I forgot to mention that the front flaps on the sides are a little shorter than the back, instead of 11", it should be 10".
When I built it, it didn't really start with a template. It was kinda of adjustments here and there to make it fit together.
The bins under the hay rack is a plastic veggie bin. The kind that has a tub on the bottom and basket/strainer on top. I found them at local Chinese grocery store.
I love this idea! Thanks for taking the time to share! I will soon be remodelling the piggies' cage and I've been wracking my brain trying to find a hay/kitchen solution. I think this is it .
Thank you so much for taking the time to do this. I am sure my 4 boys will love it and I know that I will definitely love it. It will help so much with the cleaning!
Thank you soo much for this! I have made a little smaller version of this for my two pigs, and it works great! It's not as messy, it looks nicer, it's easy for the pigs to get the hay. My new baby pig loves it so much she climbed inside, the goo thing about that is it doesn't have the dangers of a grid rack, like I had before.
Just to clarify, I feed KM bluegrass so the hay itself is not dusty. The dust was caused by the pigs pulling the hay and rub the strand against the opening of the box. I take the box out and empty it weekly and wipe it down, but I still see small strands of hay inside the flutes.
hmm..craft little guys maybe you could make a washable fleece cover and use velcro on the inside to make it stay then the pigs cant chew the velcro. Oh and then it would be colorful! (=
I love this idea - I thought you must have bought the hay rack at a fancy kitchen store or something when I saw the pic! Thanks so much for posting the instructions!
One question - do the little veggie baskets tip when the pigs jump in? Mine are such gigantosaurs I think they might tip them over...
The veggie trays don't tip over. One end of the tray are underneath the hay rack. The hay rack prevents it frm tipping. I was also using heavy bedding (wood pellets) in the trays. So they are really heavy.
I gave the trays away though. It was kind of hard for me for weekly cleaning. Cardboard boxes work much better for me as I don't really have space to soak the trays. (only one kitchen sink and one bathroom sink with busy household)
Edit to add: This was the system I used before using the kiwi-tiles. After giving them away, I realized I could have got 2 sets and all my problems would have been solved.
When I bought the tiles, I got enough for 2 changes. Kinda like fleece sets, one for the cage and extra set while the other set is being washed. Now I soaked them in the kitchen sink while everyone in the family is asleep.