Bath mistake

[lovelyhamsters5]

So I gave Einstein a water bath then afterwards found out it's really dangerous to give them water baths, is there anything I can do to prevent him from getting a cold, and do his oils come back? I didn't truly wash him I just put some water on him with a little soap then thoroughly dried him off, I did no scrubbing and it was hamster shampoo. He seems perfectly fine and not cold he actually is warm, his fur is fluffier then ever and he seems fine. I just want to know what to do. I feel really stupid for washing him now I'm sad because I don't want him to be sick....

[cypher]

If he's ok now & not showing any ill effects then it sounds as though you got away with it, as long as you got him warm & dry quickly he should be ok, just keep an eye on him for any signs of a cold or any other changes.
They keep themselves clean just by grooming & don't need any help from us but a sand bath can be beneficial & they enjoy that so you could give him one of those, only use chinchilla sand not dust though.

[racinghamster]

The only reason water should come near a hamster is if their bottom is messy from having an upset gut or you need to help the hamster to clean that rear end area for other reasons, but no, they never need a `bath`. Hamsters groom themselves all the time.

As cypher said, if he`s okay and none the worse for his bath, just leave him now to settle again and try not to fuss him too much in case he feels more stress than he`s showing. But he should be okay. x

[kittokitty]

It might be useful to get a sand bath for him

[Wanna Hamster]

As long as he looks happy and healthy, he should be fine. People make mistakes, but that way you can learn from them. If you are worried about your hamster not being clean enough, add a sand bath! I use an old (but very well cleaned out, of course) cashew container tipped on its side with some some Supreme Science chinchilla bathing sand on the bottom that I got on Amazon. If you are looking for bathing sand, make sure it is 100% dust free, so don't get dust or powder. The dust can cause respiratory problems and nobody wants that!

[racinghamster]

It`s also wise to find out whether water and hamsters mix before bathing one. Sand is widely used as a natural product for hamsters to roll in and it`s a widely known part of their habitat, although I don`t use sand for my dwarf hamster, it is a personal choice. x