Toddler shy about genitals - normal?

[catlike1979]

My 20 month old DS has recently started not letting me wash his penis when in the bath - he closes his legs and puts his hand over it. It's a definite "don't touch" as opposed to a game. He giggles and seems perfectly happy but just won't let me touch there. I don't make a big deal of it and just carry on washing him everywhere else.

He's perfectly happy for nappy changes and allows me to clean his penis then. I've checked and he's not sore down there and has never had a UTI. I'm a bit perplexed! Is this normal? Surely he's too young to have developed self-consciousness about his genital area? We are very open at home about naming body parts and we've never given any reference to the genitals being any different to any other part of his body. Can anyone advise?

I don't think you should be actively washing it though OP.

You should never push back a baby or toddlers foreskin...sitting in the bath is enough of a rinse for him.

Probably tickles.

Mine went through a phase of this, he used to cry at it sometimes! Not because I was trying to wash it or anything, just if he was naked. I used to worry he was scared of it!
It very soon passed. We just didn't make a big deal of it either way, just let him get on with it (think maybe he had just discovered it was there!) Now (2.5yrs) he the thinks it's hilarious.