Just a couple curiosity questions, wanna talk hedgie :)

[Amber394]

Hey everyone. Thanks for reading. Anyways, we are fairly new to the hedgehog world and this site helped me a lot both before & after adopting my hedgie, Pepsi. We are Pepsi's 3rd home he came to us very neglected but is coming along great, he let me handle him so well today and I finally got to check his tummy for irritations/lumps.. Found nothing but he does have two matching soft lumps between each hind leg and tail, they were both very soft & squishy, is this a sign of being overweight? After his bath he let me clip a couple nails & apply some Vaseline to his ears (okay, only got the front but it's a start!) While he was out & about I switched out his fleece and cleaned the cage. What do you all use to wash your fleece/cage/accessories? I'm all about bleach, just wondering if it might harm hedgie? I usually use a diluted bleach/water spray for the cage & accessories, let it soak/disinfect, scrub, then rinse & dry. His bedding I wash on a hot cycle with a capful of bleach. He doesn't seem to mind at all, no excess sniffing or tasting. How often do you wash the bedding? I find he scatters a lot of litter and I am cleaning the cage once every day or 2. Then when he was mostly dry & ready to check out his newly cleaned cage I weighed him for the first time... 319 grams. He's eating a mix of mostly Pure-Vita chicken entree (which I'm aware now is high fat.), a bit of our dogs kibble (Acana Singles Formula Lamb & Okanagan Apple) & a handful of our cats Whiskas (which is all he was fed when I got him.) I also give him 5-6 mealies & a free-dried cricket for treats. I wasn't counting his kibble before but I'm starting today, giving him 50, which just so happened to be the small handful he usually gets and never finishes. I hear him on his wheel every night & he doesn't bother with any of the toys I've given him, most ideas I got from here. Lastly, I had to, of course, go read up on an incident we had which led me to believe was "boy time", he was fully "out" and was peeing everywhere.. Assuming it was urine? There was a LOT. Do they come "out" when they urinate, lol? Or was this in fact "boy time"? Thanks all.

[RondackHiker]

I wouldn't use bleach to wash. We actually rarely use it at all, since we have pets and a child, and my DH is a doctor and all about clean, but still doesn't like bleach. There are alternatives that clean well and aren't as harsh on skin or lungs or eyes. Even plain soap and water kills bacteria very well.

For washing, we use some detergent (most people WAY overuse it, by like 2-3 times) and a cup of vinegar. Overuse of detergent can result in odor buildup, since the detergent isn't full rinsed out. To help this, we also do an extra rinse of animal or kid laundry. The vinegar helps cut odor (clothes won't smell of vinegar), sanitizes, and acts as a fabric softener. Fabric softeners leave a residue on fabric that can cause them to smell more, repel water, and stain more easily.

We change liners every 2-3 days, and clean the litter box and wheel and spot clean daily. Oh, and we do bowls daily as well. We keep the liners in a bucket with a lid till we have enough to wash. She doesn't smell, unless it's right after a poop.

The toys is normal, many don't play. I don't know about the boy time, and odn't have a lot of experience so will leave the food stuff for someone else.

[Amber394]

Originally Posted by RondackHiker

I wouldn't use bleach to wash. We actually rarely use it at all, since we have pets and a child, and my DH is a doctor and all about clean, but still doesn't like bleach. There are alternatives that clean well and aren't as harsh on skin or lungs or eyes. Even plain soap and water kills bacteria very well.

For washing, we use some detergent (most people WAY overuse it, by like 2-3 times) and a cup of vinegar. Overuse of detergent can result in odor buildup, since the detergent isn't full rinsed out. To help this, we also do an extra rinse of animal or kid laundry. The vinegar helps cut odor (clothes won't smell of vinegar), sanitizes, and acts as a fabric softener. Fabric softeners leave a residue on fabric that can cause them to smell more, repel water, and stain more easily.

I use bleach to clean everything. It's how I was raised & still is preached at my job. Even if it's diluted and rinsed you think it could be harmful? Or maybe just a matter of personal preference? I kinda thought that because soap leaves residue it might actually be more of an irritant... Just my friendly opinion would love more input from yourself & others regarding this... I really don't want to give up my bleach!! lol

[nikki]

I have used bleach on my liners, not with every wash but every once in awhile when I notice some staining on them. I have also used bleach to clean cages in the past. I would suggest using a vinegar/water mix in a spray bottle after using bleach in the cage. The vinegar will take out any remaining bleach smell and the vinegar smell disapates quickly as it dries. You can also use vinegar in the rinse water when washing the liners to make sure there is no bleach smell remaining.

[Amber394]

Originally Posted by nikki

I have used bleach on my liners, not with every wash but every once in awhile when I notice some staining on them. I have also used bleach to clean cages in the past. I would suggest using a vinegar/water mix in a spray bottle after using bleach in the cage. The vinegar will take out any remaining bleach smell and the vinegar smell disapates quickly as it dries. You can also use vinegar in the rinse water when washing the liners to make sure there is no bleach smell remaining.

Thank you being preached on bleach my whole life it might just be an OCD thing but I simply do not feel like anything is properly CLEAN and thoroughly disinfected until I use it. Incorporating vinegar but not substituting sounds good to me! Haha. We'll see what the boss man thinks though.....

[RondackHiker]

It is a bit personal preference. I try to look at why we clean-- it's to prevent illness and odors. If gentler stuf does the job, why reach for the big guns?

My main worry is that bleach on plastic could degrade it slowly and make it more porous and accepting of odors or weaker, or make it release chemicals. I also worry I won't clean all residue away, since her nose is more sensitive.

With bleach, it was drilled into me to never ever use it on cloth diapers, bc it could wreck absorbency and it will cause a rash on a baby, even diluted. If it can cause a rash on baby's sensitive parts, I don't want my hedgie sleeping in it, know what I mean?

I do use bleach, or other sterilizers, when it needs to be 100 percent sterile. Like cleaning a brood mare stall between occupants.

But to me there's a difference between what needs to be surgical clean and clean. I feel like a huge part of today's culture feels all bacteria is bad and only sees a completely bacteria free zone as clean. We're making super bugs. We clean things with soap and water (studies have shown washing your hands well with soap and water is more effective than any antibacterial sanitizer) and use a bit of vinegar as needed. Knarla's cage needs to be clean and odor free, not ready for surgery.

When DS was in the NICU, they cleaned with soap and water, not bleach. Bleach would be too harsh. That was the turning point for me. I am a bit crunchy, but if I can get things clean without resorting to something that can be dangerous, I will. Especially since DS likes to help me clean. Vinegar splashed in his eyes is okay. Bleach isn't.

[jerseymike1126]

Those lumps are his testicles

[Amber394]

Originally Posted by jerseymike1126

Those lumps are his testicles

Haha, that's good to know! I was wondering that, but never came across anything about it.

I definitely understand what you're saying RondackHiker! Maybe I need to start training myself to ease down on the clean a tad... It will take work haha! We all have our "little things" like that..

[moxieberry]

For surface cleaning (cage, toys, etc) we use Simple Green Pro5 D. The whole Simple Green line is environmentally friendly, and the Pro5 D is scent-free and approved for use on surfaces animals will come in contact with - so it's used in kennels, vet clinics, etc, as well as hospitals. For us it's important to have something that cleans well while also knocking out anything that can get the hedgehogs sick or be contagious from one to the other. Sanitation is a big issue when you have as many as we do. For being so powerful, it isn't nasty stuff at all - no odor, and it doesn't cause any irritation if it gets on your skin, like some other heavy-duty cleaners. I make sure it's completely dry (wiped up with a paper towel and then given a minute or so to air dry) before the hedgehog goes back in the cage. Never had any issues with them being bothered by it, or seeming aware of a smell of any kind.

[alexvdl]

For those curious about such things, Simple Green is also used to clean the inside of nuclear powered submarines.