Every Piggy Needs Some Prime Real Estate. Here are some essentials that have made our lives better, and Rosie happier. Essentials: Rug, Tent & Rooting Box!
First off, every piggy needs their own space or area, aka real estate, and Rosie has always had her area in our living room. We did have her enclosed in a metal dog play fence when we first got her, but she quickly out grew that. Then we did put a baby gate up in thr hallway, so she couldn’t get to our bedroom door to wake us up for food!?!? lol. Now, with some training, she doesn’t bang at our door and waits till we wake up.
Rosie’s real estate consists of of 9×12 rug from Walmart, which was like $20 or $30. We nailed part of the rug up against the wall to protect the base boards and wall from being banged with her rooting rocks and other toys (see picture). Then she has her princess tent she sleeps in every night. I purchased it from Amazon for $18.98 and Amazon Prime. Here’s the link: Princess Tent. Every night I say, It’s time for bed,” to Rosie, and she knows and starts walking to her tent entrance. Then she waits for me to throw a few cheerios in her tent, I give her a few scratches, and I turn the lights out. Then she goes to bed. It’s our ritual.
I also have a heating pad in her tent, which is another mini pig essential. Pigs love warmth. Sometimes Rosie won’t leave her tent just because she doesn’t want to get off her heating pad. 😀 Here’s the link: Heating Pad. There are other options of heating pads, but this is the cheapest one I’ve found.
Her rooting box is the most important thing on her “real estate,” which she absolutley loves! A rooting box is great because pigs innately want to root. The rooting box allows them to do that inside your house. It’s a stimulating activity, and they enjoy the box and hunting for food treasures. I feed her breakfast and dinner in her rooting box, and I give her snacks in her rooting box as well.
Rosie’s rooting box is made with a clear under-the-bed plastic bin. Here’s the link: Under The Bed Bin Then I filled the rooting box with large river rocks, which I bought at Home Depot. Here’s the link: River Rocks. I used 1 1/2 bags of rock to fill the bin up. Also, using large rocks is best, so they don’t choke on the rocks. Smaller rocks can be dangerous, and you don’t want to put your piggy at risk. Plus, the larger rocks make it harder for them to get the food, and you want it to be a challenge. I used to just feed Rosie her food in a bowl and she’d finish it in like 10 seconds, so the rooting box is a great alternative to slow down feeding times. Below is a video link to Rosie enjoying her dinner. I swear, Lola, our long-haired chihuahua, thinks she’s a mini pig and wishes she had her own rooting box. Lol
Lastly, her water bowel is just a regular ceramic bowl. Rosie’s not one to tip and dump her water bowl, so we don’t have that problem. However, she drools the water all over, and the black plastic tray helps capture that water. Otherwise, I have a trail of water all over. The black tray I bought at Walmart in their placemat section.
Well, I hope you find my tips helpful. Please feel free to share your tips, comments, and feedback!!
Snort Life Blog 