Fleece v Loose Bedding - HELP ME DECIDE

[CaptainMarvel]

Okay, I know there are MANY discussions here on this topic - and I have tried my best to read through many of them in effort to try to figure out whether or not I want to switch over to fleece for my C&C'd cavys (2).

I see a lot of back-and-forth/pros-and-cons with regard to fleece - which makes the decision somewhat confusing,
- its easy to clean .... not so easy to clean
- it smells .... doesn't smell much
- hay sticks ....


We've been using the tried-and-true traditional cage bedding (i.e. the soft loose bedding we get at PetsMart) for some time .... but, obviously, it's quite difficult to find and "spot clean" poops daily (or even every other day). And as I look through the photos of people's cages here, I see A LOT of fleece lined cages. So, I've been giving it some thought - but I also don't want to waste money if it's more of a hassle than it would otherwise appear (the ole' "book by it's cover" cliche')


So, I'm hoping that I can garner some quality insight and advice from those of you who are more "fleece" experienced than I - whether it be pro or con.


THANKS IN ADVANCE !!

[mufasa]

What kind of loose bedding are you using? I use white Carefresh, which makes it very easy to spot soiled bedding and poops. Sometimes a little TOO easy, as I swear I top out the cages and five minutes later they're riddled wiith black bullets again.

[CaptainMarvel]

What kind of loose bedding are you using? I use white Carefresh, which makes it very easy to spot soiled bedding and poops. Sometimes a little TOO easy, as I swear I top out the cages and five minutes later they're riddled wiith black bullets again.

I think that may be the brand (I'm not home right now to check) ... though we use the "grey" colored bedding. Very soft/absorbant - but the poops seem to like to hide.

[lissie]

It's a personal preference. You won't know until you try. Do you have any old fleece blanket and towels that you can test out first? Some people use fleece in the whole cage. I never liked using fleece in the hay area so I use loose bedding there.

[abi.25]

I've recently changed to fleece,
my cage is: plastic sheeting>cotton sheet>u-haul pad>fleece
the fleece has velcro sewn on it to attatch it to the cage which has a velcro border. I've found this works great because its easy to clean out and doesn't smell for up to a week, plus the pigs can't dig under!. i have a hay rack hanging over a guinea pig version of a cat litter box (I'm attempting to train them to use the litter box, its not going well!) this catches all the hay and stops it sticking to the fleece!, hope this helps

[Xw0lfie]

I used to use carefresh but then finding out covering 2 huge cages became quite an expensive buying 3-4 of the biggest carefresh bags a week.

SO i switched to Cage liners which just is the abosorbant material sandwiched inside fleece I had made by Cobb Cabin Crafts on Etsy. Never hadd an issue with smelling or cleaning, I can leave the liners in there for about 1 week and a couple days.

I did not like the newspaper-towel-then fleece too tedious for me to change . And my guys like to burrow I even tried to clip it to the sides but then I had to unclip it all..and you get the picture.

Takes me 5 minutes to clean each cage with my liners.

[turcoworld]

well, I started out with the loose,then went to fleece and im staying with it. alot easier,I think,but true,you need two try both for you to chose.

[pinky]

Fleece is less expensive but more labor intensive. I use fleece in my cages but would use Carefresh or Fresh News if I only had one cage. I have 8 guinea pigs in 4 separate groups so fleece just ends up being cheaper for me. I'm particular about the cages being clean so I shake out the fleece two to three times a days and brush up droppings in between. I change the fleece every two days so it's clean. They're in my dining room so I don't want any mess or odor in there.

[CaptainMarvel]

I built/have a two-level cage for my two critters - basically an exact replica of THIS CAGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://bluestonecommerce.com/images/...lstore 044.jpg

Front opens on both "habitat" levels - as well as the top on the top level (as the image depicts).

The cage resides in our attached garage - the door of/to which from our apartment is always open. So, unless the smell is amazingly intense, I'm thinking it won't be too much of an issue. Heck, our two (covered) cat litter boxes (for our 3 cats) are in the garage as well - and smell is not generally an issue with those . . . VIVA LA ARM & HAMMER DEODORIZER !!!

[Kstyle]

Oh man! Awesome responses on here! I used Carefresh for about a year or so and then I built a C&C mansion and it was VERY costly to keep the carefresh going so I thought -- if I use my Carefresh money to buy fleece (using 40% off coupons from JoAnn Fabrics) for a few months I will be stocked up. I actually spend less on the fleece every two weeks with the coupons!

Now I have plenty of fleece and, lets face it, cage cleaning takes time any way you do it so I haven't increased any in time-factor. I do have hay sticking to the fleece but I empty all I can into the trash and then shake it out in my front yard before washing on hot-hot in the wash with NO fabric softener.

Long story short - I love Fleece!!!
Oh and the piggys love the Dallas Cowboys and UT Longhorns so their fleece reflects that!

[littledinobug]

Fleece, it's cheaper in the long run.