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Considering Free-Range....

sdpiggylvr

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So I'm really considering doing free-range for my pigs. It's just such a hassle (for me) to have to do the fleece and towels each week and I only have one set. Plus, I don't really have money right now to buy a whole new set of fleece and towels, too.

Free-range seems like it would be a great environment for my pigs, and I have a good amount of space in my bedroom, where I spend most of my time. Problem is, the whole room is CARPET. How could I house them in free-range with carpet? I don't mind the poos on the carpet, that can be cleaned up easily, but the pee worries me. It would soak in and get all gross. How could I work around this?

I really know next to nothing about free-range...how does it work? For those of you who do free-range, what is it like, how well do you like it, etc.?

I have a 3x5 and I want to expand or make it a more interesting cage (for my two girls), and it seems rather plain right now. Free-range would mean a lot of space and not much work to make it nice. Another concern is, how loud are the pigs going to be at night when I'm sleeping?

I have a bathroom attached to my bedroom, perhaps I could have them go in the bathroom (it has marble floors) while I'm out of the house, and when I'm in the room they can go in the whole room. Would that work?

Free-range also sounds like it might be a lot of cleaning up with all the poos and pee and HAY. How could I contain the hay so it isn't all over? I mean, I know free-range probably isn't going to be the neatest but I don't want my room to look TOO messy.

Right now, the pigs do have free-range for about an hour each afternoon, which they love, but they poo and pee all over. I have newspaper down in the corners and the areas they like to "go" in, but I can't just have newspaper all over the whole floor for every day. What are your recommendations?

As you can see, I really need a lot of help and any advice you can give, all which is greatly appreciated!
 

Nicolene

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I really can't tell you, we do free range when we're home and our piggers are good about peeing in their cage (though they do like to poop under the tv console). So far we haven't had pees on the carpet, they keep running back to their cage to pee. However, I turned around in the kitchen one night while cooking and swiped a pig with my foot (luckily not hard!) and after that we've caged them during activities like cooking or when we have people over. They are SO easy to step on.

I don't think there is a way to prevent them from peeing on the carpet, especially if they already do it. Full-time free range may not be possible, but I'm interested in seeing the responses you get.
 

Silverbeat

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On my hardwood floors we use a plastic tarp. I don't see why it wouldn't work for you,as long as there's no holes in it.
 

LightningPig1

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I put a cheap shower liner for them and just lay some old newspaper on top (you don't have to put the newspaper down. The reason I do is because my shower liner is so cheap that guinea pig nails could rip holes in it. So if you don't want to go through the hassle of putting the newspapers down, I would get a little higher quality liner). It works great and very easy and fast to clean up. We have carpet also and this always works.
 

LightningPig1

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I normally just cable tie some grids together and they easily fold and unfold and I just circle it around the area.
 

sdpiggylvr

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So I have a 14' x 13' room that they can live in, but I need to figure out how I could work it out with the carpet. I can't litter train them. I could maybe find a couple tarps to put down or perhaps a bunch of shower curtain liners, but would I put anything on top of the tarp/shower curtain liners?

Also, they really like going under my bed but is that dangerous in any way? The space is plenty big, but I was just curious.

Part of me wants to stay with the C&C cage. I dunno why.
 

Silverbeat

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So I have a 14' x 13' room that they can live in, but I need to figure out how I could work it out with the carpet. I can't litter train them. I could maybe find a couple tarps to put down or perhaps a bunch of shower curtain liners, but would I put anything on top of the tarp/shower curtain liners?

Also, they really like going under my bed but is that dangerous in any way? The space is plenty big, but I was just curious.

Part of me wants to stay with the C&C cage. I dunno why.

You will need heavy blankets/comforters or towels and fleece on top of the tarp. If I were you I would set up a permanent floortime space for them. You can even make it an "extension" of their cage, and allow them access to it whenever you're home or whatever. I think that may work better for you than free-ranging in your whole room. That way they have a huge space that they can have access to whenever you prefer, and it'll be easier for you to clean up after them.
 

sdpiggylvr

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That's a great idea, except that my pigs live in a wide hallway and I can't make an extension. What I could do is have them in my bathroom, which is connected to my bedroom, when I'm not home, and when I am they can come out. Would that work? But then I'd have to clean TWO spaces. Gah.

I guess the idea of having my pigs out all the time is just unconventional to me, not that I don't think it's a great idea. I'm just having a hard time imagining this without thinking of all the cleaning up this will need.

I had them out for about two hours tonight in my room, with a shower curtain liner down with towels and fleece, and they stayed on the fleece most of the time. I only found four poos, and they were in the box I made as a sort of litter box. They stayed on the fleece and towels for the most part, which is a positive sign I suppose.

Do any of you free-rangers have any insight to share?

I really want to do this, but something is holding me back. :(
 

fresian.m

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When I attempted free range I just put down fleece and towels in various dark spots in my room, pig proofed, and let em' out. They did pretty well. They spent a lot of time on the fleece, only about 8 poops on the carpet. Of course my parents said no way to free range after about a day. :(
 

GizzyandMe

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Free range is not less work...maybe more.

Gizzy still went into her cage constantly to poop and pee and she taught herself that, I kept her food and litter box in the cage as is and I still cleaned it three times a week so you will still have to do your cage changes as often as per normal above and beyond cleaning other areas that your piggies might like to use as their litter box.

Gizzy is happy as long as she has three different areas with food and litter box, she likes corners that do not get a lot of foot traffic.

Now that Gizzy is on tiles she spends 99% of her time in her cage rather than out of it.
 

guineapig67

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I tried free range one day with my girls. They did pretty good, peeing in the cage. Although, they did poop everywhere except the cage! lol

I had a hard time cleaning it all up at the end of the day. I had fleece down in spots under hideys and hay bins. I bet they enjoyed it!

What I reccomend is putting towel/fleece under places that they will be at most (hay bins, hideys ect.) so that they might go pee on there. Also, have carpet cleaner (pet friendly) so you can clean any accidents up. When we were potty training my dog, we always had pet friendly carpet wash at our side!
 

LightningPig1

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You will need heavy blankets/comforters or towels and fleece on top of the tarp.

How come? I just put one layer of newspaper on top and they are fine with that.
 

lissie

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How come? I just put one layer of newspaper on top and they are fine with that.

I think because yours is only for play time. SD was looking to do full-time free range. Her pigs would be dirty if they live on newspaper the whole day.
I use fleece for my pigs play time too. Newspaper has stained the vinyl floor in my kitchen so I stopped using them.
 
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