Outside cage.. tips?

[Pennsylvania Pigger]

Originally Posted by Cavebaby

I refuse to believe that you have their best intrest at heart.

I'm pretty sure Cubby's not out to harm her pigs, she just came here ignorant about proper housing. In the past she housed them outside and fortunately nothing bad came of it. Clearly she didn't realize she was putting them at risk.

When my brother and I were children we bred our pigs and my sow had 4 or 5 litters over several years. She came through it all fine, thankfully, and lived a good long life. I realize now that we were incredibly lucky nothing went wrong, and I know better than to breed the pigs I have now.

Cubby said she would take the time to read the page about proper housing. Perhaps we should give her a chance to learn and change her mind before accusing her of malice.

[moca138]

Very well said, Penn.

[VoodooJoint]

Cubby - We don't allow chat speak on the forum and requite proper capitalization and punctuation. I recommend you read the rules and start posting properly.

[cielo]

Originally Posted by Cubby46

i live in QLD brisbane.. in a small suburb with neighbourhood watch..

Hope you can excuse my lack of knowledge in adresses, Where is QLD Brisbane? Australia?

I am just asking, because outise th USA people (eventhough is not) think is ok to house piggies outside and/or with rabbits. Is this the case?

[moca138]

It's Brisbane, Australia. Brisbane is in Queensland (QLD) , one of the provinces(?) I'm not sure if they call them that, exactly.

[guineapiggoddess]

You shoukd try your best to keep them inside. Please!

P.S. Good to see you Voodoo!

[Cubby46]

Cavebaby, i would definatly prefer they were inside, but because of the smell, and the mess of the straw my parents want them outside.

They were put in the garage that is apart of the house originally, i thought it was fine but my parents keep going on about the smell.. if their were a way around it, not to mention maybe a more comfortable bedding for them i would try and convice my parents.
I'm just working with what i have here. and yes i bathe them on a needed basis and clean their cage 2-3 times a week. But my parents still smell them *i dont?* not to mention my dads cracking it because 'they are attracting mice and rats'?? .. what i need is a solution.

[guineapiggoddess]

Fleece. Search it on here (there are TONS of threads on fleece) and that will be your solution!

[Foggycreek]

Guinea pigs should not smell. If they do, it's usually because of one of the following--

1. Cage size. If a cage is too small, it will start to smell unless changed constantly. Check out appropriate cage size at www.guineapigcages.com

2. Bedding. If your bedding is inadequate (and straw is not a good bedding at all) and doesn't do a good job of soaking up moisture, the cage will smell. Check out this info about bedding-- http://www.guinealynx.info/bedding.html

3. Illness. If a pig has a urinary tract infection, or other infection (like an abscess), it can smell bad.

[cielo]

With fleece you won't have a mess outside the cage, but you'll be able to see the poop. How many piggies you have? Maybe litter train them?!

I use fleece, but you have to carefully clean the washer & dryer after you do piggie laundry. It is also quite tricky to get it not to smell. You'll have to change it at least 2 a week.

I think you said that your cage is big. I beleive is not a C&C cage, so What is the bottom of the cage? Wood? You should have a plastic bottom (coroplast). That needs to be clean too.

There are always options for the cage that'll fit your needs. Tell your parents that you are going to try other things. They might give you another chance...

If you tell us exactly what you are doing, we can tell you what might be causing the smell. Pictures are good also!