UK Newbie!

[greenbeans]

Hi, I'm greenbeans! I'm new to all this, so I'll be asking lots of daft questions and generally making a nuisance of myself for a bit!

I'm thinking of getting 2 pigs from a rescue. I kept pigs as a kid and now I realise I was doing it all wrong- buying from a petstore, keeping in an outdoor hutch, keeping them with bunnies etc.

I want to house them properly this time! It seems the C&C route is quite expensive and tricky to source in the UK.

I was thinking a 2 by 4 grid, with a 'roof' to stop the cat getting in. Please can I have your advice:

1) Is this big enough? (my house is tiny)
2)where is the best place to buy materials for this and how much do I need to buy? (and how much will it cost?)
3) what extra things do I need to think about buying?
4)any other words of wisdom for a newbie?

Thank you so much!

[daftscotslass]

Welcome!

Read the other threads on the UK part of the forum and this will tell you roughly where you can get the grids/plastic now and how much it costs. You will also need food bowls, hideys, water bottles and some sort of bedding. Wood shavings are not advised as they can cause a lot of skin problems - fleece and a bedding called megazorb are good alternatives.

2 x 4 is an ideal size for a pair of piggies, glad you're thinking of rescuing.

[greenbeans]

Thanks for the tips, will make a note of those items.
(I looked at your gallery and your pigs are gorgeous! And that wigwam is really cute too. )


I've had a quick read around and it seems Robert May and Screwfix are the only 2 possibilities for grids at the moment. Does anyone know which is the better option? Also I notice Robert May do mesh shelving- could I use this as a roof to close the pigs in?

[Maisiepaisie]

Hi Greenbeans and welcome to the forum You can use the mesh shelving or grids for a lid. Someone was saying in another thread that the grids will be in B&Q again in the next few weeks and are available to order now. They were only £9.99 last year so cheaper than the other places.

[greenbeans]

Thanks MaisiePaisie, thats a good idea.

B&Q does sound a lot cheaper- half the price in fact! (if the packs are the same size grid?)

Anyone know if they on the B&Q Website at all?

[JarBax]

Hi greenbeans. Great to hear you're doing all this research before rescuing your pigs!

Had a quick search of the website, but couldn't find them. I reckon they'll only be on once they are in the shops - though it would be worth your while asking, and regularly checking. Hope it's soon!

[muffin]

Hi and welcome. It's always great to see another UK member! I've found that the price of coroplast varies. It's often called correx here. Describe it as the plastic version of corrugated cardboard that estate agents' 'for sale' signs are made of and they should know what you mean! It comes in 8 foot by four foot sheets and I've found looking up signmakers in the yellow pages the best route to finding it. One near me wanted to charge £20 for one sheet, because they didn't have it in stock, and some places might deliver for a fee. I have a car so I went across town and got two sheets for £16. It depends where you get it. It's hard to fit into an average car in the big sheets. If you have to cut it smaller you can join it with duct tape or it folds. I've had no success with rolling it up! I think the thickness is about 5 millimetres. An 8' x 4' sheet is plenty for a 2x4 grid cage. Hope that helps.

[greenbeans]

Hi, thanks for the welcome

that is very helpful info, thank you Muffin!

( 8' x 4', right, I'm noting all this down!)