Litter Training Your Hedgehog

Is it Possible? Have you ever wondered if you could litter train your hedgehog? Have you always wanted to try it, but you weren’t quite sure how? Well I’m here to tell you, yes, it’s possible! I’m going to share with you here all of the tips I’ve ever been given when it comes to litter training. What Kind of Litter Should I Use? First and foremost, you’ll want to use litter that’s different from the bedding and the rest of the enclosure, so they can differentiate between the two. For a myriad of different reasons it is said that you should not use pine pellets, clay litter, or clumping litter. Some examples of suitable options would be care fresh, wood shavings, paper cat litters like Yesterday‘s News, or even something as simple as plain paper towels. The paper towels are a good idea because once your hedgie is litter trained, you’re usually be able to tell immediately if something is wrong with them, like if they begin to pee blood. That kind of thing would be more difficult to notice on the other types of litter. What Type of Litter Pan Should I Use? The type of litter pan that you use doesn’t really matter as much. However, it should be shallow enough to fit under the wheel. If your hedgie already poops in one singular spot of their enclosure, it may be easier to move the wheel and litter box to this location. You also want to make sure that the litter box fits snugly and securely so that it stays put. A lot of people elect to get a box that’s big enough so that the wheel can actually sit inside it. This helps to hold the box still. You want the box under the wheel because this is where most hogs do a majority of their pooping anyways, so it makes the training process easier. How is it Done? Now, for the question of “How do I litter train my hedgehog?”! I have a few more tips for you. First things first, since the box is under the wheel, you’ll want to clean the wheel daily so that every time they wake up, all of their poop is in the box. Speaking of all poop in the box, if they pooped anywhere else besides the box, you want to put that in the box as well. This gives them a more scent-based hint. It Still Isn’t Working! If you continue to follow these steps every day, your hedgie should eventually grasp that this is where the poop goes. If you follow the guidelines above for at least two weeks and see no results, consider making the following changes: get a bigger box, or change your bedding type. If these changes still don’t help then don’t fret. There is nothing wrong with your hedgehog. Not all hedgies can be litter trained.