Guinea Pig Owners - Fleece Vs Shavings

[Courbette]

I have a 6 year old female guinea pig who has spent most of her life on shavings. About 2 years ago her companion had an intermittent runny nose the vet couldn't get to the bottom off so we switched to fleece. Her companion passed away in Jan and we switched her back to shavings about 4 weeks ago as temporary measure while we were on holiday as was easier for our pet sitter to maintain however she seems to be thriving on the change of bedding.

She has been a lot less vocal over the last few months, had problems with dirty feet and coat (even though we swept the fleece twice a day, and has been noticeable less mobile. She was checked by a vet and we put this down to old age however since she has been kept on shavings she is cleaner (which we anticipated) but is also more perky and vocal so am now considering keeping her on shavings.

Just wondering if anybody else had any similar experiences or thoughts on the two bedding types?

 

[FinnBobs]

I've had guineas my whole life. There is a chance that yours might have been quiet because she was missing her companion as being herd animals they really do like the company of other piggies so you might want to consider another friend for her? I've been through all the different beddings that you can use and I am now just using copious amounts of meadow hay on top of paper and mine love to burrow in it and eat as much as they like and they seem very content with this. I still use hay when I bring them inside for the winter.

 

[Courbette]

I've had guineas my whole life. There is a chance that yours might have been quiet because she was missing her companion as being herd animals they really do like the company of other piggies so you might want to consider another friend for her? I've been through all the different beddings that you can use and I am now just using copious amounts of meadow hay on top of paper and mine love to burrow in it and eat as much as they like and they seem very content with this. I still use hay when I bring them inside for the winter.

I'd love to get a companion for her as I hate keeping her alone. She was bought as a companion for another guinea pig after we lost their original companion. She then outlived that guinea pig and we bought a pair of sows to live with her. The plan was when my current guinea pig passed away we would still have two bonded sows but they have both predeceased her! Unfortunately we as we rent we have found it difficult to find landlords that accept pets and that coupled with limited space makes me reluctant to add any more animals to the family until we have the stability of our own home. I'm also concerned with my current girl being approx 6 (we have had her over 5 1/2 years) that any newcomer would end up being left alone and the cycle repeats.

Ordinarily though I would never keep a guinea pig alone, she has just outlived 3 other companions.

 

[SpringArising]

Ordinarily though I would never keep a guinea pig alone, she has just outlived 3 other companions.

I understand your concerns, but it's a guinea pig, not a dog. One extra isn't going to make a difference really. Please get it a companion, I hate thinking of social animals being kept alone - it must be so lonely for them

 

[ester]

It might be worth seeing if rescues have a similarly aged sow they often do and potentially will have them back if yours then does die first so you don’t get stuck in the cycle.

I’ve never really got on with fleece, I use aubiose both indoors and out.

 

[Courbette]

I have wondered about speaking to a rescue. It would be hard giving the newcomer up but if it means it has a good home while waiting for it's forever home and gives my girl a friend in the meantime then it is worth looking into. We do have a local rescue with a good reputation so I'll investigate this.

I've not head of aubiose. I'll have a google. The fleece worked well for a time as two of my three were longhaired. They live indoors so it prevented sawdust being spread around the house and they seemed to enjoy the different fleece toys I got them. Now I am back on shavings I think the extra absorbency is a big bonus, particularly with a guinea pig who is more sedentary as I was washing her feet continually on the fleece. She seems more active on the shavings too for whatever reason.

 

[ester]

They used to be on whatever I had for the horse be it flax or miscanthus or aubiose. I do prefer the latter for them too as its not at all dusty and doesn’t have any smell like some of the coated options (especially for when in house). I use it for my snake too as the aspen was annoying me getting everywhere!

