# Hedgehog scared of bath



## Riley7 (Mar 15, 2016)

I don't bathe my hedgehog (Lyla) often. Maybe once every two months. I use a gentle puppy/kitten shampoo that has coconut. Whenever I put her into the sink she soon becomes scared and frantic to get out. She tries to claw out but always dunks her head underwater on accident and the problem is, is that everytime I try to hold her up with my hand she'll try to latch onto my palm with her teeth. She never bites me otherwise. When she does latch on she won't come off for about 30 seconds (it doesn't hurt don't worry). Does anyone have any suggestions on how I could make bathing more enjoyable for her??

She's usually so colorful and playful but when she's bathing she becomes sad and scared.

Note: I've had her since she was a baby so there isn't a chance that she could've had a bad experience with another owner.


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## Aurora81 (Feb 28, 2016)

I can imagine that bathing more often on a set time and with some kind of ritual that's the same everytime (combined with a lot of bribery and treats), might get her used to bathing eventually. Possibly when it gets more in her system, she won't mind it that much anymore. 

You probably already tried this, but what if you lower the water, so when she is standing she can easily keep her head above the water? Maybe then she finds it less scary?

And when you place a small towel on the bottem of the sink, your hedgie has more grip while walking around. It cleans her feet while she walks (so less work for you :wink The feeling of 'firm ground' in stead of the slippery sink also might ease her a bit.


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## zombielover3617 (Oct 16, 2015)

Penelope absoulty hates baths. What I try to do is keep the running water off. I put something down so she doesn't slip and she seems to be way more calm. Have you tried treats? I feel like that might work with such a bath nervous hedgie. If you have a tub and you can put her in that, try that. I think the small sinks make them even more terrified. Good luck!


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

Most hedgehogs hate the bath and the best thing to do is just try to keep them short. I've never had a hedgehog that enjoyed a bath. They all were stressed and tried to escape.


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## itsgotascope (Mar 16, 2015)

Pickles has hated the bath since day 1. (He's 1 year 4 months) We switched him from the sink to the tub and he seems to be a little bit more easy. I agree with trying to keep running water off, so either myself or my boyfriend usually take water from the sink while the other watches him in the bath to get clean rinse water and to make things as quick as possible. Snuggles right after bath time usually make him a happier hedgie too. He tends to get a dirty belly often especially in the summer when its warm enough for him to run around on the grass so if we can we just use a clean cloth to wipe his belly so its even faster.


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