Cardboard/Fleece cage liner

[cjfarrow]

Hi, I am getting a chinchilla from a breeder next week and I have done hours and hours of research. The cage i got unfortunately has wire floors so I have been looking into covering them. I want to use fleece but I am afraid it wont absorb urine fully. Is it okay for be to use cardboard that is covered by fleece with metal clamps. This way the cardboard will absorb the pee, and I can throw it away every week or so and wash the fleece.

Any advice/suggestions I would appreciate.

 

[tunes]

Cardboard is going to stink after it gets peed on. I would put down ceramic tiles then put the liner over that, and put a litter pan in a corner. You'll have to figure out which corner he likes to pee in and put the pan there. Peeing is easy to deal with. My chins always pee in one spot of their cage. Pooping on the other hand is everywhere.

 

[Amethyst]

I don't have much issue with the fleece absorbing pee, you just have to use more the a single layer. I have the fleece 3 layers deep, and my chins aren't pee trained so they pee all over the fleece. Some people also just sew a more absorbent fabric inside the fleece, like flannel or towel. If you do that you have to check the liners often to make sure the chin didn't chew through and get to the unsafe fabric though.
One thing to keep in mind with fleece if you don't already know is don't use fabric softener or laundry detergent with fabric softener or the fleece wont be absorbent at all. Ideally use vinegar as the cleaner instead of detergent, it's much safer, and works just a well. Also fleece you do need to wash more then once a week if they pee on it, it does smell after a few days.

I also agree with not using cardboard, it will start to stink as soon as it's peed on, so you would have to change it out at least once a day.

 

[Sp3294]

Another option is to find something permanent or semi-permanent to put on top of the wire, like a metal or plastic square (as long as they wont chew on it too much) and put bedding on top of that. Paper or wood shavings make great bedding, and absorbs a lot of smell and urine. This is what I use for my chinchillas, atleast on the bottom level. Change it out once a week or when it starts to smell. You might want to invest in some wood or metal guards that go are the bottom sides of the cage to keep the bedding from falling out through the sides. This is also helpful because over time, you can find where your chinchilla usually urinates; put a glass or plastic pan there and regularly scoop in a bit of peed on bedding. They will associate that spot with the pee, so they will hopefully become litter trained! You can then switch to fleece, but that often needs to be swept to keep clean of poo. Hope this helped!