[hedgepig]

Making the big switch to Liners!
I've tried them before but didn't like them, so this time I'm splurging on the professional ones (last time just a big fleece blanket folded over, it didn't work well) But I had a few questions before jumping in for good:
-what would you recomend for digging? Should I scatter fleece strips around the cage or put it in a small tissue box?
-Litter pans?? What works for you?
-(excuse my stupidity on the subject....) How exactly do you get the liners out of the cage..? Last time it was difficlut and poop would fly everywhere! I need some tips.
-Knowing my hog, he will most likely try to burrow under the liners and upheave the whole cage. How can I prevent this?
Thanks so much! Sorry for so many questions.

 

[LizardGirl]

Hey and welcome to HHC!

1. For digging, a box with fleecestrips is usually appreciated. If you wanted you could make a box with a higher up opening and fill it with yesterday's news or carefresh, for digging- though your hedgie may use it for a litterbox instead.

2. For litter pans you can use an old cookie sheet, an cardboard box, etc. For litter, paper towels or paper bedding like Carefresh or Yesterday's News works well. Try to avoid dusty things. Some types of cat litter are safe to use.

3. When I change liners, I take everything off the top (wheel, dishes, igloo, etc) and then fold the edges in so all the gunk doesn't spill out. Once it's wrapped up I toss it in a grocery bag with the other bedding used then and take it outside to shake the poop pieces and loose cat food off, then they go in the wash.

4. Some hedgies love to burrow under the liners, and oftentimes there isn't much you can do to discourage it. You can try tucking the edges under things, or putting large clean rocks around the edges, or velco (I tried velcro and didn't like in the end).

Don't apologise for asking questions! Kudos to you for getting the answers.

 

[SunRayz]

I used double sided tape to keep Paco from going under the liner. The "carpet" style tape works good. Sticks very well and is easy to remove for cleaning.

 

[knitfreak]

To get the bits off, I vacuum the cage with a dirt devil handheld (the cheapest one isn't powerful enough to suck up the fabric as well). Winston is totally used to the noise and barely blinks an eye now, hahha I do this every day, and only change the liners once every couple of days because he only pees in his litter. The odd poop that isn't in the litter usually dries up and can be picked up or vacuumed off. The vacuum is great for all the little crumbs and the occasional quill!

For his litter I use a paper towel lined pan under his wheel. The pan also extends a bit past his wheel to underneath of his tubing to the "loft". I did this purposefully because I noticed that is where he liked to wee. So now, his favourite wee spot is litter pan covered and I haven't had a single pee anywhere else since! I suggest watching where they normally like to go and adjust the litter set up accordingly.

At first when I made the switch to liners he was a bit erratic, but after a week or so he decided how he wanted to "use" his liners :lol:

Hope this helps!

 

[FiaSpice]

I'm gonna hijack this thread cause I have question too.

I'm changing for a bigger cage soon and realised that would mean, more YN to buy. I decided I would try on liners and see if I can work it out this time (last time I used a temporary pillowcase). So I plan on making some but I don't know what should I use to get multiple layers (so it's "rigid" and absorbant) and what should be the top one (fleece?)

 

[smhufflepuff]

-what would you recomend for digging? Should I scatter fleece strips around the cage or put it in a small tissue box?

I'd try a tissue box or an igloo.

-Litter pans?? What works for you?

Depends on what you mean by "works"... I have a plastic corner box (made for ferrets). When hedgie was younger, she used it like a litter box. As she grew, she began just using it to romp through. I'd find little hedgie trails... places where I could see she walked through... but no poop or pee. She seems to enjoy doing that with wood shavings, carefresh, YN and paper towels. It's a little romper room for her and, in that sense, it "works" for her. It gets used as an actual litter box when I take her out for playtime in the evenings, so, in that sense, it also "works" for me.

What she actually uses as a litter box when in her home at night is her wheel. And we have little wheel mats - fabric scraps of varying size... maybe they average around 8" x 4"

-(excuse my stupidity on the subject....) How exactly do you get the liners out of the cage..?

I take her supplies out of the house; pick up any big messes (poops, kibbles) that I see and toss them into the trash; pick her up and hand her off to Hedgiedaddy; then do one of two things based on the amount of mess:
- grab each of the corners and bring them into the center, forming a bag of sorts that holds any loose bits until I can get it over the trash bin and unfold an edge to let the crumbs drop in
- pull slowly from the center of the liner so that the loose bits fall into the bottom of the cage and then clean those up after with a dustbuster & hedgie wipes.

-Knowing my hog, he will most likely try to burrow under the liners and upheave the whole cage. How can I prevent this?

I wouldn't bother. It's in the nature of hedgies to burrow. Instead, arrange his belongings so that when he goes underneath, it's less likely to be a problem. For example, you can either fold or cut away a corner for his food & water dishes OR get really heavy dishes OR put a heavy tile (or other flat thing) directly on top of the liner, then put the food & water on top of the tile.

