Need Anti-Smell advice.

[Fay]

I have 3 pigs in a 2x5 and I'm having some smell problems. I use fleece bedding with towels underneath, I used to also put newspaper under that but that makes it smell even more. After cleaning the cage it already starts to smell after two days or so. I spot clean about once to three times a day. I'm really worried about the smell al though I clean every 4 to 7 days it just smells pretty bad after some time and when I pull the towels out during cleaning they are all pretty soaked up. I'm worried that not only me but also the pigs are bothered by the smell and that unclean feeling but cleaning it entirely every other day is too much for me too handle. They themself start to smell pretty quick after having a bath as well, I try limit bathing them but they just smell so bad after a month or so! What can I do to limit the smell?

 

[Maisiepaisie]

Is it definately a urine smell or something else? Boars give off a smell that sows don't which can be very strong. If it is urine maybe one of them has an infection. I used to have a pig called Ginger who had a persistant UTI that made the cage smell very quickly.

 

[Fay]

its a urine smell and I have 3 sows, but they always been this smelly.

 

[Terekins]

Hi Fay!
I recently added a shaving/hay portion to my cage. I have two 2x4 levels and one half of the upper level is where I put their food and hay, and it's just shavings. I immediately found a different in the amount of pee spots and the smell. It seems they like to pee in the shavings primarily. I only have a corner on the bottom level where they seem to go sometimes (Oda and his pee corner!).
You could also try a litter tray and put it near their food and water. Have you washed your fleece a lot? It seems strange that they would pee so much eh?

 

[caribear]

I use pine bedding throughout. I do have fleece in to. She generally uses it to play under & get cozy w/. I just clean the pine daily(take out wet spots & clean floor w/ water & paper towels) & also take out the poos as I see them. I really like using the pine. It is messy to take her out but I just sweep/vaccum chips up ALOT. It is so aborbing & easy to just change where it needs it. (she has only 1 area that is like the bathroom for her-she doesn't even go potty on the floor when out)I don't care for just the fleece/towels, it gets peed on. Maybe I am anal but I feel once the fleece/towels gets peed on once, I take it out & wash it. That for me is too much, I have enough to do running the household.

After about a week I empty the cage & clean the floor w/ vinegar(it still looks clean though it's just for good measure-I am somewhat anal). Once a month a bleach cleaning. I don't have a smell @ all, she smells like the bedding. I know people swear by the towels & fleece but for me I don't like the idea of all that pee staying on there. I would be washing the towels/fleece really every time she pees. I know I'm anal-my husband tells me so, that's just me & what I do to keep our GP clean & tidy. Good luck w/ it.

 

[Fay]

we hade wood shavings before and it's just so messy and it would get stuck everywhere and not to mention it was really expensive! It's not really an option right now.

 

[wolfie]

I use crib pads, towels then fleece. I have a large litter box with Carefresh under the hay rack in the kitchen loft. Using extra pads or cushions was some of the best advice I have received. Try to find the areas your pigs most frequently urinate. Obviously under the hay rack, but probably in corners and under hideys. You can make them with a cut piece of crib pad, a hand towel and extra fleece. Some people just sew a piece of fleece to a small towel. I don't sew, so I have been just folding fleece around the layers. They work great. I can change them out every couple of days and only do a full change every 4 or 5 days without any smell. Even when I do a full change, the boys have rarely urinated anywhere else. One word of warning though, my boys have started burrowing under the layers, so now I have to wrap fleece all the way around the pad. At least until I solve my sewing dilemma! Hope this helps.

 

[Wheek Weak]

Fay-
Have you tried vinegar? I use it in the washer for the final rinse of the fleece and towels.

I also use a half-and-half vinegar/water solution in a spray bottle for cleaning the coroplast and grids. I still get some smell after a couple of days, but I notice a huge difference between when I clean with vinegar and when I don't.

 

[katiecavyNC]

I use cheapy cat litter pans with a U shape cut out in the side and fill those with yesterday's news about 2". I put their hidey huts inside these pans and also feed hay/food in the pans. They do most of their pee-ing in the pans and the YN soaks it up pretty well. I also use one layer of fleece directly on top of a single layer of adult diaper type underpads. I can get a huge case at Sam's Club for about $30 that lasts about 6 months - much cheaper than buying the 'weewee' puppy pads.

Between using the pans for their hidey huts and feeding and using the pads under the fleece rather than towels, I can go a LOT longer between full fleece changes. I clean poops daily and dump out their litter pans weekly and only have to change the fleece about every 2 weeks. Even then, often I can re-use 1/2 the underpads as they will not have any urine on them at all.

This has helped completely eliminate a urine smell as long as I keep up the routine. Hope this helps!

 

[pdqgp]

Anyone use Bi-Odor ?

Have you looked into Bi-Odor ? It's an off-the-shelf product that a lot of folks I know who have ferrets use and swear by. In college ferrets were popular and litter trainable, but many still had accidents and it worked for them.

Anyone here care to comment on it? Just add it to their water. It's a combination of naturally amino acids from what I can see.

 

[PiggieMamaKelly]

Have you tried puppy pads? When I run out and just use towels or towels with newspaper the smell seems to be worse. Allegedly the puppy pads absorb odor.

 

[fourbwabbys]

Have you looked into Bi-Odor ? It's an off-the-shelf product that a lot of folks I know who have ferrets use and swear by.

Don't use it. Nothing should be added to their water. My friend tried it on her rabbit and it made him lethargic suddenly.

 

[jdomans]

I used fleece and went back to shavings. I have 10 pigs and it got too smelly too fast for me. I get my shavings from a feedstore not a pet store. HUGE difference in price and bag size.
You might want to sew some fleece and towels together to make cage liners and it would be easy to roll up, wipe out the cage, and lay a new liner down. If you made 3 or 4 you could wash 3 while using one and be more efficient with water and electricity. If I only had 3 pigs this is what I would do.

 

[Jenah]

Wow Fay - I'm sorry you're having this problem. And I can't really comment TOO much since I don't have an entire cage with fleece. And I'm sure it's easier to get the shavings here in the USA.

BUT - I think you may want to try the option that someone said about doing partial shavings and partial fleece. You may find that your girls pee more in the shavings and keep your fleece cleaner longer. And not be AS expensive as the full cage of shavings???

I have my 3x1 loft in fleece with towels and puppy pads - and my girls do most of their peeing downstairs in the shavings.

Hope you find a solution that works for you - good luck!