# Foot Bath Alternatives?



## Nebular (Dec 28, 2010)

To say Norman hates the water is perhaps an understatement. He knows what the sink is and that he does not want to be in it. His little feet flail the instant he realises I'm going to put him in there. He instantly tries to climb the sides of the sink or up my hand every chance he gets. I really hate putting the little guy through it, but I need to do something to get rid of his poopy boots and just trying to scape it off with my thumb sometimes isn't enough. I have a fleece liner I throw in the sink to give him something to stand on and the water is warm (not too hot, not too cold), but he still wants nothing to do with it. I usually only do this as a last resort when it looks like it's pushing his toes around. Is there any other way I can try to get rid of his boots without having to put him through this?

This is what I have to deal with after every foot bath.  
[attachment=2:1z9gut0u]7 Weeks - I Hate Baths 1.JPG[/attachment:1z9gut0u][attachment=1:1z9gut0u]7 Weeks - I Hate Baths 3.JPG[/attachment:1z9gut0u][attachment=0:1z9gut0u]7 Weeks - I Hate Baths 4.JPG[/attachment:1z9gut0u]


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## nibletsmom (Dec 20, 2010)

OMG...I love this!

...and I can so relate to you! Niblet HATES foot baths also. So I will be listening in for alternative ideas too!

This is what my fiance and I get after every foot bath...


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## MissC (Nov 15, 2010)

OK...you all likely think I`m nuts, anyway, so.....

Snarf is the same: sees the sink and is ticked. Tries to escape constantly and is successful if there`s only one human. This is how bath time is done in our house, including just poopy boots baths:

Before you start: remove your pants and socks and put on shorts or swimsuit. Just trust me on this. Exchange shirt for a short sleeved number.

Assemble: 
- every towel in the place
- clippers & cornstarch I am doing nails
- poopy boots toothbrush
- Aveeno & flax seed capsules if I am using it
- measuring cup - plastic - if I am doing a rinse
- washcloth
- bottle of Merlot & LARGE wine glass

PREPARE:
- meditate to calm mind or swear to self quietly
- warn Snarf a bath is imenent
- check for 20th time to make sure everything is ready
- put dry towel on couch
- place every piece of fleece in house near Snarf`s cage
- turn up heat on CHE
- run water in tub so there`s about one inch in the shallow end of the tub 

THE BATH:
- use facecloth to carry Snarf to tub
- step in tub
- gently lower Snarf onto other hand into water
- prepare for ninja action when his feet hit the water
- slide washcloth under hand holding Snarf and remove hand
- prepare for ninja action when belly hits the water
- encourage Snarf to wade around while discouraging climbing up legs and arms

THE DRYING:
- step out of tub and get biggest towel
- prepare MY ninja skills 
- simultaneously pick up, wrap, carry Snarf ensuring no escape route
- sprint to couch while preparing ninja skills
- attempt cuddle on couch while getting fresh towel ready
- simultaneously swap towels, wrap, cuddle Snarf ensuring no escape route
- attempt to cuddle and dry Snarf
- give up on cuddling squirming, huffing, popping, angry Snarf
- sprint to cage
- attempt to locate Snarf in towel
- place Snarf in cage with one hedgie bag
- pour and drink large glass of wine 
- breathe for first time in 20 minutes
- gently soothe huffing, popping, angry Snarf
- remove huffing, popping, angry Snarf from wet hedgie bag and place him in dry bag
- repeat last step until Snarf is dry or all fleece is wet...whichever comes first
- pour and drink another glass of wine
- sit on couch and listen to soothing sounds of huffing, popping, angry Snarf

REPEAT entire procedure when poopy boots appear.


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## susanaproenca (Aug 14, 2010)

You can try to let him walk around on a wet towel. That should soften the poop a little, allowing you to get it off with your fingers. And you can try to get it off using your fingers and a wet, warm piece of fabric like flannel.


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## Nebular (Dec 28, 2010)

Well, there's no wine in my place to follow MissC's suggestion, so I think I'll try the wet towel ideal first. :lol:


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## MissC (Nov 15, 2010)

Nebular said:


> Well, there's no wine in my place to follow MissC's suggestion, so I think I'll try the wet towel ideal first. :lol:


Oh, sure, go with susana`s idea...if you want to use the common-sense approach and miss out on all the stress and effort and entertainment...

(I did try the other options with Snarf and he will. not. under. any. circumstances. walk on a wet towel and there`s noooooooo waaaaaaaaay he`ll let me scrub his feet.)


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## rivoli256 (Mar 1, 2009)

Henry hated baths. i tried every form & fashion i had heard about. & every type left a very angry, cunning hog flailing & running about areas in which he was not supposed to exist. *sigh* soi had a harebrained idea: since he was, for his first 3-4 weeks of life at least, out in the wild...perhaps he would prefer something more akin to rain. DUM-DUM-DUM. so, breaking all sorts of rules, my SO & i prepped materials & took them to the shower. i showered while my SO stood by with matierals & Henry...when i was clean & ready, i got handed Henry & super-expensive hypoallegenic-it's-the-only-one-my-poor-little-self-can-tolerate free of everything baby shampoo. i held him. he didn't freak totally. put him on the floor & let him run around. pick him back up hold him not tooo close to shower spray to get wet enough to dollop & lather. put back down & let him run around. meanwhile SO is preparing flax oil rinse. pick Henry back up, rinse as thoroughly as possible. put him down. get first rinse cup - just water- pour over him. now he's not so cool with things. gotta hurry. get flax rinse cup & rinse him...then one last clean water rinse. hand to SO for initial drying responsibilties while i scrub down & de-quill the shower. 

