Hedgehog Bath Time Tips & Tricks

Acknowledgement: A big thanks goes to Monique Favors for allowing us to use her picture of Wisteria during her hedgehog bath time.

Hedgehog bath time strikes dread into some hedgie owners. It's not uncommon for hedgehogs to hate bath time. There are also some hedgehogs that love bath time. Like them or hate them, a bath is something that every hedgie must endure. Within this article, you'll find tips and tricks that you can use to help improve the whole rub-a-dub-hog-in-a-tub experience.

One thing that is frequently asked is, “How often should I give my hedgehog a bath?”. Our answer: Only when absolutely necessary. It really does depend on the messiness of your hog. Most will need a foot bath every day or two due to walking (or running) in their poop. We apologize for the candid truth, but we believe in telling it like it is. As for a full bath, that will depend on their cleanliness and also on you. Some owners get hedgie hives (an allergic reaction) from the anointing that their quill baby does, so more frequent baths may be necessary. Most owners limit their hedgehog's bath time to once or twice a month due to dry itchy skin.

Tip #1

Learn the way your hedgehog cooperates with bath time the most. For example, do they cooperate more just before it's time for them to sleep? Or when they first get up? Do they cooperate more with a shallow bath? A full body bath? A shower? Even if your hedgehog never likes a bath, you can make it more tolerable by observing when they're less anxious about it.

One of the things you can do is keep your hedgehog's preferences in mind. If you have a hedgie that is jumpy at sounds, then the sound of the water running may be frightening to them. In this case, it might be better to pre-fill whatever vessel you're using to the appropriate level with water that is the right temperature before retrieving them from their cage.

Any person that thinks hedgehogs don't have preferences has never watched a hedgie toss kibble out of their dish in order to reach that one piece at the bottom of the bowl.

~HeavenlyHedgies

On the other hand, you may have a hedgie that likes the faux shower experience and is just fine with running water and/or the spray hose on the sink. Just be sure to adjust the temperature before running the water over your spike potato. One hedgie owner thought that their hedgehog HATED bath time. She discovered that their quill ball actually liked their bath time -BUT- at a slightly higher temperature of water!

The bottom line is that by using their preferences, you can make it a less traumatic experience for you both. With continued attention to their preferences, they may learn to enjoy bathing since they're getting pampered. Using several of these tips, all our hedgehogs came to terms with bath time, and two even enjoyed it.

Bath Supplies You'll Need:

Aveeno® Baby Soothing Relief Creamy Wash -or- Aveeno® Baby Cleansing Therapy Moisturizing Wash (if hedgie is quilling)
Clean soft bristle tooth brush
Wash cloth
Flax seed oil, wheat germ oil, or Vitamin E
Clippers (if nails need clipping)
Clean towel (warmed preferably – heating pad on low will do it)
CBD oil if your hedgehog has high anxiety or quilling (optional)
Your hedgehog's favorite treats

Pre-bath preparation can make all the difference between a frustrating struggle and a smooth hedgehog bath time experience. If you prepare things before actually putting your quill baby in the water, things should go much smoother.

By having your hedgehog's bathing supplies in place with caps open and ready to use, it will shorten the event. For hedgehogs that simply will not relax and enjoy their “spa day”, this degree of efficiency is key.

Tip #2

Pre-heat the surface of the vessel that holds the bath water and get it to the same temperature of the bath water. Many hedgehogs are sensitive to sudden temperature change against their skin and if the first thing that touches their skin is colder than them, it's not going to go well! Stone, porcelain, ceramic and metal vessels take longer to come up to temperature. Also, if you fill the bath water into a vessel that isn't warmed, it will lower the overall temperature of the water. Heat always migrates to an adjoining cooler surface. So you may want to fill it slightly warmer and let it cool to the right temperature.

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It's always better to use a body wash rather than shampoo. Shampoos are designed to strip oils, whereas body wash is designed to moisturize. In order to avoid any skin irritation during your hedgehog's bath time, we strongly recommend an unscented baby body wash like Aveeno® Baby Soothing Relief Creamy Wash. This particular type is great if it is a normal bath time.

If your hedgehog is quilling, we recommend Aveeno® Baby Cleansing Therapy Moisturizing Wash or an oatmeal bath. You can read more specific suggestions for a quilling hedgie in our article on Hedgehog Quilling Symptoms And Tips.

The brands we've recommended aren't mandatory. The important thing is to stick to something unscented, gentle enough for a baby, and isn't a shampoo. You also should look at the ingredients. Make sure what you're buying doesn't contain tea tree oil, avocado oil, or essential oils. Some essential oils can be harmful to hedgehogs.

Often, dry skin flakes, poop, litter, and anointing remnants can get embedded between a hedgehog's quills. The best thing to use for getting in between is a soft bristle tooth brush. You can also use a soft nylon baby brush that is for cradle cap. Getting poked by sharp quills is no fun for you, so using one of these can help save your fingers from being jabbed.

You probably thought the wash cloth was for washing them, but that's not where we were going with that. You can certainly try to wash them with a wash cloth, but from our experience, it's not going to be very effective. Instead, if you lay it on the bottom of the sink or vessel you're using, it will give them a surface that isn't slippery so they don't accidentally get a snoot full of water. You can also use a rubber sink mat instead.

