# Bathing 2 month Old Hedgehog



## jto_14 (Apr 8, 2012)

Hi,

I'm a new hedgehog owner my boyfriend gave me Mochi as a present and I have him for 3 weeks now, he's a 2 month old hedgie and I tried to give him a bath today because he smelled really bad, he poops and pees a lot, which I read was just normal, however instead of having a peaceful bath time, I got a lot of scratch marks, and bite marks as well. I did not get the chance to even bathe him properly, meaning no shampoo was put on him, just water :| I decided not to go through with it because the scratching and biting was getting painful so I dried him off, however the drying part was also a nightmare because I just got scratched and bit more, it took me more than 15 mins just to finish drying him. Any tips how I can keep him calm during and after baths to prevent scratching and biting? He normally lets me pick him up with his towel and would roam around me, but after our little "bath war" he hisses and pops a lot than he normally does. :|


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Some hedgehogs are scared of water, others are terrified and will do anything to get out of the situation. How deep is the water you are putting him in? Occasionally changing the water level will help them. I had one who would be fine in a sink with no water, and I could pour water over him. Another was so scared of water, that I would spot clean him with a wet was cloth and only bathe him if absolutely necessary. 

There may or may not be anything you can do to help improve his behavior when in water.


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## jto_14 (Apr 8, 2012)

The water's just about an inch deep, I made sure that his feet can touch the sink. Maybe I'll try using wet wash cloth instead for the mean time to avoid the biting and scratching incident....thank you very much for the tips 
hopefully in the near future bathing won't be a nightmare for both me and Mochi


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## EinsteinsMama (Jan 18, 2012)

Are you testing the water with your wrist? Hedgehogs are a lot like babies, they're very sensitive to heat and cold.


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## jto_14 (Apr 8, 2012)

Yes I did. I tested the water with my wrist first


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## Immortalia (Jan 24, 2009)

Many times, hedgies freak out because their little feet slip on the ceramic sink. It may help to slowly introduce to water and bathing by placing a towel or fleece on the bottom, and adding just enough water to thoroughly soak the fabric, so that maybe just a little bit of water is above it. Then let your hedgehog walk around on the soaking wet cloth. This is also a good way to give foot baths, to clean off poopy feet.


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