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Post by eppingstrider on May 2, 2008 16:10:00 GMT
It sure is - reason why I got off carefresh as soon as I found something else - just a week back on it when waiting for the new supply was enough to make my eyes water. I've just spent £55 on a supply of megazorb that I hope will last me the best part of three months, but I'll keep you posted.
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Post by guineapoo on May 5, 2008 11:34:49 GMT
Well, we had our weekly fleece clean yesterday, thought you might like some pics of Angel and 'the brood' enjoying their bedding... As you can see, they use their 'fluffy fleece pad' for snuggling on... And for hiding under!
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Post by eppingstrider on May 5, 2008 20:20:37 GMT
Those are great pcitures. I really think it helps to see what people use for their piggies. How do they get on with the hay rack? Mine seem to have difficulty pulling pieces through - either they cant get their noses through the bars properly or they're being very picky about which piece they want to pull down (probably the latter!) I've given in and given them a pile to rootle through.
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Post by guineapoo on May 6, 2008 11:26:01 GMT
They've all got those hay racks - Angel carefully selects each strand of hay, Munch just stuffs it (I think he turns his head sideways to get through the bars) Zippo rips it all out onto the floor and nests in it then whinges because theres no hay in his rack!
You could try putting it in the rack and pulling big wads through the bars with your fingers so the hay sticks out. When they pull it, more hay normally comes through the bars after it.
Do your guys make the hay into a bed too?
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Post by eppingstrider on May 6, 2008 18:07:16 GMT
They don't so much sit in it as burrow through it. It's usually pretty much flattened (if there's any left) when I come in after a while.
I tried making sure more was pushed through the bars today, and also packed it looser. But then I spoiled the effect by giving them a large wad to rootle through as I was going to be out for a good few hours....
Reason for Editing: added a bit
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Post by guineapoo on May 11, 2008 7:41:11 GMT
Any joy with the hay rack ES? To be honest, I don't think it matters where you put the hay, as long as they're eating it! The only reason we don't put ours on the floor is cause they just spread it about and pee in it then whinge at us because they have no edible hay!
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Post by eppingstrider on May 11, 2008 21:15:49 GMT
They seem to use the hay rack better when there's less in it! Which rather defeats the object as I was hoping to leave enough in there to keep them going longer....
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Post by guineapoo on May 11, 2008 21:43:23 GMT
I found that - when they get more used to it you can ram it full and they still manage to yank it out. That yellow rack in the pics keeps 5 piggles in hay for 24 hours or more when completely packed, Munch and Fluffy Ginger Pig can go 3-4 days with a well compacted rack of hay!
We're using Wagg hay at the mo which comes in little bales all in one big bag so we just split one of the mini-bales in half and wedge it in the rack. Mind you, I know you're a fan of Wagg so you're probably using it already! Its heaps nicer than PAH hay.
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Post by PigPog on May 12, 2008 14:08:11 GMT
I also worked out how much I spent annually on CareFresh 4 Bags per week for 3 good sized cages = approx £15.00 which works out at (horror!) £780.00 per year! [/img] [/quote] Excuse me while I pass out in this corner here. Aww those pics are great, it looks really nice in there. I'm glad it's working out so well for you and you've got so much to say about it. I must say it's been helpful for me to read your blog, because I've never tried fleece and I had wondered what all the fuss was about.
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Post by guineapoo on May 12, 2008 15:49:54 GMT
I nearly passed out too when I'd worked the costs out! The main reason we went on to fleece was to save money - It's certainly working. As you can see from the pics, the cage is a tad on the small side for them so the money we've saved on carefresh this month is going on building them a nice big grid cage which will be 2 levels - 3x4 grids on the bottom and 2x4 on the top! I don't think I've got much more to say about the fleece now - I like it, It works for us in our situation (like you said pigpog, with the amount of piggies you have I think you'd have to invest in an Industrial washing machine to do it all in one go!) I love the fact that it's swept daily and becomes like a new cage again, and I love that the pigs love it and are constantly loungeing around on it! So like I say, don't really think I'll have much more to say on the subject of Fleece (the fleece diary was certainly short lived!) If anyone has any questions though, fire 'em my way and I'll answer them as best I can!
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Post by guineapoo on May 12, 2008 20:11:34 GMT
Eek! I know I just said I didn't need to write any more, but my head is not so much like a seive, but more of a bucket with a big hole in the bottom of it! Just took some pics to illustrate the 'cleaning of the fleece'... Here is the cage with approx 36 hours worth of piggy-poop produced by 5 lovely piggies (they poo right under their hay rack so alot of it is just dirty hay) This is a pic of it all swept into a pile in the corner ready for poop-a-scooping It all fits into a dustpan (I had to take the pigs out to do these pics as they like jumping in to the pan while I'm sweeping) Close-up of the freshly cleaned poop and pee corner (sorry about bad pic quality - my digicam is broken so I'm using my phone) And thats it! A lovely clean cage again ;D
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Post by eppingstrider on May 13, 2008 12:21:33 GMT
We're using Wagg hay at the mo which comes in little bales all in one big bag so we just split one of the mini-bales in half and wedge it in the rack. Mind you, I know you're a fan of Wagg so you're probably using it already! Its heaps nicer than PAH hay. When you stop using PAH hay you realise... how many better options there are! I've been using local hay which is great, very sweet smelling (and probably tasting as well). Sometimes it's very fine grass that's been used too, and there's usually lots of timothy in it. The boys love it, anyway.
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Post by guineapoo on May 13, 2008 13:44:34 GMT
We'd like to use local hay too, except I've lost the key to the shed... We've got to find some way of breaking into it which won't upset my landlord if they were to find out we'd done it (no playing with crowbars for me! )
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Post by PigPog on May 20, 2008 10:36:44 GMT
(no playing with crowbars for me! ) Oh damn, that's your Friday night entertainment down the drain then!
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Post by guineapoo on May 20, 2008 16:55:37 GMT
I know! Infact, I think the crowbar is IN the shed... Double damn!
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