You should avoid dousing their heads with water. If dirty bath water gets into their lungs or ears, you may very well have to visit the vet soon after from an ear or respiratory infection.

Guard against water in ears and nose

Dirty bath water that gets down into a hedgehog's ears or sucked down into their lungs, can cause an ear or respiratory infection. A non-slippery surface beneath them will help safeguard against this.

If your hedgehog has dry, itchy skin, you can mix a couple drops of flax seed oil, wheat germ oil, or Vitamin E in their clean rinse water. Don't apply it directly to their skin because any oils can potentially clog the pores. We don't recommend olive oil or coconut oil in their rinse water. This is because it clings to their skin and traps bacteria when they're back in their cage. This can lead to fungal infections, that in turn can cause quill loss, and it is hard to treat.

Tip #3

Benjamin Franklin wisely said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. How true! Before your hedgehog develops dry itchy skin, add a drop of coconut oil, CBD pet tinctures, olive oil, flax seed oil, wheat germ oil, or vitamin E to their food a few times a week. It will help condition their skin as dead skin falls off and new skin develops.

Toe nails are softer immediately following a bath, so if your hedgehog needs a pedicure, now is the time to do it. Some hedgehog owners are able to perform this while their hedgie is in the bath. Other owners do it immediately following the bath. And then there are a small population of owners that pay their vet or a groomer to perform this service. The key thing to try to determine is what your hedgehog's preference is. Hedgehog's usually HATE this, but it's a necessary part of the grooming process.

Tip #4

During bonding time, if you make it a habit of playing with their feet, it will make nail clipping less of a struggle. Try to touch their feet while cleaning their poop boots and while you're holding them.

Think back to when you step out of the bath or shower into the ambient temperature of your house. You can understand that it's quite chilly at first! Given their small size, getting out of a nice warm bath after your hedgehog's bath time, it's even more shocking to their tiny bodies. If you have had a towel warming on a low temperature heating pad, we're sure you're going to find your hedgie will be quite appreciative when you dry them in it. You might even get a little cuddle time from them for it.

Tip #5

Nothing quite finishes off a bath quite like a warm towel. If you've ever been to a spa or masseuse, wasn't the warm towel at the end like icing on a cake? If you have a heating pad, set the towel on it to warm it up to use after you finish your hedgehog's bath. Don't have a heating pad? You can put dry beans or dry rice in a tube sock or pillow case and tie it off so the contents don't spill out. Heat it up in the microwave for a minute or less, take it out, and wrap the towel around it to warm the towel. With either method, you'll have to play with the timing so that the towel is warm -but not too warm- by the time bath time is over.

Some hedgehogs are particularly high strung and no matter how much you try to make their bath time a positive experience, it's never going to happen. It's only natural that as hedgie parents, you don't like seeing them spaz out. In an effort to avoid your hedgehog having a panic attack, you may even avoid bathing them as often as they actually need.

We'd like to suggest an alternative that has helped many, many animals with anxiety (amongst other things). If you give your hedgie 1 drop of CBD oil in their mouth or on a before-bath treat, you will find that they are much calmer during the entire hedgehog bath time ordeal.

We use CBD oil and can assure you that you are not getting your hedgie high! There is absolutely no THC in the CBD oil we recommend and we find it to be a very good solution for this situation. It even works great for a quilling and grumpy hedgehogs.

If you would prefer not to mess with administering a drop, we are pleased to offer a different solution. We have partnered with a company that offers CBD shampoo to use instead of drops. No drops to mess with or measure out! Check it out here.

Nothing helps a hedgehog get over being pissed off about an unwanted bath better than bribery with some yummy treats! Even if your hedgehog likes bath time, they'll appreciate their spa day even more with their favorite worm or bug to nom on. This can help your hedgie begin to associate this bath time experience with getting something they like.

While foot baths aren't as involved as a full-blown bath, they are still a necessary part of hedgehog hygiene. Ideally this should be given when you remove them from the cage for some bonding and cuddle time. Not only does it clean your hedgehog's poop boots, but it also stimulates them to go potty. You gain the double benefit of not being walked on with poop boots and there's less likelihood of your quill butt going potty on you!

Hedgehog Double Duty Foot Bath

Many hedgehog owners have learned that cleaning their hedgehog's wheel and their poop boots are two of the most dreaded aspects of hedgehog caretaking. There's a way to accomplish both tasks with minimal effort on your part. Let the little quill butt clean his own wheel! If you set the wheel in the tub with just enough water to cover your hedgehog's poopy feet while they're in the wheel, they'll run. While they run, they will clean most of the mess off of both! You'll have to finish off the cleaning (most likely), but it becomes less of a chore to do it.

The other half of the entire hedgehog bath time equation is, of course, YOU! If you're a new hedgie parent, then we can pretty much predict that you're nervous about flubbing it up. And you're also probably thinking that it'll never get any easier. We've been there. We know! Hedgehogs aren't porcelain dolls, so make sure you aren't afraid to hold them firmly and securely if they're not being cooperative. With practice, a consistent routine, and the help of our tips and tricks in this article, you're going to do just fine!