LL
Newbie
Posts: 8 
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Post by LL on Jun 18, 2014 0:11:27 GMT
I have had my 2 pigs in the Midwest cage for a week now. As a newbie pig parent, I am still figuring out the best use for the space and the best thing to use under the fleece. I felt the divider in the cage might actually be cutting down on the usable space, so I took it out. The pigs started doing laps and popcorning. I guess they weren't crazy about the kitchen divider either. Does anyone else have any suggestions for kitchen area or absorbtion under fleece?
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Post by SiLamb on Jun 18, 2014 21:22:38 GMT
I'm also a newbie pig owner...right now I'm experimenting with disposable doggy pee pads on the bottom, then pine bedding around the corners, then newspapers, then towels (substitute fleece for towels). It is working for me so far.
I'm also trying to litter box train them.
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Post by 3piggles on Jun 19, 2014 19:35:34 GMT
I am currently using kitty litter, have used Carefresh and pine horse bedding pellets. Pros and cons to each such as cost, container weight and size for storage. I found the trick is using a piece of fiberglass window screen between the fleece and loose bedding to keep the loose bedding from sticking to the underside of the fleece.
Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk
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SarahKate
Newbie
Just added 3 piggals to my menagerie!
Posts: 16
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Post by SarahKate on Jun 19, 2014 23:30:28 GMT
My newly adopted piggies came with the Midwest cage they had been living in and it's been my first experience with that kind of cage. I'm building a big habitat for them but in the meantime: I lined the bottom of the canvas with puppy wee pads, then 2 layers of the U-haul furniture padding, then a fleece blanket (all laid flat to just cover the bottom and not the sides as I didn't want to have to pin the sides up and my piggies don't wee up the sides anyways). Then in one end (about half of the cage)I used the plastic tray of an old, smaller cage and I lined that with wee pads too. Then I put a corner litter tray in THAT and lined it as well and added Carefresh Ultra to the corner pan only. So inside that larger tray is the corner litter pan, their hay/pellet bin, and the water bottle... all the messy things that I want to change completely every 1-2 days. Outside the tray is the other, fleecy half of the cage which has a couple of hides and room to play. The fleece stays fairly clean and I just spot-clean every day. Then once a week I change all the wee pads and wash all the blankets. So far the double-tray method keeps all the hay and litter from making a mess and just using the wee pads in the big tray gives a little "buffer" area between the potty and the fleece to keep them from tracking litter everywhere. I do wash the canvas once a month but it hasn't really needed it. It stays clean and dry. So far this method is keeping me from wasting Carefresh (it gets expensive!)and piggies stay clean and dry. I will note that my pigs don't nibble on the wee-pads at all, but it would be dangerous if they did as they are plastic-backed, so if yours do, you'd have to just rinse your trays daily/weekly as needed. It's a long explanation. Sorry. Maybe I'll take a pic and post soon  I have some info in my blog about their bedding, but I didn't do a write up about their set-up yet. |
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Post by 3piggles on Jun 20, 2014 14:08:56 GMT
Somehow pigs manage to pass all the things they chew, and the plastic backing on wee pads is a favorite? Your cage sounds like a work of art  Mine are in a long two-story cage with each condo devided into a small kitchen area and a large living/play area. I use the pine pellet horse bedding under the main area, under pads of fleece and onr layer of Uhaul blanket. I change the wet granulated pellets, which are only in one spot. Otherwise the pellets last for months. The fleece pads are swept off daily and replaced weekly. The kitchen area has kitty litter under some incredibly soft fiberglass screen we found. The pigs will chew the screen, so all the edges are covered. Kitchens also cleaned daily. Litter replaced weekly. Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk |
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Post by petmom on Sept 1, 2014 22:04:11 GMT
Hi,I have 2 piggies and use 2 Midwest cages in an L shape so they have a ton of room. I found some mattress protectors on Amazon that I put under my fleece flippers and in the 2 corners that they go potty a lot I use a puppy pad on top of the mattress protector. This works pretty good for me so far. In the kitchen area only I use care fresh.
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Post by alfonzpig on Sept 1, 2014 23:20:31 GMT
I never even thought of using puppy pee pads.....next cage cleaning, I am trying this lol.
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 2, 2014 16:21:56 GMT
I used puppy pads for a while, but they got pricey being changed at least once a day. Absorbent, though, and very convenient.
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Post by alfonzpig on Sept 10, 2014 15:31:38 GMT
I try to keep the cost of the piggy boys low, or as low as I can. I have noticed less of a scent issue with the pig boys since I started using pee pads.
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 11, 2014 15:01:07 GMT
Have to do a major replacement of the kitty litter, as I've had a few not too mobile days, and didn't get to scoop it clean. That's the only problem with kitty litter. The puppy pads would be a definite improvement on those days, but I would use two per day, wich gets expensive. I've found the inexpensive ones fall apart so the absorbent layer bunches in some places and is missing in others. Definitely something to consider.
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Post by alfonzpig on Sept 13, 2014 21:55:58 GMT
I am finding that Jellybean likes to chew the edges a bit. I stop him, but i might have to stop using them for Jellybean, who is of course the one I need to use them for.
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Post by 3piggles on Sept 15, 2014 0:06:08 GMT
If you cover it with fleece, it becomes the absorbent layer under. You should be able to just remove the fleece and brush it off. Maybe make it enough bigger to tuck it under the wee wee pad so nothing gets chewed.
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Post by alfonzpig on Oct 1, 2014 23:29:31 GMT
I am having issues with my cages again, driving me crazy lol.
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 2, 2014 13:17:51 GMT
What's wrong, alfonzpig?
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Post by SiLamb on Oct 14, 2014 3:53:43 GMT
alfonzpig, I feel your pain. I'm constantly changing my cage as some new problem usually arises. What's going on with you? We can help.
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 15, 2014 0:51:42 GMT
Spill the beans on the cage. Maybe we can help.
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I have some info in my blog about their bedding, but I didn't do a write up about their set-up yet.
Mine are in a long two-story cage with each condo devided into a small kitchen area and a large living/play area. I use the pine pellet horse bedding under the main area, under pads of fleece and onr layer of Uhaul blanket. I change the wet granulated pellets, which are only in one spot. Otherwise the pellets last for months. The fleece pads are swept off daily and replaced weekly. The kitchen area has kitty litter under some incredibly soft fiberglass screen we found. The pigs will chew the screen, so all the edges are covered. Kitchens also cleaned daily. Litter replaced weekly. 