What To Use To Clean Hedgehog Cage

Keeping a hedgehog's cage make clean and whether it was easy or going to be difficult, was researched by my girl. Keeping a muzzle clean was essential to keep the hedgehog clean and healthy.

How often practise you have to make clean an hedgehog's cage? Hedgehogs cage needs to exist cleaned thoroughly once a week taking everything out of the muzzle and washing downwards the cage. A partial midweek clean is required to change their bedding and running wheels with a daily clean involving removing their faeces.

We've come up up with 5 tips to brand the cleaning process easier. Our five tips make information technology easy to prepare upwardly a routine to keep the cage make clean and continue the smells at bay, as hedgehogs poop and pee does smell and needs to be kept in check.

1. Remove their poop daily

Our daily routine includes removing any poop in the cage and we apply a lilliputian portable vacuum which effortlessly sucks up the poop. Some poop may take tried onto the bedding and this will need to be separated from the bedding. We but apply one function of the bedding as a glove and then selection off the poop.

Initially, we did utilize a litter tray and he did poop in this just this litter training only works to some extent because if they accept a running bicycle, the amount of poop that gets flung out around the cage as the hedgehog is running and pooping at the same time brand having the litter tray pointless.

We also establish the litter tray takes up as well much valuable infinite in the cage and compromising on the poop being spread over the muzzle was an piece of cake decision to brand, instead of compromising on the space the hedgehog had.

2. Change nutrient and h2o daily

Depending on the food we've used for our hedgehog, we decide whether nosotros'll demand to change it afterwards a day or two. If it's something perishable, that is information technology goes off quickly then any uneaten nutrient like this volition need to be removed.

We tend to predominantly apply dry cat biscuits and find our hedgehog doesn't gorge on these and overeat, some hedgehogs may practice and therefore it's wise to discover out what your hedgehogs eating habits are and adapt accordingly. As our hedgehog just eats when he'due south hungry, we leave aplenty dry biscuits in his bowl over the week.

If nosotros make up one's mind to requite him something like chicken, so I tend to not leave it in his food bowl simply nearer to his firm to entice him out in the evening and whatever leftover is thrown away.

It'southward imperative to change the water every solar day as hedgehogs may inadvertently poop in their own water every bit they motion around. We accept two sources of water in the muzzle, one is the water bowl the other is the water drip. Even so unsure whether he uses the water drip, every bit the water level does drop but that may simply be because he keeps bumping into it.

3. Clean exercise wheel regularly

The running wheel can end up with loads of dried poop on information technology and if this is not regularly removed, the hedgehog can get injured when using the running wheel.

It's a tough job trying to remove the poop so what we've done is invested in two running wheels with the dirty bicycle left to soak overnight in h2o whilst the other one is in utilize.

The post-obit the day the wheel that was left to soak is removed from the soak and any last remaining amounts of poop are wiped of using newspaper towels. The bike is so left to dry and nosotros're quite lucky in having a conservatory which gets pretty hot in the warmer months, and then the running wheel dries very quickly.

iv. Wed fractional cage clean

We do a partial clean of the cage at least once a calendar week and generally this clean is wednesday and concentrates on u.s.a. irresolute our hedgehog'due south bedding and swapping out his dirty running wheel with a clean one.

side view of pygmy hedgehog cage — Time for a partial clean

The offset step in cleaning the muzzle is to make sure the hedgehog is put somewhere safe and nosotros put downwards the new bedding in our other room downstairs and put his business firm on top. Nosotros put him well-nigh the house and he has a quick sniff, realises it'south his firm and goes within. He stays in that location while we clean his cage.

If your hedgehog is particularly inquisitive, you lot may demand to put him inside a box equally they may start to scurry around your house and the last thing yous want is for your hedgehog to get stuck somewhere. We have sofas with a modest clearing underneath and he used to make a dart for this, as it'due south a nighttime identify to hide.

If you do use a box, brand sure it'southward comfortable enough for your hedgehog and has some food considering they can be quite hungry when they wake up. Or failing that, get someone else to wait afterward them, whilst their muzzle is cleaned. I tend to expect after him while my daughter cleans the cage, this gives her some responsibility for the hedgehog.

