Fleece bedding for guinea pigs is popular amongst piggy mothers and fathers, whether they want a great-seeking cage or the comfiest house for their fur babies.
Fleece bedding will come in numerous types, seems to be good, and is comfy on guinea pigs’ feet. It is also less expensive in the extensive operate than disposable bedding, eco-pleasant, and doesn’t contain dust that can harm your guinea pigs’ respiratory devices. Nevertheless, fleece is pricier to start out with and demands executing laundry regularly.
In this report, we’ll focus on the pros and disadvantages of fleece bedding for guinea pigs, how to use it, and more!
Professionals of Fleece Bedding for Guinea Pigs
Aesthetics
One of my beloved parts of fleece bedding (however not my wallet’s!) is that it comes in so numerous enjoyment designs and hues. This permits you to actually customise your guinea pigs’ cage, no matter whether you want a dreamy pink wonderland or a vibrant, yellow sunflower theme.
Lots of folks change their piggies’ bedding centered on the year or adorn for the holidays.
When searching on the web or producing your own provides, it is effortless to get caught up in matching your guinea pigs’ fleece liner to their tunnels, hidey properties, and pee pads to produce a concept.
Individually, I also like the appear of fleece much better than disposable bedding. Nevertheless, that does occur down to personal desire.
Most Comfortable
Guinea pigs live the the greater part of their life in their cages, so we want them to be as at ease as attainable. Fleece bedding tends to be softer on their minimal toes than other bedding sorts.
Fleece merchandise also keep warmth additional than some other products, and are terrific for cold seasons or if you have a skinny pig. These piggies’ absence of fur will make it tremendous crucial to continue to keep them on plush, heat surfaces.
Fleece is also fantastic for senior piggies or people with joint issues, as it cushions their ft and is straightforward to stroll on.
Does not Result in Overall health Complications
There are quite a few unsafe bedding choices on the marketplace, from all those that never absorb urine properly to dusty disposable bedding that can harm your guinea pigs’ lungs.
Fleece won’t do both of individuals points. When it is wicked and has an absorbent layer beneath it, fleece can remain dry for an whole day (or many, dependent on how messy your guineas are).
This stops your piggies from sitting in their possess urine, which can trigger well being problems and also just makes them messy.
It also does not incorporate any dust, so it won’t induce upper respiratory bacterial infections (URIs). If your guinea pig has a heritage of URIs, it may well be a very good plan to switch to fleece or another dust-totally free bedding variety.
More affordable in the Lengthy-Phrase
Fleece is expensive to begin with, but if you’re planning to get guinea pigs, you can use the option to help save for fleece liners and pee pads in advance of adoption. Then, you forego the ongoing price of shopping for baggage of bedding just about every 7 days.
Given that fleece liners can be reused in the course of your guinea pigs’ lives, they’re not likely to increase up in fees like disposable bedding does.
Though quite a few men and women pick out to acquire much more fleece than they have to have, you can very easily get by with only two liners. That way, you’ll have a person to use whilst the other is in the wash.
Can be Tailor made-Manufactured
If you are nervous about obtaining a fleece liner to healthy your do-it-yourself cage, do not be! They can be tailor made-created, both by buying from a store or creating your own.
It may well sound intimidating, but earning your have fleece liners can be as uncomplicated as lining the cage with a layer of towels for absorbency, then introducing the really fleece on best.
We’ll speak more about how to use fleece beneath, so preserve reading!
Eco-Welcoming
And lastly, fleece bedding is eco-pleasant due to the fact it creates the minimum total of waste probable. You can reuse fleece liners for yrs at a time, particularly if you treatment for them properly.
Cons of Fleece Bedding for Guinea Pigs
A lot more High-priced to Begin
Fleece bedding is usually the most high-priced option to commence with. Even while it saves you income in the very long-operate, some individuals never want to invest so significantly at the offset—especially if they’re not sure fleece will work for them.
This is absolutely understandable, and a thing you should take into consideration just before earning a conclusion.
Requires Preparation
Fleece bedding simply cannot just be tossed into the cage like your disposable options. It demands to be wicked, which involves washing it in very hot drinking water many moments. You’ll also need to have an absorbent layer if you never invest in a liner that previously comes with one inside.
Having said that, as soon as you get your fleece organized, all you are going to need to do among cage cleanings is wash it.
Repeated Spot Cleaning
Disposable bedding can typically cover the numerous, quite a few poops a guinea pig can make a day as it sinks beneath the surface area. With fleece, the poops sit suitable atop.
You are going to need to have to place clean up the cage additional generally to keep it looking great. You may possibly also want to buy smaller items of fleece, regarded as “pee pads” to go over spots your guinea pig likes to cling out. Pee pads assistance by absorbing pee in these frequently-applied areas, maintaining the massive fleece liner cleaner longer.
With disposable bedding, you could just toss out the bedding in the saturated area—but it gets a little bit additional complex when utilizing fleece.
Holds On to Particles
Hay and fur are inclined to cling to fleece, producing it a pain to cleanse when it’s held in a guinea pig cage. When this can be remedied by brushing off the particles from the material and utilizing mesh laundry luggage, this will take time. Some people would fairly not offer with the problem.
With disposable bedding, it doesn’t issue if hay will get stuck to the substance, considering that it’s likely in the trash anyway.
If you’d like to continue working with reusable bedding, but obtaining to clean up up fleece is too a great deal function, look at switching to bath mats. Bath mats also make a excellent guinea pig bedding and the hay does not stick to them so they’re simpler to clean.
Additional Laundry
The matter that appears to be to stress individuals most when it comes to fleece bedding is the additional laundry. Some people today truly feel they have sufficient to fear about with human laundry, when other people get worried about potential problems to their washing equipment.
There is no obtaining around the actuality that fleece will generate a lot more laundry. Nevertheless, it doesn’t have to wreck your washer.
The best way to clean fleece is to extensively brush off hair and hay ahead of washing. Then, put the fleece into mesh bags to maintain any leftover hay from winding up in your washer.
Use an unscented laundry detergent, as scented products can hurt guinea pigs’ respiratory units. White vinegar can also aid to get rid of odor.
Laundry Costs
That explained, all of the points outlined above—mesh laundry bags, guinea pig-risk-free detergent, vinegar, and even your drinking water invoice likely up—cost money.
I individually obtain it worthwhile for the revenue saved by not shopping for disposable bedding every 7 days, but your practical experience may well be different!
Not Marketed in Pet Outlets
The very last drawback is that you are incredibly unlikely to discover fleece bedding at the pet keep, which tends to make it a lot less obtainable than other bedding kinds.
Fleece can be located at a lot of merchants if you’d like to Do-it-yourself some liners. I’ve identified fleece at craft outlets, thrift suppliers, and even the greenback store (even though it tends to be lesser top quality).
If you really don’t want to make your possess fleece bedding, you’ll likely have to have to get on-line and purchase from a modest business. But we could get in touch with supporting small enterprises a professional as nicely!
How to Use Fleece Bedding
Fleece bedding requires preparing just before you can start applying it. It desires to be wicked so that pee soaks as a result of and into the absorbent layer, rather of leaving a puddle.
1. Wick Your Fleece
Wicking fleece is easy, but a tiny tiresome. Here’s how:
- Clean your fleece on a hot cycle with scent-absolutely free laundry detergent. You can include vinegar if you’d like to support disinfect and remove odors. Never use cloth softeners on any guinea pig objects.
- Dry the fleece in the dryer or allow for it to air dry.
- Repeat the previously mentioned actions 2-3 periods, or till the fleece wicks effectively.
- Check your fleece by pouring a little volume of h2o on the surface area. If the drinking water soaks via immediately with out leaving a puddle, your fleece is wicked! If not, run it by means of the washer again.
2. Increase an Absorbent Layer
Beneath your fleece fabric, you are going to require an absorbent layer. This is important if you’ve acquired only a piece of fleece, or if you are sewing your individual liners.
If you have bought a fleece liner, it possible already has an absorbent layer sewn in.
Absorbent levels can be something that will soak up your guinea pigs’ pee right after it soaks as a result of the fleece. Well-known possibilities involve:
- Aged towels
- Dog pee pads (disposable or reusable)
- U-haul blankets
- Mattress protectors
Some folks use newspaper, but I really do not advocate this as it’s less absorbent than the other solutions.
3. Use Pee Pads for Effortless Clear-Up
Pee pads aren’t important, but they’ll halt you from washing your cage liner as usually. They make spot cleaning super straightforward and you won’t be executing almost as substantially laundry—who does not like the audio of that?
Pee pads are generally fleece liners, only more compact. They’re produced of fleece with an absorbent layer sewn inside.
Place pee pads exactly where your guinea pigs devote the most time, this kind of as in their hides or close to their hay pile. Check out them each day and transform them out when they are dirty.
Sorts of Fleece Bedding
There are several types of fleece bedding, from completely ready-made liners to plain fleece you get at your local craft retail outlet. Absolutely everyone does issues a little bit in another way based on what aligns with their budget, absolutely free time, and choices.
Below are some fleece options to consider:
- Prepared-built liners from corporations like GuineaDad — These are the least difficult to use, but generally the priciest, as you are paying out for labor and shipping and delivery as effectively as supplies.
- Handmade liners — Creating liners on your own can be a great deal additional cost-successful, if you know how to sew or want to learn.
- Fleece layered and unsewn – Some folks select to get fleece and lay towels or other absorbent elements beneath, which is a very simple way to line the cage with out stitching anything together.
I hope this post has aided you make a conclusion when it comes to employing fleece bedding. The major items to try to remember are: wick your fleece, use an absorbent layer, and increase in some pee pads if you find your self carrying out far too significantly laundry.
When fleece does occur with its downsides, it’s well known for a rationale! It is effortless to use, washable, and gives your guinea pigs a plush, beautiful cage.