 

[smhufflepuff]

I'm gonna hijack this thread cause I have question too.

I'm changing for a bigger cage soon and realised that would mean, more YN to buy. I decided I would try on liners and see if I can work it out this time (last time I used a temporary pillowcase). So I plan on making some but I don't know what should I use to get multiple layers (so it's "rigid" and absorbant) and what should be the top one (fleece?)

I went in the opposite direction in terms of layers and rigidity... Curious about your thoughts:

I needed to get rid of the vellux blanket my hedgie was on since it was showing signs of wear, but hadn't purchased anything new yet. Fortunately, I had a really big scrap piece of fleece that was longer than the size of her cage floor and decided it would work temporarily. I laid it flat with the extra fabric folded back on top of itself.

Little girl surprised me: she learned that if pulled on the edge and folded it under the rest of the liner (instead of on top like I had it) she could wrap herself up in the fleece. At first, I thought it was a random fluke during one of her night-time rock-star moments, but then I'd consistently find her wrapped up like a little hedgie taco (never burrito... only taco). Day after day… sometimes in her igloo, sometimes out of her igloo… always in a taco. Clearly, she wanted it that way. Since I thought the taco arrangement was more comfortable than her previous bare plastic arrangement (she'd sleep under her liner despite having several other options), I decided to stay with the idea of a single layer of fleece that's cut slightly longer than the size of her house.

Being only one layer, it's not super-absorbent, but I can change it out quickly when soiled since I have a number of spare liners and wheel mats to cover the more high traffic areas (I just went to Jo-Ann fabrics and bought 3 yards).

 

[krbshappy71]

3. When I change liners, I take everything off the top (wheel, dishes, igloo, etc) and then fold the edges in so all the gunk doesn't spill out. Once it's wrapped up I toss it in a grocery bag with the other bedding used then and take it outside to shake the poop pieces and loose cat food off, then they go in the wash.

eww my dogs would love that, hahahaaa...I use a green plastic liner, do the four-corners trick as well and shake into bathroom trash which is where I wash the liner.

4. Some hedgies love to burrow under the liners, and oftentimes there isn't much you can do to discourage it. You can try tucking the edges under things, or putting large clean rocks around the edges, or velco (I tried velcro and didn't like in the end).

mine sleep under their liner, even when I try to put things on top of it to secure it. Determined little guys. Haven't tried rocks yet, or maybe I have some decorative paperweights I can use...thanks.[/quote]

Don't apologise for asking questions! Kudos to you for getting the answers.

Yes, I love when other people have questions as I always like seeing the various ideas that come to mind.

 

[FiaSpice]

I'm gonna hijack this thread cause I have question too.

I'm changing for a bigger cage soon and realised that would mean, more YN to buy. I decided I would try on liners and see if I can work it out this time (last time I used a temporary pillowcase). So I plan on making some but I don't know what should I use to get multiple layers (so it's "rigid" and absorbant) and what should be the top one (fleece?)

I went in the opposite direction in terms of layers and rigidity... Curious about your thoughts:

I needed to get rid of the vellux blanket my hedgie was on since it was showing signs of wear, but hadn't purchased anything new yet. Fortunately, I had a really big scrap piece of fleece that was longer than the size of her cage floor and decided it would work temporarily. I laid it flat with the extra fabric folded back on top of itself.

Little girl surprised me: she learned that if pulled on the edge and folded it under the rest of the liner (instead of on top like I had it) she could wrap herself up in the fleece. At first, I thought it was a random fluke during one of her night-time rock-star moments, but then I'd consistently find her wrapped up like a little hedgie taco (never burrito... only taco). Day after day… sometimes in her igloo, sometimes out of her igloo… always in a taco. Clearly, she wanted it that way. Since I thought the taco arrangement was more comfortable than her previous bare plastic arrangement (she'd sleep under her liner despite having several other options), I decided to stay with the idea of a single layer of fleece that's cut slightly longer than the size of her house.

Being only one layer, it's not super-absorbent, but I can change it out quickly when soiled since I have a number of spare liners and wheel mats to cover the more high traffic areas (I just went to Jo-Ann fabrics and bought 3 yards).

Well the pillowcase was a disaster. Litchi had her rockstar moment and she managed to fold the pillowcase intoo her water bowl, draining all the water. That put me off liner big time, but if it's rigid, she would have more trouble getting it off. And maybe I'll add tape or vecro too.

 

[smhufflepuff]

Well the pillowcase was a disaster. Litchi had her rockstar moment and she managed to fold the pillowcase intoo her water bowl, draining all the water. That put me off liner big time, but if it's rigid, she would have more trouble getting it off. And maybe I'll add tape or vecro too.

