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Where do you buy bedding for guinea-pigs?

8 replies

LordOfTheFlies · 08/10/2011 01:29

I'm pricing up : paper cat litter - I've seen wooden pellet litter but if it's scented (pine) I wouldn't in case it irritates
nice hay to eat -to go in a hay rack
soft hay for bedding

I plan to recycle any plain paper, not newspaper, in the shredder for bedding as well.
And use thick rubber matting ( non carpet car mats) on the wooden floor to be insulating and non-slip.

Pets at Home/ pet shop/ The Range/ supermarket ?

TIA

OP posts:

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WorzselMummage · 08/10/2011 20:49

We just use a local petshop, mines on shavings and it goes straight in the recycling.

I don't use hay for bedding, it goes in a rack as they wont eat it when it's been wee'd on.

We made a GP house out of an old plant pot, upturned with a door cut in, Gp aren't expensive.

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JohnnyRod · 08/10/2011 23:33

You can get wood pellets for litter from Pets at Home etc. as cat litter, unscented, we use this for our bunnies with some shavings over the top, very absorbent. Newspaper underneath, though maybe cavies eat the paper, our hamsters did too and were fine. For bedding WM is right, they need separate forage. hay is probably fine, we buy it a bale at a time from a farm, it's typically £3-5 a bale (big suitcase size), you need a garage/shed to put it in though! It's loads better than the bagged stuff in shops though, they devour it. If you struggle with prices for this stuff then look up farm supplies outlet shops. Re. flooring, not sure about cavies but everything gets chewed so no rubber. lob in some shavings and/or hay and soon you'll find out how they like their hutch arranged!

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LordOfTheFlies · 09/10/2011 00:06

The floor of our proposed pig palace is wooden.
Would I be as well using thick layers of newspaper and change daily/every other day.?

I was going to give them shredded paper and bog standard hay to bed in then have a hay manger with the nice sweet meadow hay outside of their hidey-house.

My GPs I had as a child liked this arrangement. I know they pee/pooh in their bedding (filthy little monsters!) but eat alot before it gets grubby.
And if they've got enough hay they shouldn't ingest too much paper.

We've got a saddlery near us so I was going to try Megazorb ( 85 litre bag but I've got a garage) and I could use this when they come inside in winter. They would be in the kitchen/dining room at night.

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JohnnyRod · 09/10/2011 00:32

Deffo have a manger/hay rack, we find the bunnies eat all hay "designated" for eating i.e. hay rack (by litter tray, which they mainly use believe it or not!) and stuffed toilter rolls. They also eat bedding hay but only while it's fresh, they do wee in there from time to time. It's like grass/lawn so not too bizzarre! They'll chew and eat a little of everything including the hutch so best to keep anything iffy away completely. F knows what Megazorb is, sounds like an extreme sport, just give it all a go, soon enough you'll know if thye're happy. If they trash everything in 10mins then they're not happy. If they trash it overnight, that's normal. Do they need to live indoors? Again I can only say for bunnies, ours are outside during BST then in the garage during winter time just to give them some protection, thye're tougher than we are.

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workshy · 09/10/2011 00:55

don't put them on newspaper

they chew it and it poisions them

I use the wood pellets, much better than sawdust and my piggies seem quite happy

they have hay for bedding which they tend to eat and they have broccoli, carrot etc everyday

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silver73 · 09/10/2011 23:07

Never let sawdust near piggies it is very very bad for them. I use megasorb and it is so economical. It costs about £8 a bag and one lasted 6 weeks with my three pigs being cleaned completely every 3 days.

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DoesItWearingWellies · 13/10/2011 21:32

I agree with silver about using MegaZorb. Some saddleries/tack shops/feed shops/stables sell it (I'd also recommend getting hay in bales if you have somewhere to store them as you can get a lot for £5-£6, the same price as P@H large 'bale' but about 10x as much), otherwise, Millbry Hill or Farmways are the cheapest online retailers that deliver (Millbry Hill is cheaper if you have room for 2 bags, or Farmways if you can only store 1).

Even in pelleted form, sawdust contains phenols that can cause respiratory problems and even cancer so shouldn't be used as bedding for guineas.

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LordOfTheFlies · 13/10/2011 22:14

I've got a bag of Megazorb and a big bag of hay being delivered tomorrow.
Bought two rubber mats to go underneath.
Shredded loads of plain paper
Going to nab a load of cardboard boxes from work for little houses ( to get wrecked and disposed)
Hay rack for scoffing (will buy nice meadow sweet hay) and use big bag for bedding.
Lots of dandelions in garden (not been sprayed)

Just waiting for DH to do the pig palace then DD and I can get the food/bowls/bottles for my new babies her GPs.

Yay!