How To Potty Train a Hedgehog Easily?
Having a hedgehog as a pet is less stressful than many other animals. You just need to keep your hedgehog and the area around it very clean. Hedgehogs are indifferent to the training.
So, you can train them to use proper littering with a bit of patience. Some hedgehogs use the litter pan to play instead of wheels.
You might even find your hedgehog using the litter pan for eating and littering at the same place. Therefore, you must try to train your hedgehog with persistence and determination.
Importance Of Potty Training Your Hedgehog
Training your hedgehog for littering at the right place will help you to reduce your cage cleaning time, bedding requirement and will improve your relationship with your hedgehog.
By training your hedgehog to litter properly you will not only save your time from cleaning their litter from here and there but will also help your hedgehog to roam freely within the cage.
The chances are that your hedgehog might get trained right away, but in case they don’t, you should be very patient with them. This process can seem quite tedious but you will have to be persistent if you want to see it through.
Basics Of Training Your Hedgehog
Down below is a list of basics that you must keep in mind before training them, so are you ready to know about them? Read to find out.
Timing
It is always preferable to start the training when you bring them into your home. The earlier you start training, the more likely you will succeed at it. You can also start the training after a couple of weeks as well when you feel you know your hedgehog better.
Primary Considerations
You might want to consider putting the wheels out of the cage during the training time of your hedgehog. Hedgehogs try to litter the wheels while running or playing in it at times.
In this way, you will be able to make a routine and help your hedgehog to habituate to use both the wheels and the litter pan for their respective purpose. Moreover, littered wheels can be quite clumsy to clean and will create a pungent smell in the room.
Different Litter Pans For Your Hedgehog
There are many litter pan brands available in the market. So, you can choose any one of them that you find convenient for you in terms of money and design. But you should remember few details that will help you to choose the right litter pan for your pet hedgehog.
Type Of Litter Pan
The litter pan should be made of a plastic which is durable, odorless and easily cleanable.
Usually, the shape of the litter pan is constructed in such a way that you can fit it to one corner of your cage so that it does not tip over while cleaning the cage and spreads the litter all over. The entrance of the litter pan should be as simple as possible so that your hedgehog can easily get into it.
Features Of The Litter Pan
The back side of the litter pan should be high enough to prevent it from spilling over. The size of the litter pan can vary depending upon the size of your cage. But the most usable size of the litter pan available in the market is 12.5 inches by 8.5 inches by 6 inches.
Other Options
You can also make your own litter boxes if you feel like buying them is not worth it. Paper boxes can also be used as well if you have them available at your home. Put some substrate around the litter pan to make it more comfortable for your hedgehog.
Litter Training Your Hedgehog Efficiently
Litter training a hedgehog requires patience and effort.
In many cases, it is observed that the hedgehogs learn it instantly and in other cases, it needs a little more time and help to get used to the litter training. But yes, training your hedgehog will surely make your life easier.
Positioning Of The Litter Pan
At first, you will need to put the litter pan in inside your hedgehog cage where it is easily accessible for your hedgehog. Also, make sure that it is not closer to the food bowl.
Now, if your hedgehog does not use the litter pan and spoils other places, then you will need to resort to another method.
Creating Examples
You will need to pick up some of its litter and put it in the litter pan. In this way, you will be able to make your hedgehog understand why this litter pan is placed there and for what purpose. Usually, this is a common process for training pet cats.
Identifying Its Litter Spot
Mostly hedgehogs will choose a particular corner of their cage for littering. You will need to recognize that and immediately put the litter pan at that corner. This way you will be able to train your hedgehog easily.
Identifying Signs For Litter Time
Now, it is very usual for a hedgehog owner to observe the possible signs like certain movements or even certain time of the day when your hedgehog is about to go for litter.
As soon as you can identify that moment, you will need to put your hedgehog in the litter pan to build its habit of pottying in the right place. Sometimes you will find your hedgehog littering on your hand.
Timing For Training
Most common time for training a hedgehog to litter is when it wakes up from sleep. If it wakes up right at the time when you wake up from sleep, then immediately put your hedgehog in the litter pan to build the habit.
If not, then you can also monitor time to time when your hedgehog goes for litter and utilize that time to train it.
Treating Plan
Treating your hedgehog right after littering can give it a sense of encouragement. In this way, you can also develop its habit of littering in the right place.
Completion of The Training
There is very little chance that your hedgehog will be trained with 100% accuracy, but it is indeed worth your time to train them.
Wheels might make the hedgehog forget where he was trained to litter. That's why placing the wheels and the litter pan strategically is part of the training process.
Conclusion
Like any other pet animal, hedgehogs also require care and patience to be trained. There is no foolproof plan for training your hedgehogs to litter in the right place. In general, it takes around 2 to 3 days to train your hedgehog, but you should not lose hope during the training process and be patient with them.