& that is how i did it for a long time. he's better about a regular bath now...but sometimes i pop him in the shower with me instead of a "bath" bath just for the heck of it. he still seems to prefer that. :shock: :roll: :lol: it's really cute to watch him wander about. Sometimes he'll even sit down & watch me. weirdo! 

(& i use nothing that i couldn't use on a hedgie...so no worrying about exposing him to something when i wash my hair or whatever...all paraben, sulfate, chemical, dye, etc free, non-toxic...you name it.)


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## nibletsmom (Dec 20, 2010)

MissC....The wine is definitely a MUST!!


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## MissC (Nov 15, 2010)

nibletsmom said:


> MissC....The wine is definitely a MUST!!


I would do it intravenously if i didn`t have to worry about the silly IV pole. :roll:

My biggest stressor is actually after the bath cuz Snarf is SO ticked he will NOT cuddle and I have to keep trying to dry him, ticking him off even more, then just continually swap out wet fleece while he`s stomping around his cage. If he goes into a hedgie bag, I have to take him out and replace it - that REALLY impresses him around the third or fourth time...

I tried using a heating pad but then you get a warm, wet fleece bag...so...there just doesn`t seem to be a way around it, the little rotter.


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## ThePliny (Jun 3, 2010)

Pliny tolerates bath time. He poops a lot, but basically resigns himself to the indignity of it all. 
If baths don't work, could you possibly hold him in your lap and clean his feet with a toothbrush. It do it kinda like this
Fill container with warm water 
wrap hedgie in a blanket and assume seated position 
allow hedge to burrow into blanket and grab one back leg. Maintain firm, but gentle grip on leg whilst hedgie tries to pull it away, muttering 'quit it Pliny (or name of your hog)" repeatedly.
Gently scrub foot with toothbrush. eventually give up on toothbrush and use wet fingers.
Repeat for other 3 feet.


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## nibletsmom (Dec 20, 2010)

Tonight...Niblet is getting a foot bath. It wouldn't have hurt him to have one last night but he was not having it and I was super tired...so I gave in. Tonight, however, there will be no getting out of it for him. lol.

Giving Niblet a bath or a foot bath is a 2 person job in our house. It takes both me and my fiance to bathe him and trim his nails. He hates it. We usually end up bleeding a little because of being prickled so much!!

Oh and the drying time!! hahaha...this is a HUGE joke. Niblet is an explorer...so the minute that we sit down on the couch with him in the towel, he immediately starts running around. So we spend the majority of the time picking him up and putting him back on the heating pad/towel and then he huffs and puffs. Repeat...

Oh the things we do for the hedgies in our lives...


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## RalphsMum (Oct 14, 2010)

Ralph had a bath / shower last night. Second time this week. Poor guy.
What he doesn't seem to realise that if he didn't poop in his bed so much and then lay in it and come out caked in the stuff, then the bath would not be quite so necessary. Even the cat won't go near him sometimes he smells so bad!

We have tried many methods with Ralph as he's not really a water baby. :roll: 
What we have settled on for now is holding him gently but firmly under a gently running tap (fawcet, faucet...whatever...) He seems to "like" it...... we think....very little squirming compared to just putting him in the sink, however it does get the job done and he is a little more sweet smelling and sanitary.
We sit with him and hug him dry in a towel..he wasn't too huffy last night...granted he wasn't in the best of moods either.

It's been said before and we'll say it again...we do what we can do  

(Love all the pics btw....the expressions say it all hahaha!)


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## Immortalia (Jan 24, 2009)

Have you guys tried using a low sided plastic bin? It'd be bigger than the sink, and gives more room to roam on the wet towel/fleece, as well as a solid flat surface. And perhaps less claustrophobic? Plus, it may be good to switch it up if some of them start puffing at the sight of the sink  

Oh the joys of having a clean boy who have never ever had caked on poop boots in the 2 years I've had him :mrgreen:


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## Nebular (Dec 28, 2010)

Immortalia said:


> Have you guys tried using a low sided plastic bin? It'd be bigger than the sink, and gives more room to roam on the wet towel/fleece, as well as a solid flat surface. And perhaps less claustrophobic? Plus, it may be good to switch it up if some of them start puffing at the sight of the sink


Well, my sink has a flat bottom. It's not the size that he doesn't like, but the water itself. As soon as a foot touches it, he's squirming and flailing and fussing and doing everything in his power to not get any more water on him. If I put him in the sink without water, he's perfectly happy. The low sided bin would just mean it would take him a second or two less to climb out and make a break for it. :lol:

Going to be interesting to see if he reacts the same way to just a wet towel. Of course now that I have this knowledge, his feet are perfectly clean. He probably knows I'm up to something...


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## Tarynsgate (Sep 25, 2010)

I find that if you have that slopey bowl shaped kind of sink, you could just fill it with a couple of CM of water and stopper it, let the hedgie run around inside the sink. The movement from the 'I want out of here!' scrabbling usually gets everything off :lol: at least for me anyway.


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## MissC (Nov 15, 2010)

Tarynsgate said:


> The movement from the 'I want out of here!' scrabbling usually gets everything off :lol: at least for me anyway.


 :lol: 
Yup...that's exactly how it works. Snarf is definitely a two person bath in any sink, tho'...even being so teeny he can climb out of our kitchen sink. :shock:

It's time for his next one...he can tell: he's grumpy already. :roll:


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