Trimming your hedgehogs nails doesn’t need to be a huge task.
Follow these few easy tips, which should make your job much less stressful.
1) If possible, play with your hedgehogs feet while handling her regularly. This will help assure her that you’re not trying to hurt her when you attempt nail clipping.
2) RELAX! Hedgehogs are very sensitive, and pick up on how you are feeling. (eg ‘yikes! mom’s upset, what’s going on??’)
3) One nail at a time. If she gets stressed with trimming time, be patient, relax, and get done just what you can.
4) Cut with regular nail clippers. The nails are clear, so you can see where the quick/vein is in the toenail. Try to avoid cutting that far if possible. If nicked, it will bleed. Hedgehogs have thin blood, so sometimes it can seem like quite a bit of blood. Do not be alarmed. Use a bit of cornstarch or kwikstop with some pressure to get it to stop bleeding. If, after a number of minutes it does not slow down and stop bleeding, call the vet.
5) Reward your hedgehog! If she’s let you clip a number (all!) of her nails, give her a treat. She will learn over a little time to associate nail trimming with something good.