Tips For Cleaning Fleece Bedding

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I love using fleece bedding in guinea pig cages. It’s an economical, earth friendly option and we all know that the little piggies love it! Fleece bedding in animal cages means less waste, less spent on disposable bedding, and more comfort for your pets. It can also mean a little more work.

Here are my top tips and answers to popular questions about fleece bedding. It’s easier than you think to clean fleece bedding. Use these tips for cleaning fleece bedding to get you started!

How do I clean fleece bedding?

We have all been there. You’ve started this journey with fleece bedding or fleece pads for your guinea pigs and now you have to figure out how to get it clean! It can be stressful! Don’t worry, I’ve got all the answers you need right here!

Here’s my step by step process for cleaning fleece bedding:

1. Remove any of the large debris like hay or droppings.
2. If you can, take the fleece blankets or pads outside and give them a good shake!
3. Let the blankets or pads dry and then brush them with a broom, dust brush, or pet brush to remove excess hair.
4. If the fleece bedding is heavily soiled you may want to pre-soak before washing.
5. Wash on a regular cycle with a mild detergent, do not use fabric softener.
6. Hang to dry or put them on a fluff cycle in the dryer, again, do not use fabric softener.

How to remove hair from fleece bedding:

Removing hair can be tedious. Here are my tips specific to removing hair from fleece bedding. It’s what we get the most questions about so I want to be sure to address this issue directly!

• Change the bedding regularly. If you are finding that hair is a problem you might need to increase the frequency of your fleece bedding changes!
• Shaking fleece bedding outside will help remove stuck on hair and droppings. Letting them dry first will increase the effectiveness of this process.
• Try using the vacuum cleaner or a lint roller! I’ve had great success with both of these options. You’ll want the fleece bedding to be dry for both of these options!
• Hanging mine on the clothesline and giving them a little brush with the broom helps loosen up the hair so it can be shaken or combed away.
• Don’t be afraid to wash and dry them with a little bit of hair left on them. We have rabbits, dogs, guinea pigs, and cats wandering around here. Most of my clothing goes into the washer and dryer with some amount of hair from something (occasionally even my own) and they come out the other side looking just fine. Keep the lint trap cleaned and your machines will be just fine.
• Finally, be sure your guinea pigs are healthy. We had a major hair loss problem with one of our piggies years ago and it turned out that they had mites. It’s a quick and easy fix but it can be a major cause of hair loss. So keep an eye on that!

Products I recommend for cleaning fleece bedding:

• Fleece Blankets
• Mild Detergent
• Extra Large Lint Roller
• Handy Pet Hair Vac
• Pet Hair Remover For The Laundry

Is it safe to wash fleece bedding that’s very dirty?

I guess that depends on how much you love your washing machine. I don’t wash fleece bedding that’s super soiled or very dirty. I try and give it a presoak in some mild detergent, warm water, and a little bit of vinegar to kill germs and smells.

The presoak helps loosen up dirt and hair and that will make them much more pleasant to wash. Again, a lot of that can be avoided by just changing the bedding out more frequently.

Should I rinse my fleece bedding first?

You shouldn’t really need to rinse fleece bedding first but you certainly can. In the summer months here in Central Pennsylvania I’ll hang them on the clothesline and squirt them with the hose to give them a little pre-rinse. But I don’t find that it’s really necessary. Again, to each their own. If you prefer to do it this way, I’m sure it’s helpful in getting the fleece bedding totally clean!

Is there an easier way to get hair off of fleece bedding?

Yes! Here are those tips again so you can see how we get stubborn hair off of fleece bedding.

• Change the bedding regularly.
• Shake the fleece bedding outside.
• Let them dry first and use the vacuum or a lint roller to remove hair.
• Brush with a comb, broom, or dust brush.
• Let the washer and dryer handle some of the hair!
• Keep guinea pigs healthy and happy and free of mites!

You can read more about each of these tips above if you are wonder why or how I make these tips work for us!

How often should I clean the fleece bedding in my guinea pig cage?

It’s going to be different for every guinea pig owner because every piggies is different! For us, with two or three guinea pigs in one habitat, we usually change out fleece pads in potty and eating areas every few days and do a full bedding change once per week. More often than that I’ll change them if I notice a lot of mess!

It’ll be easier the less mess there is so if you can, I’d suggest doing it every few days. I’ve never had a problem with letting the fleece bedding sit in it’s own bin and washing one load of all their blankets and pads at the end of the week so I’m not wasting water, energy, or detergent.

Do you have more posts about fleece bedding?

I do! I actually have a really popular post about how to set up fleece bedding for your guinea pigs or cavvy’s! You can check it out right here.