Oh Litchi... you silly hedgie... I understand why you'd want something more rigid.

Another thing I've used are those baby changing pads - like these: http://www.target.com/Multi-Use-Blue-Ye ... pad&page=1

They're absorbent, soft to hedgie, but stiffer than regular fabric. Weirdly enough they perfectly fit the size of my girl's "vacation cottage" cage.

 

[Nancy]

Don't give up on liners based on one day. Often they make a mess of them at first and put them in their water or you name it, they do it. I've yet to have one that continued to dunk it in the water after the first few days.

 

[Kalandra]

Gotta agree with Nancy on giving it time. Some take a little longer to settle down. Keep in mind you are making a huge change to their life. It can take a hedgehog a little time to get used to the change. One of my girls when she arrived (she had been housed on liners) started going under her liner and destroying the cage (spilling water, etc). After a couple of weeks she settled down and stopped the behavior. After 9 months I moved her to the bottom section of my ferret nation, the behavior came back. After a week she settled back down and stopped going under. So there is plenty of hope that they will settle down and life with liners will be grand.

 

[FiaSpice]

Yeah I want to give it a second try, specially since Litchi is mainly potying under her wheel now (I'll have to see about the other girl), but I want to make them myself like real liners. I'm just wondering about the material I should use.

 

[sir_james186]

I just bought a yard of 300 wight fleece from walmart and that works great. It's soft, and after a wash it will absorb liquid.

As for the burrowing under the fleece part, I'm having the same problem, so I just taped down all the sides so there is no way for her to get under it.

 

[Bengall77]

I experimented with liners and found that flannel and high-quality cotton work the best for me.

First Attempt- 1 layer fleece and two layers of high quality cotton all sewn together wrongside out and then turned inside out so that the fleece is on top of 2 layers of cotton.
Pros- very cute, wide variety of printed fleece, soft, absorbent
Cons- pills (even with a non-pill treatment), Quillbert destroyed the fleece trying to dig his way under the liner

Second Attempt- 2 layers of medium-weight flannel (like what winter pajamas are made from)
Pros- some variety of prints and colors, absorbent, sturdier than fleece
Cons- shrinks with washing (add 1/2" per edge after your seam allowance), pills (not as much as fleece)

Third Attempt- 3 layers of high-quality quilter's cotton
Pros- wide variety of prints and colors, durable, doesn't pill or degrade with scratching/digging
Cons- holds moisture longer than fleece and flannel, makes a thinner liner

From now on I will be making my liners with cotton exteriors and a flannel or fleece core for extra absorbency. Just make sure that if you buy cotton that you buy material with a thicker weight. I've found that most of the fabric in the quilting section of my Joanne's is suitable if you use at least two layers.

 

[FiaSpice]

From now on I will be making my liners with cotton exteriors and a flannel or fleece core for extra absorbency. Just make sure that if you buy cotton that you buy material with a thicker weight. I've found that most of the fabric in the quilting section of my Joanne's is suitable if you use at least two layers.

that's how I tought about making them. I was wondering if I can buy the same kind of fabric as mattres protectors

that could make an absorbant core.

 

[hedgepig]

Thanks so much for the help! You have NO idea how useful this is!
I switched him over and he's doing very well, I hope to buy some professional ones in the future though--a special treat for his upcoming birthday!!
The only thing that I'm still concerned about is that he has some trouble hiding? He's been using a pigloo with a hedgie bag that is rather flopsy and it naturally lays on it's side. Well, Bilbo caught on and he's not a happy hog. I'm guessing he deosn't like when it falls over because ,when he gets in , his whole rump is exposed! But I THINK he likes going under the liners ( I don't mind it anymore) but now I'm not too sure anymore... I found him out just standing there because he didn't know what to do this morning! I then lift up the liners, and he'll snuffle-ly crawl under. Do you think that he just can't find the opening of the liners to crawl under or if he just doesn't like it? I'm thinking of getting him a hat (so it will always stay propped up, and it doesn't differ much from a hedge-bag) would that work, or what should I use in the meantime?
I'm sorry if this is confusing, but thanks so much!!

 

[knitfreak]

My hedgie prefers a hedgie hat to a house, snuggle sack, or blankie. I bought a little kitten pillow/bed and put the hat on top of that. He loves it! :lol: It wouldn't hurt to have more places for him to hide anyways

 

[hedgepig]

thanks so much!
I need to scavenge through everything thats hedge-approved for his cage

 

[Pipkin]

My Turbo is a right little monkey. His cage for the past few days in the morning looks like a hurricane has hit it. I do wonder what he gets up to in the nights! So mornings everything will be untouched but his wheel. This morning, his liners were all up, his water was filthy like he'd bathed himself and there was poo EVERYWHERE :| His teddy had been flung across the cage and his quills covered the floor. I've never seen such a mess. I hope he grows out of this! :lol: