# Something odd, but might only be part of who Alvin is



## Charné (May 26, 2014)

I have notice an odd move that Alvin does with his body. He pulls his head to his stomach, almost as if he is trying to stretch out his back. He does this while he is sitting in his cage. I am not sure if he is trying to roll over to do a somersault or for stretching. I have not seen this movement when he is on my lap, in the garden or in the house.

He has a sandpit to play around in. I did found him laying on his side with his back legs lifted a bit in the air. I hope I am correct in saying that this his way on how to work in the sand between his quills?

Everything else is normal. He does his exercise in his wheel, eat well, drinks enough water and sleep well. His teeth, tongue and eyes are fine. There is no excessive quill loss. His poop and pee is fine. He gets lots of love and attention. We take him out of the cage to stretch his legs either in the house or in the garden with supervision. He did not eat anything strange. He has variety in his diet. No weight loss. We recently went to the vet with him and other than getting revolution to protect him from mites and a 0.4 ml (0.2 ml one night and 0.2 ml the next night of pet cam syrup) he got a clean bill of health.

We clean his cage, wheel food bowl, water dispenser, dome house, sandpit on a regular basis. And he gets bathed every Sunday with a shampoo (Chamomile and honey). Which also helps with dry skin.

I use puppy training pads as bedding. Because I still believe to this day that Maya got something from the corncob bedding I used which made her sicker and sicker. The vet tried everything, but she passed on. It will be 3 years on 29 October.

I am a bit worried because this is new to me. But I know each hedgehog has their on personality and behaviours.

I will greatly appreciate your assistance.

Thanking you in advance.


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## Brooke2Lancelot (Sep 9, 2019)

That position thing is what they do when they masturbate. 
My boy also does that a lot. Nothing to worry about really. I also got a massive freight the first time my hog did that.


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## Charné (May 26, 2014)

Thank you. I am glad it's nothing to worry about. I assume then the sows don't do it? Because Maya never did this position.


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## Emc (Nov 18, 2018)

Since the question you asked has been answered, i just wanted to as if there is there a medical reason for why youre bathing him so frequently? Once a week is far too often for any normal, healthy hedgehog - and you will be drying out his skin by doing so. Hedgehogs should only be bathed if necessary, and as little as possible. Typically, most hedgehogs only require bathing every 3-4 months. Wiping them down with a warm, wet rag is often alone sufficient for wiping things off them that they cant themselves; or for removing dirt from their quills that causes hedgie-hives. The fact that he has a sand bath means that he should be able to efficiently clean himself (and that will also promote healthy skin). Unless medically necessary, you really should not be bathing him so frequently.


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## Brooke2Lancelot (Sep 9, 2019)

I’m not sure, I’ve never had a female, but I have read that females also masturbate. Might want to ask someone with a female 😅 but I don’t think they’ll go into the same positions for it, maybe, I’m not sure


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## Spiky_Floof<3 (Jun 21, 2019)

Emc said:


> Since the question you asked has been answered, i just wanted to as if there is there a medical reason for why youre bathing him so frequently? Once a week is far too often for any normal, healthy hedgehog - and you will be drying out his skin by doing so. Hedgehogs should only be bathed if necessary, and as little as possible. Typically, most hedgehogs only require bathing every 3-4 months. Wiping them down with a warm, wet rag is often alone sufficient for wiping things off them that they cant themselves; or for removing dirt from their quills that causes hedgie-hives. The fact that he has a sand bath means that he should be able to efficiently clean himself (and that will also promote healthy skin). Unless medically necessary, you really should not be bathing him so frequently.


Some hedgehogs require more frequent bathing than others


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## Emc (Nov 18, 2018)

Once a week is far too frequent for a full on bath. The only time that would be required is if the hedgehog had a medical condition. If the animal is dirty, wipe them with a warm, wet rag. But they should not be bathed once a week unless they have a medical condition that requires it.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Spiky_Floof<3 said:


> Some hedgehogs require more frequent bathing than others


I've had plenty of very messy hedgehogs over the years and while frequent foot bathes may be need to keep poop from building up on nails, usually a quick wipe down with a wet wash cloth is enough to keep their fur and quills clean and prevents the drying of their skin that bathing causes. To be honest, I rarely put their feet in water anymore. A good wipe down of their feet tends to stress them less and keeps them clean.


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## dogdogdog (Sep 18, 2019)

Yes, females also masturbate. I had one who would sit spread eagle and at the time I didn’t know... I panicked, thinking she might be licking a wound or have a UTI (she was very old and tended to drag a bit). She was fine and not even bothered by my interruption. Now when I hear the slurp I leave them alone.


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