make sure I have enough fleece to go over the side of the coroplast walls and I binder clip them there. I believe I read that somewhere on this site. Hopefully it works.

[Valerie B]

That is a great idea! Thanks

[Slave to the Wheek]

If you have a 3x4 grid cage, you can tear off the elastic sides of of a cal. king mattress pad (this one is an old worn out BeautyRest I had got at coscto) will fit perfectly inside the cage. Othewise they are super easy to cut up and just sew the sides to keep the batting from coming out in the washer.



Another REALLY great option is to purchase 'incontinent' bed pads. There are many online places that sell old USED ones for super cheap. It's hard to find them because they are called all kinds of things. Here's a website that sells them for whelping boxes, but people on ebay sell them as well. There are all different types and absorbencies to choose from as well.

Reclaimed Pads

eBay Seller: myboyswantasis: Home Garden, Business Industrial items on eBay.com

I recommend to ALWAYS attach the fleece to the cage floor. The amount of problems it solves is huge. For one thing, you can easily suck/sweep poo and hay and hair off the fleece when you clean it. This is a lifesaver on your washer and dryer. Another is it keeps the pigs from going under it. If you make do by just laying it in the cage, you end up playing with it constantly trying to clean it and adjust it and everything.

If you have high coroplast edges like mine, then you can't binder clip the fleece to the edges for obvious reasons. It won't lay flat. So I hand sew fleece strips onto the fleece and tie it down to the cage floor. The same way you would tie down a chair pad. I simply slice about a 2 inch section of the coropolast where it bends and push the strips through.


Another option is to cut an extra flat piece of coroplast that lays inside the cage. Then you wrap all the bedding components around it, binder clip them to the flat piece, then just lay the whole thing down inside the cage. For me, that was too labor intensive..I'm just too lazy.

[Toadies]

I use picnic tablecloth clips from the dollar store. Works great!

[mom929]

Thanks for the great info. I'm looking into using fleece for my first piggie. Just got a great price on enough fleece to make 8 pads and then some for hiding. (spent $12 total - a lot cheaper than Carefresh if it works!) I just checked out the ebay seller you linked to in this post. Good idea for the incontenence bed liners. Of course my cage will be bigger than the 30' x 30" size of the whelping pads or bed pads. Do you just layer two pieces side by side, or do you sew them together to the exact size of your cage? Also, is there any difference between the puppy training pads and the incontinence bed pads?

Thanks,
Wendy

[Caviekisses]

Originally Posted by Slave to the Wheek

If you have high coroplast edges like mine, then you can't binder clip the fleece to the edges for obvious reasons. It won't lay flat. So I hand sew fleece strips onto the fleece and tie it down to the cage floor. The same way you would tie down a chair pad. I simply slice about a 2 inch section of the coropolast where it bends and push the strips through.


Another option is to cut an extra flat piece of coroplast that lays inside the cage. Then you wrap all the bedding components around it, binder clip them to the flat piece, then just lay the whole thing down inside the cage. For me, that was too labor intensive..I'm just too lazy.

Thank you so much Wheek for that photo and information! Btw, how high is your Coroplast?