At the Nest, we use VetBed with fleece pouches and tunnels. We find it easier, cheaper and less messy than disposable bedding. We sweep or hoover the poo once a day, wash the VetBed and pouches once a week and change the puppy pads under, easy! A bonus is that there’s no more bedding to buy or dispose of and the piggies also look so comfy on it! You can buy VetBed cut to the size you need, and fleece cosies in our shop. VetBed is also included in our starter pack.
VetBed and cosies can be tumble dried, there may be a small amount of shrinkage.
We sell ‘green-backed’ VetBed, as this works better than the non-slip VetBed due to the plastic on the reverse.
The majority of our adopters use VetBed, but some disposable beddings are suitable, should you prefer. These include: Audbiose, paper bedding, hemp, and Megazorb. These are dust free and highly absorbent. Woodshavings are no longer recommended as they are not safe for piggies’ lungs; there is also a possibility of causing some liver problems. We don’t home to woodshavings due to this.
Washable bedding, fleece and VetBed both work in the same way. There is an absorbent layer first, which could be: newspaper, towels, puppy pads, or washable bed pads, then the fleece or VetBed on top. This wicks the wet through to the bottom layer, while the top stays dry for your guinea pig. There is an initial outlay for this system, but then you are set up for a very long time!
Washing VetBed and Fleece
A normal detergent can be used, but no fabric conditioner as this prevents it working correctly. We usually wash at 40 degrees, but if a piggie has ringworm it can be washed at 60 degrees.
We recommend a wash bag; this stops the hay clogging up your washing machine. You wash your VetBed inside the wash bag, then after washing take it out and give it a good shake as the hay will be in the bag instead of your washing machine! VetBed dries quickly on a radiator or in the sun. We do recommend having two pieces, one to wash and one to use.
