Fleece Under bedding! HELP!

[Levenn]

I am a new and proud owner of two female piggies that are 2 months old! There names are Ponyo & Ryoko! I have only had them for almost a week. I have a 2x3C&C with a 2x1 loft as there kitchen. As of right now my fleece under bedding is not ideal as I dislike using towels under the fleece and I can already tell its going to be a hassle and already can tell its going to smell more than I would like. (Only going to be washing bedding once a week)

I have been stalking this forum for a bit now and Ive seen a couple times that people have said you can use batting for a uhaul pad alternative..is this true? If I layer enough batting would it work? I am looking to make a "pillow case" fleece and stick some coroplast and the absorbent layers in between to make it so the piggies cant dig up the fleece and burrow under it...I've already had to clean up a wonderful mess in the corner of the coroplast because they managed to dig the towels and fleece up and pottied in the corner.. If the batting is a viable option then I could also make potty pads for the corners and hidey areas

I figured I would do this:

-Fleece pillow case
-under bedding
-coroplast for support
-velcro under fleece pillow case to attach to coroplast base to keep them from digging.

I just would like to figure out a good absorbent bedding that isnt going to cost me an arm and a leg, and that can be washed in the washer.
Thanks for any and all help I get!

 

[PiggieGuinea]

I wouldnt use batting. It seems iffy to me. Uhaul pads, matress pads, and towels can all be washed in the washer. I use matress pads, and even though they are super expensive, I love that I spent the money on them.

 

[Lasinalia]

You can wash batting (i wash my handmade quilts often) but really, use uhaul or a mattress pad for max absorbancy.

query: do you have a kitchen? My pigs 95% pee and poo in their kitchen (i use disposable litter there and serve water, hay, pellets, and veg ONLY there. I change my fleece n uhaul once a week (mostly just for hair purposes) and hand sweep the stray poops off the fleece once a day. I really ahve only noticed an odor when my kitchen gets cleaned every evening (when I get home from work). I'm using shredded paper at the moment (because I can get it free).

This is what my kitchen USED to look like. It works, but I was wasting fleece underneath so I put a coro insert across the width to create a full-width kitchen. 5" tall all the way and they jump in and out JUST fine. (I was a BIT worried...silly me...).

 

[Levenn]

Thank you for the replies. I do have a kitchen, its the 2x1 loft. as far as I know they still like to pee in the corners where they hide, But I will have to keep an eye on it. Now when people say mattress pads, they mean the pads used for people who wet the bed right? How expensive are they?

 

[PiggieGuinea]

I think so. The ones with a water proof bottom. Mine was probably 15-25 dollars. Not 100% sure on that though.

 

[Melissa123]

Battling really isn't the best at absorbing urine. I would stick to U-Haul pads or towels. U-Haul pads are very cheap and work very well.

 

[Inle_Rabbit]

Uhaul will work much better than batting and is cheaper. I also quilt and do plenty of sewing and there is no way I would use batting as the under layer for fleece. For those areas on the fleece where they potty often consider making pee pads. Just some Uhaul or other absorbent layer sandwiched between two pieces of fleece. Sew it up so that the pigs can't get to it. Then you can change those when necessary or at least dump the poos off of them easily.

 

[boofp]

Thank you for the replies. I do have a kitchen, its the 2x1 loft. as far as I know they still like to pee in the corners where they hide, But I will have to keep an eye on it. Now when people say mattress pads, they mean the pads used for people who wet the bed right? How expensive are they?

Go to ebay,,, search Reusable potty pads ... you can get a lot of them.... WASHABLE REUSEABLE AND ABOSORBANT... I think it would be great....

I want to use these but gotta get hubby to bbuy them for me. I also have a dog who uses pee pads so it would be awesome for both.

 

[NursePiggy]

I've just ordered some uhaul pads and adult incontinence bed pads from ebay. Until they arrive I have been experimenting with creating a fleece flipper w extra coroplast, puppy pad, towel, and fleece layer that I just binder clipped to the coroplast. Slipped it right over the bedding and it's where I have their 'kitchen'...so I do a daily poop scoop with just a latex glove 2-3x a day or when I am about to feed them their veggies....Plus I make sure the bedding runs up the wall in the corners they like to do their business and will clip them onto wall so they are not tempted to dig under...they also love to pee & poo under their hidey huts so I am putting potty pads in those areas. The base is a layer of the same thing I use for the fleece flipper that I used to meticulously clip up the sides of the base...but tonight I just binder clipped it together and layed it down with a tad extra on the sides so it is snug. So far I am liking this better...things lay flatter making it easier to pick up poop & hay...and I don't feel pressure to clean out the entire cage...just the kitchen flipper and the potty pads...and I noticed the urine smell is not as strong....but I know if I can replace the towel with the other stuff it might even last longer.

There was a thread started back in 2010 by Nichole (?) who appeared to be one of the first folks to really experiment with uhaul pads. It is about 8 pgs long but worth the read so you can hear all the different reactions about using them...bottom line is the majority of folks preferred uhaul pads over other absorbent materials. The greatest cons were: difficulty of finding locally...potential shrinkage...lots of lint....and depending on the particular quailty can sometimes get thin after several washings.... But those were the minority for most folks didn't experience this nor did they feel it deterred them from using uhaul because it was easy to cut, very absorbent (in some cases folks went as long as 10 days without really getting a heavy urine smell)...dries quickly...was as thin as fleece so it reduced the bulk....

The suggestion was use two layers of uhaul and one layer of fleece. Potty pads or newspaper was not necessary as you can easily wipe away any soiled spots on the coroplast with a little vinegar mixture.

The other helpful suggestion was to move their hidey huts around after a day or so to allow those wet spots a chance to dry so again reducing the need to change the entire bedding frequently...and replace the potty pads often. Speaking of which...I just made some no sew potty/cuddle cups that I am anxious to make with any extra uhaul materials...

Hope this helps!