 

[Stiff Knees]

I started off with fleece but my girls did not have a particular poop/wee corner and I found that I couldn't keep fleece as clean as I would like. I then moved to shavings but they were so messy I spent all my time sweeping up and none enjoying the pigs! Settled on newspaper with loads of meadow hay, fun for burrowing in, easy to drag out to clean, cheap and encourages foraging behaviour so kept them both occupied. The bottom of the wooden hutch had a Lino floor covering so it was really easy to pull out the newspaper and hay, disinfect the Lino and replace with fresh newspaper and loads of hay. Judging by the "wheeting" this was also their favourite bedding.

 

[splashgirl45]

i second getting her a friend as they love to be together, rescues usually have plenty to find homes for and i am sure would be pleased for you to have one....o really miss mine, they used to live indoors and wheeted every time i walked into the kitchen, lovely pets...

 

[scats]

Definitely look into getting her a friend. I did it for one of mine when his brother died.
I tried fleece a couple of years ago but never got on with it. It looked lovely when it was put down, but the next day it was a soggy, poop riddled mess! I use shavings and spot clean every day and fully change once to twice a week.
I use newspaper underneath and I put thicker shavings down in their bedroom area and then I scatter shavings over the ‘play’ area. I generally just sweep out the play area everyday and scatter fresh down. Feeding area gets covered in hay anyway. I also have a Lino floor on the hutch that makes cleaning out much easier.

 

[Courbette]

I actually got on ok with the fleece mostly. I bought specially made liners from Ziggys Piggies and overall they are really good. With the age of my girl she spends a lot more time sitting in one spot so gets dirty quite quickly and the AM / PM spot cleaning is not aliviating this.

I’m going to consider seeing if I can loan a pig from a rescue. I’m not sure if that is possible as the reasons we have decided against another pig (house size, no garden, renting) might prevent us from being considered.

I have always keeps my guinea pigs in groups and had guinea pigs for about 20 years. It is just sad that that eventually one must be the last. She lost a lot of weight before her friend passed away and we didn’t expect to still have her by July but she has gradually improved and is much perkier which is lovely to see. I think i’ll get another bag of shavings rather than go back to a fleece then trial some of the suggestions here. The fleeces have been great for the last couple of years but are no longer suiting her needs. Is odd as her cage now looks a lot more petshop compared to when it had ot’s woodland print bedding 😂

 

[ester]

hahahahaha
reported people

 

[Chappie]

'Wheeting'

A couple of my guineas have lived well over 6, even though they went through phases where they lost a bit of weight and were not as lively (sometimes in winter). My oldest boar was aged 8, skinny as anything but very lively. I don't think he wanted to leave me

Good idea to find a local rescue, agree it would be hard to give the companion up when your sow passes, but worth trying to find one.

I tried fleece a few years ago, but no matter what I did, it got a bit stinky quickly. Tried various other things like Megazorb, but always come back to newspapers, shavings and short cut hay.
They always have a fleece blankie folded up to lie on in part of their enclosures too

 

[Griffin]

You could try fostering. Near me there seems to be quite a lot of call for guinea pig fosterers, so it's worth asking.

I have tried lots of different options but for guinea pigs, hay with newspaper underneath has always ended up winning. They love it and it's easy to clean out. On a daily basis, you can just remove the wet (usually with the poo on top) and replace it quickly.

 

[Courbette]

Awww we said goodbye to the piggie in question last Autumn, she made it too her 6th Gotcha day but then went downhill fast so following a vets appointment to confirm what we already knew she had a lovely last night at home and had a carpet picnic before we said goodbye. My 'Guinea Pig Room' is currently a home office while my workplace is closed due to social distancing but I'd like to revoke some more in the future. It is the first time in 20 years I have had no animals. I'm considering fostering

 

[Chappie]

O gosh sorry Courbette, I didn't look at the dates on the post sorry to hear of your guinea, but glad she was at home with you.

I guess one day I might have no guineas or pets, a scary thought, but yes fostering or possibly helping at a charity in future might be a good idea.

 

[ester]

An advertiser posted, the post has now been removed because I reported it hence my haha reported just so people know.