# In Need of Advice



## AmiciForever (Jul 24, 2010)

I am a first time hedgehog owner. I've had my hedgehog for about four months now, and I'm finding it more difficult than I anticipated.

My problem is this: initially, I tried to play with my hedgehog very frequently, but soon discovered that he really just prefers to sleep (regardless of the time of day or night.) Since he seems healthy in every other way, I assume this is just part of his personality (please correct me if I'm wrong!)

I am ashamed to admit, though, that I don't spend as much time with him as I ought to anymore. He doesn't seem to get much enjoyment out of it, so it feels pointless to try. Please note that I'm not saying he goes entirely neglected, simply that I find it difficult to give him as much time as he deserves. 

If this were the only issue, however, I would just keep trying. But the problem is more complex. Recently my hedgehog has been getting bloody feet. We made him a custom wheel that wouldn't cause his feet to bleed, and on top of that, like I mentioned, he isn't the most active hedgehog. 

I believe the problem is this: my hedgehog masturbates excessively, and gets the product of his efforts stuck all over himself, including his feet. I'm thinking that when it peels off, it must take some skin with it. This is the only explanation I really have, since I am nearly positive that his wheel is not an issue. 

It is extremely difficult to wash off, and would require thorough daily bathing to prevent. My hedgehog dislikes baths, and I know he already associates me with them. While I obviously want to keep his feet from bleeding, I am worried that daily bathing will cause him to become even more anti-social. 

Does anyone have advice for what I can do to keep my hedgehog both happy and healthy?


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## Hedgieonboard (Nov 15, 2009)

If the hedgie doesn't like water you can just fill the tub a very small amount where the water lvl is to his belly and just let him run around a little. If you have to do this frequently you can just use water so it doesn't dry him. I usually dissolve Aveeno Oatmeal bath into the water and give him a bath about 2 times a month. If he gets dirty before then I will just let him wade around a little in plain water then make sure he is really good and dry before putting him back. Usually just the soaking with Aveeno is enough to make sure that anything nasty or gross comes off and his fur almost has a shine to it after. I make sure to put lots of fleece and/or flannel (sewn) blankets into his hide out so that when I clean his cage out I can take the cleanest one and keep in there so not everything is changed. I find keeping the cage liners very clean and changing out the blankets a lot help out tons with the "boy issue". If your hedgie messes on the wheel a lot you will want to make sure that the wheel gets cleaned daily or more if needed and that his feet are soaked and dried if they are bad. Outside of this though I'm not sure of any other ideas. These are just what works for my boy


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## LarryT (May 12, 2009)

Never seen a hedgie get bloody feet from dried semen but I guess it's possible. Could you post a picture of the wheel you made.


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## AmiciForever (Jul 24, 2010)

I'll try what you suggested with the Aveeno, because the (very gentle) shampoo I have right now doesn't do much. 

I'll try to get a picture of the wheel up, but I don't have one at the moment. It was made from the bottom of a five gallon bucket, and screws into the wall of his cage. We were really careful to remove any rough edges, but the real reason I think it's probably not the wheel is that he doesn't seem to run very much. I know he must sometimes because I find poo in the wheel, but I rarely see or hear him running. 

If it is the wheel, what should I do to fix it?


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