5. Total weekly clean

The full make clean involves taking everything out of his cage and then washing the cage with soapy water. Only a very small amount of soap is mixed with the h2o and after the soapy water wash is completed, we rinse the cage thoroughly to ensure there is no soapy residue left backside.

I did contemplate doing this exterior but I'm kind of worried almost inadvertently bringing any insects or mites into the house unawares with his cage, and so I utilize the shower room downstairs.

Newspaper bedding

The temptation may exist to use newspaper as bedding, as this can exist a cheap source of bedding and cleaning is as simple as taking the onetime paper bedding, throwing it abroad and replacing it with new paper bedding.

However, I'm not a large fan of newspaper bedding, as the ink used could be toxic, so I'd exist worried about our hedgehog eating the paper and getting ill.

Newspaper bedding isn't as absorbent as the textile based bedding we apply, and so any water spillage or pee on the newspaper bedding won't soak in as well as cloth bedding. As the hedgehog moves around, this could turn mushy and if information technology's cold make the flooring surface area where the soaked newspaper bedding is colder.

Fabric-based bedding

The fabric-based bedding we employ is most a centimetre thick, that's most a third of an inch, giving it plenty of power to absorb our hedgehog's pee and any water spillages from his bowl or his water tube.

pygmy hedgehog roller up in their cage — Fabric bedding and cloth tunnel

Whilst using other types of bedding like fabric-based bedding involves having to wash these regularly making information technology feel as though it's quite a task, withal it is definitely worth the try. Nosotros have brought three cloth-based bedding, which is alternated, with at to the lowest degree one in the wash, one at hand and i being used.

Wood Shavings

We don't also use shavings every bit once again these may not be good enough to absorb any pee or h2o. So the hedgehog could once more be walking in their own pee or through cold h2o.

Cloth Tunnel

We also take a cloth-based tunnel which our hedgehog likes to snuggle in sometimes and occasionally he can leave poop or he pees inside this tunnel. Maybe he becomes just a little bit as well relaxed and forgets his manners 😊. Over again we have two of these fabric-based tunnels and wash these alternately.

With whatsoever fabric bedding, the machine washing is the easy part, the drying is the problem especially in the cold months. The temptation may be too leave bedding on heaters and radiators but this tin increment the moisture in your business firm and if information technology's not adequately ventilated the mould.

We have a dryer in our utility room which is well ventilated, so information technology's quite easy to dry out the bedding and in the warmer months when our conservatory becomes a sun trap, we just leave the bedding here to dry out.

We use a soft detergent which doesn't take too many chemicals in and we accept found it to be gentle especially with our daughter who used have outbreaks of eczema and when we changed the detergent to the current one, the eczema outbreaks fell dramatically.

Some detergents can have many chemicals which may remain even later washing, then it's all-time to find i which is pet-friendly.

We also use material-based house comprehend equally the plastic business firm isn't dark enough for our hedgehog and this needs washing too. Fortunately, this doesn't get also dingy, and so can be done less frequently.

Don't become overboard and clean do a full clean every twenty-four hour period, it's merely non worth the attempt and doesn't accept any additional do good. Moreover, it may go a burdensome chore which inevitably could lead to arguments or even an precipitous stopping of cleaning regularly altogether.

Scented cleaning products are a no-no

Don't apply scented cleaning products equally hedgehogs have an incredible sense of smell and they may get distressed with scents and smells. It'southward also important to remember any cleaning products used are not toxic for hedgehogs, as the concluding thing any hedgehog possessor would want is for their hedgehog to get sick or worse notwithstanding die from improper use of cleaning products.

Finally, the weekly system you lot use for your hedgehog will be based on compromises and trying to find the right balance of cleanliness. Information technology took us a few weeks to perfect our system of cleaning and ane established as a routine, information technology's been fairly easy to maintain.

With the exception of vacations where the person looking subsequently our hedgehog doesn't have to do the total clean at the end of each week when we are abroad on holiday. This has the benefit of making it easier for us to observe friends and family who are prepared to look afterwards our hedgehog.

Conclusion

Daily cleaning is required for removing our hedgehog'southward poop from the muzzle and likewise changing his food and water. Cleaning his practise wheel, with a light clean of the cage can be done in the middle of the week. With a full clean of the cage washed once a week.