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Post by chrisandsarah on May 30, 2008 18:14:21 GMT
I don't think we bath our piggies often enough - about once every 3 months?? How often do you bath yours? Whats the minimum amount of time you should leave between baths? Because when we got Taffy, Sarah had just valeted him for us, but Tiffin made horrible smells all over him when they were introduced  |
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Post by guineapoo on May 30, 2008 18:40:20 GMT
we aim to bath ours once a month, I think I read somewhere 3 weeks is correct though... Did tiff get over enthusiastic when they met? We found a bit of what we think must have been matted 'boar goo' on munch's chin the other day.... ick!  |
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Post by chrisandsarah on May 30, 2008 19:04:42 GMT
Over enthusiastic is an understatement - it was quite disgusting!  |
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Post by PigPog on May 30, 2008 19:27:23 GMT
I give mine a bath when they start to smell.  They do quite a good job of keeping themselves clean really, and I read somewhere recently (might have been here actually) that bathing too often can have a negative effect on the natural oils in the coat. I also make sure my sick pigs get a bath as it usually makes them feel better in themselves, especially during the drying and cuddling process! |
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Post by tosca on May 30, 2008 21:09:17 GMT
I tend to agree with pigpog and only bath when needed. I do brush regularly though (with the aid of lou lou) as I find it builds great bonds and it is a good 'hands on' to help be aware of any adverse changes in your piggie
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Post by guineapoo on May 31, 2008 7:17:20 GMT
We dont bath angel as much as the boys, as she is a very clean piggy - like you say Tosca, she gets regularly groomed (daily when her coat grows back!)
I never thought about the oils in their coat... The boys last had their bath 3 weeks ago but their grease glands are getting icky again. In terms of their cleanliness they definately don't need a bath - its just the grease glands - is there any other way of doing their glands without the bathing?
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Post by chrisandsarah on May 31, 2008 9:02:37 GMT
Our young pigs aren't very greasy yet.
I think Tiffin is due a bath, and Taffy definately could do with one after his experience, but we don't want to give him one again just yet as he had one less than a week ago. So he will have to stay pongy for the time being.
Generally speaking, they dont tend to get very smelly being short-haired and only the two of them living together.
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Post by PigPog on May 31, 2008 14:09:36 GMT
is there any other way of doing their glands without the bathing? I hear Swarfega is brilliant. I use washing up liquid on glands that aren't too bad, but Swarfega is the stuff apparently. I have yet to use it myself but in all the years I've been lurking on forums, people swear by the stuff for cleaning grease glands. |
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Post by lisa on May 31, 2008 15:32:36 GMT
I use swafegar and it works a treat  I bath mine when they need it, some people say bath them every month but I found some of this info on sites that sell products so its in their best interest to say bath to prevent fungal and mites etc. Ronald and Donald havent needed a bath and they are in top notch condition if their rear ends start to whiff I just wash their bottoms and swafegar them and rinse. This is the same for all the boars except Basil who is a coronet and needs a bath and a trim when he is looking mucky. Tilly fluff is a texel and needs a trim and a bath often too, but the rest of the girls get done as and when. I like to do them at least twice in the summer months and if they require more then I will do it. I use gorgeous guineas products but I am now looking into stuff that is safe to use that I can get easily from health food stores. |
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Post by Hugs-Cavies (Doris) on May 31, 2008 18:12:25 GMT
Yep, Swarfega and a nit comb is the best thing for a grease gland.
As for bathing, we bath ours every couple months unless we are showing them, in which case they are bathed the day before the show.
As has been said bathing too much can strip the natrual oils from the coat.
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Post by eppingstrider on May 31, 2008 21:29:04 GMT
I've done Fred & George three times now, so that's about once every three months. They dont seem to smell, and they didnt appreciate the bath last time, although they do like the bit where they get wrapped in a warm towel and rubbed and cuddled!
But it did help the nail clipping... much softer nails.
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Post by PigPog on May 31, 2008 21:51:35 GMT
But it did help the nail clipping... much softer nails. I hadn't thought of that, good thinking ES! |
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Post by guineapoo on Jun 1, 2008 0:21:01 GMT
Where can you get Swarfega from? Although the boys do love being bathed (strange piggys) I'm now rather concerned about stripping away their natural oils... |
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Post by lisa on Jun 1, 2008 13:53:35 GMT
Swarfega is sold in many hardware stores or places like halfords, if you have a The Range store near you they have it or Wilkersons its in the car bit section usually in a little red tub with a white lid. You may be able to get it in some pound stores too. Its about 1-2 pound depending on where you buy it  |
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Post by guineapigqueen on Jun 1, 2008 16:12:58 GMT
If you can't get ahold of Swarfega, some good old washing up liquid and a soft nail brush will do the job!
I never bath my pigs unless they have a fungal problem, like Nina has at the moment and she needs to be bathed every couple of days or they are going to the show and they need to be sparkling and smelling gorgeous!
Emma x
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