# Hedgehog toileting outside his tray?



## Emma_Grace (Dec 28, 2011)

He is a year old and fully litter trained. His tray is cleaned every single morning as he still uses it yet also toilets outside his tray. I have tried the 'placing the poop into the tray' method but no diffferrnce has been made. Why is he doing this? It's only a few times a week and it's not as if he's refusing to use his tray?


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Did you change the chinchilla sand out of the tray already? Did he use his litter box and his litter box only before that, if yes? If he did, he may be reacting to a change of litter. It'd still be best to keep the new litter if this is the situation though, since the sand is no good for them. 

If you still have the sand in, changing the litter for paper towels or a pelleted cat litter (such as Yesterday's News) might prompt a behavior change. But if he's always done the poop both in tray and outside of it, I'm guessing he probably isn't going in the tray on purpose - he may just be going wherever he happens to be at the time, which is normal. Not all hedgehogs can be 100% litter trained, and some not even a little bit. :lol:


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## shmurciakova (Sep 7, 2008)

Just wondering, why is chinchilla dust bad? I had heard many hedgehogs like to take dust baths. I had given my old hedgehog Snoball some sand hoping she'd dust bath, but she was not interested. Now I have Daisy who I am trying to litter train. I had given her paper towels and she used them but then she began dragging them into her bed and shredding them (poop and all), so now I changed to Yesterdays News and she doesn't apparently like to walk on it and won't use the pan.
I was thinking it was the substrate that she doesn't like, but was thinking of switching to sand, of course I don't want to do this if it is "bad".
-Susan H.


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## Skittles (Aug 2, 2012)

Sand is dusty, will get into their eyes/lungs etc and with their sensitive areas. Definetly not good for them


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

Chinchilla dust is very fine, like powder. Hedgies can't seal their nostrils like chinchillas can so will end up inhaling the dust which is dangerous for the lungs. It can also get into their eyes causing infections, same with the genital. Chinchillas are made to have dust baths, hedgies just aren't made the same.


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## shmurciakova (Sep 7, 2008)

Hmm.....well I guess I am going to have to come up with some other ideas for litter....maybe I can tape the paper towels down! :? 
I know she doesn't like walking on those hard pellets! geez.
-Susan H.


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

I use fleece litter pan liners, just two pieces of fleece sewn together and all my guys, so far, leave them alone. Maybe that would work for you?


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## Hazesti (Jan 19, 2010)

Taping the paper down can help. But only tape down a side of it, that way if your hedgehog wants to get under it to do his business, he still can, and the paper will go back over it and absorb the pee.


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