Jings, it's parky. And nearly September. Thoughts turn to winterproofing The Super Furry Animals

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I nearly bought soft barley straw today to bank up round the piggies haybox.
Going to dig out the SnugglePad (and buy a new one. Three sets of guinea bum cheeks won't share one pad)

It's getting darker earlier now but I'm hoping they can have some more grazing time (the grass is long. If they don't mow, I have to scissor cut)

The shredder has shrugged off it's mortal coil, I was shredding loads of looroll tubes, I think it has gone on strike.

Sounds like the kind of scent my boys would love! They're smelling a bit ripe but I can't bring myself to bath Gingerpig and have him neutered all in the same week.

They spent the afternoon shouting abuse at me while I gardened. They weren't happy cos I mowed the lawn with the electric Guinea pig instead of leaving it for them to sort out.

It's turned nippy here in Darkest Essex , the piggies have put on a few ounces of winter fat (insulation) and got their winter fur coats on now

I will plan on giving them a quick bath this weekend if I can (the girls are manky , our boar has StayClean Fur)

Snugglepads and tons of hay is the order of the day now

Is this the snugglepad you use?

www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0014LJKUA/ref=pe_2223501_83780951_em_1p_0_ti

Thinking of getting one sooner rather than later!

That's the one

We don't use the fleece (they pee on it, maybe other animals are less manky ) a couple of sheets of newspaper to wrap and pushed under the hay does ours.

I think mine are due a bath now. Gingerpig has had to have another trim as his excessively long rear fluff just trails in everything but I think a bath is required to properly sort him out.

My boys have had indoor play again today. They were very excited by cardboard tunnels until Current Bun joined in and threw a tunnel across the kitchen. Scruffy took the opportunity to claim squatters rights in Current Bun vacated basket and Ginger just followed Current Bun around with his nose to Buns tail.

Thank you! I'll get one.

I've not given the pigs indoor play yet. They've still been outside most days but today was too cold and damp. The trouble is whenever they are out all they do is hide together in a tunnel until dusk when they ferociously attack the grass. Not sure what they'd do when given an indoor opportunity.

Where do you all get your igloo houses type things from? I'm after one that provides a fair amount of cover to keep them warm. Boys are now indoors at night but gp1 seems to have taken the underneath sheltered part to be his and his only, so other poor gp is in the other shelter, but I don't think it gives enough all round protection for him and I worry he'll be cold in the winter.
P@h doesn't seem to have much to offer.

millimat I got some garden trugs (flexible rubber, got one that's 20l and a bigger one , I think 50l) chopped off the handles, turn upside-down and cut a doorway.

Washable, long lasting.

I bought a gorgeous wicker hedgehog house (lakeland Limited) years ago when we had GP1 and GP2, they liked to have their own space. In winter we layered the Hedgehog house+hay+the trug on the top (cutout over the tunnel door) . He loved it and we knew he was cosy. GP1 kept the Hedgehog House as his when we got GP3 .
When we got the sows, they ate it .

I was saying to DH that I'm going to give ours a couple of hisey tunnels - they share the haybox nicely but are getting lazy and only venture out for food or a prowl.

hisey tunnels

housie [sigh]

Our brown plastic thing came from p@h. It looks like an empty tortoise and has thin cut outs for air circulation. It's supposed to be large but not really with my 2 lardy girls inside.

BTW Millie decided to take direct action last night. Their nugget bowl was empty and she pushed the bowl out the hutch on purpose I watched her do. A ceramic bowl hitting a laminate floor even from a couple of inches makes a good thud. Then both girls started a chorus of wheeking in case I was in any doubt what they wanted

We have one similar to This is that like yours, fortified? Ideally I'm thinking of something he could climb into and snuggle in?

I like the idea of a garden trug over the top as an extra layer of insulation.

at the stealth pushing of the pellet bowl then the faces of the Pigs.

If you want a cosy hidey place for your piggie millimat why not just a cardboard box lined with newspaper and hay? Cut a door big enough that they can't get trapped by each other. Throw it out when it invariably gets manky.
Cardboard and paper are good insulators and all the things I've tried with our pigs, they like something new with hay in it

My GP5 got excited by the thought of an empty tortoise and she's scouring Gumtree amphibian/reptile sections.
I had to tell her she can't scoop a real tortoise out of its shell.

Mine have plastic igloos from P@H. They have one each and Scruffy reserves the right to turf out Ginger at his whim. He's enjoying being alpha male.

I stuff their pigloos with hay and they have blankets on top of their cage at night. They don't snuggle together although this evening they came and sat on my knee to watch Strictly and they snuggled beautifully. Scruffy even groomed Ginger, gently tugging on his fluff and licking his face and ears.

Love the piggies asking for food! My Current Bun does that all the time. He's quite large though so can throw his ceramic bowl quite a distance. I'm amazed it's not broken yet.

Last night I put in a paper bag filled with hay as well as the igloo and the'sleeping area' underneath. GP3 spent the night in there - I was quite worried he may not get enough air. But he was obviously snug! Trying out a big shoebox tonight.

Do you think this will work as insulation

www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Thermal-Insulation-Foil-Roll-600mmx8m/p/210022

wondered if I put it around the hutch it might help?

987
you can use something like the insulation roll as long as the little rodenty ones can't eat it/you can remove it in summer (you don't want to roast them / and you can make sure you don't get water or damp between the insulator and the wood of the hutch.

Have you got a cover? You can get thermal ones.
Or layers of tarpaulin to cover the hutch (make sure there's ventilation. The tarp has eyelet holes so you can anchor it down or tie to the hutch legs.

I was looking at something like the roll you linked but my pigs sleeping area is inside their shed so they might be able to eat it. I put folded cardboard between the wall and the haybox. I might glue some foil in between the cardboard layers (cheap and disposable)
I used carpet offcuts behind the old haybox .

My pigs have a deep hay and soft barley straw bedding, Snugglepad wrapped in newspaper.
They are lovely and snug, but we need to change it daily (they pee so much)