hedgehogsofasgard:

fantasticbeastsandhowtokeepthem:

Oooh, I like this ask, thank you!! I get to talk about one of my favorite subjects! 😀 This doesn’t quite cover everything (I’m not gonna touch breeding in this post), but these are a lot of the main ones I’ve seen over the years. 

Hedgehogs don’t need extra heating – if you’re comfortable in a t-shirt, they’ll be fine! 

NOT true. Normal room temperatures or individual comfort zones vary a lot by people. The vast majority of the time, hedgehogs will need a separate heating set up, even just as back up, and some hedgehogs can be very sensitive to fluctuating temperatures. The usual “safe” range given is 73-80F. But a lot of hedgehogs may end up with a hibernation attempt if the temperature falls from 78 during the day to 73 at night. So you have to be careful.

People are also very bad at telling temperature by how it feels – you MUST use a digital thermometer for your hedgehog’s cage.

Even for people who live in warm states like Florida & Texas, it’s often recommended to have a back up heating system, just in case. Hedgehogs can also become more temperature sensitive when they get older or if they’re sick, so it’s good to be prepared.

Hedgehog food for hedgehogs….right?

Hedgehog food is NOT good for hedgehogs – the ingredients are very poor quality in most of them, to the point of causing malnutrition. Good quality cat & dog foods are currently the best commercial option available, though it sounds weird (and vets don’t usually like this). 

Hedgehogs don’t really NEED insects.

Hedgehogs are primarily insectivores in the wild. They should have insects in their diet. While they won’t outright die from not having insects if they’re eating a balanced commercial food – which is what we tell new owners panicking over a picky hedgehog on my forum – it’s still a really important part of their diet. Owners should make every effort to incorporate insects as a regular part of the diet, not just treats. This is an excellent post that discusses this more – http://hedgehogsofasgard.com/post/164150669251/hedgehog-nutrition 

Awwww, look at that cute hedgie getting a belly rub!! 

A lot of people see cute pictures of hedgehogs on the internet where they’re seemingly content on their backs or getting belly rubs or posing with all of their quills flat. These are a single snapshot from a well-socialized hedgehog’s life. Right after that picture was taken, the hedgehog probably started flailing wildly to try & get off their back – a very vulnerable position for a prey animal. Well socialized hedgehogs may let their owner (someone familiar & trusted after months of interaction) rub their belly, pet their face, etc. It takes MONTHS to get to this point though! 

Hedgehogs are defensive, shy, easily startled prey animals covered in sharp needles. They are not social, they do not typically seek out interaction or affection, and they do not play like a dog or cat. During the first weeks/months of handling, they will likely quill up easily, curl up in a ball frequently, startle when you make any noise or movement, huff/hiss/pop to try & scare you away, and may even bite. This is really discouraging for new owners and is a common cause of hedgehogs being rehomed in their first year. And a lot of this behavior typically continues even after they’re well socialized – hedgehogs may ball up when first picked up in their cage, or have grumpy days where they refuse to put their quills down, or may always huff & hiss at you a lot. It’s something important to keep in mind before bringing one home.

4 square feet is totally fine for a hedgehog cage.

So this is one we’re currently working on trying to revamp in the US/western hedgie world. The recommendation for some years has been a minimum cage size of 4 square feet. This is too small! This only gives enough room for a wheel, a hide, and food/water bowls. Maybe a tube or ball. This is a sad lack of enrichment for an animal that spends their time in the wild roaming long distances, digging, and searching for insects. The minimum cage size should be 8 square feet. This is the case in many European countries and the US is very much outdated here. Plastic totes are often used as a cheap cage option here, but a lot of people will only use one and it’s just not big enough. If two or more are connected, they can work as a good hedgie home, but this isn’t often the case.

My hedgehog is lonely & needs a friend/mate.

As said above, hedgehogs are NOT social creatures. They do not need or want a friend!! If you want a second hedgehog, get one for YOU, not for your first hedgehog. And keep in mind that you’re doubling your time for socialization – they need to be quarantined for at least 3-4 weeks, even if you get your new one from a breeder. Even after quarantine, you may need to keep socialization separate. Female hedgehogs can often get along enough to share socialization time in a playpen or on their human. But male hedgehogs may fight, so must be VERY carefully watched. And male & female hedgehogs should NEVER be out together! Hedgehogs mate very quickly – never let them be in a playpen or next to each other in the cage or out unless you have breeding quality hedgehogs & you’re fully prepared for babies. 

Hedgehogs should also NOT be housed together in 99% of situations. Female hedgehogs can sometimes get along – but you need 8 square feet per hedgehog and a wheel/hide/bowls for each hedgehog in the cage. You will not save on equipment or space by housing hedgehogs together. You WILL increase your risk of hedgehogs injuring each other, sharing illness, & having difficulty telling if one has decreased or stopped eating.

Hedgehogs don’t need much vet care.

Okay, so I haven’t really seen that said outright to my memory. But a lot of people severely underestimate the veterinary needs of hedgehogs and it’s a very important subject. A couple of points to make here. First, hedgehogs are exotic pets – most vets will not see them, you need to locate a hedgehog-experienced vet before bringing one home. Second, make sure your vet has seen hedgehogs. Ask how often they see them, or how long they’ve been seeing hedgehogs. Just because they’re willing to see them, doesn’t mean they know what they’re doing. Try to find one experienced with hedgehogs if at all possible – if you can’t, it’s okay to find one that is willing to & also willing to do the necessary research and work with you to give your hedgehog the best care possible. 

And third, hedgehogs are good at racking up vet bills. They really are – common health issues include skin infections, mites, URIs, uterine issues, and cancer. All of these things require vet visits to diagnose & treat. Skin infections can be fungal or bacterial & may need skin cultures to narrow down for treatment. Mites need to be treated with Revolution, which needs to be prescribed by a vet in the US. Do NOT treat mites with Ivermectin – it’s been deadly to hedgehogs in many cases. URIs need to be treated ASAP – they will not go away on their own & can quickly progress to pneumonia, which can be deadly. Female hedgehogs may start showing blood in their urine – sometimes this can be a urinary tract infection, but is often uterine issues that require spaying. And hedgehogs are overwhelmingly prone to developing cancer of various kinds. Some have a better prognosis than others – uterine cancer can often be treated by spaying. Oral cancers are ugly, fast-moving, and cannot be easily removed most of the time. 

It’s very important to be prepared for a vet visit at any time. Hedgehogs are prey animals that hide symptoms as long as they can. Once they are showing signs of illness, they need vet care ASAP. It’s recommended to have a vet fund of at least $500 saved up for emergency situations. The more you can save, the better. If you’re in the US, you can also get veterinary insurance through Nationwide, which is currently the only company that offers coverage for exotics. This would be well worth it for hedgehogs – the cost is only about $8/month and can save you hundreds of dollars. Get it early, since pre-existing issues are NOT covered.

You should also plan on wellness visits for your hedgehogs at least once a year. Twice a year is even better, especially if you have a hedgehog that already has a history of health issues (like my Pancake). Wellness visits can catch problems early, before they become harder & more expensive to treat. 

All of this! And I can confirm the vet bills. I’ve had many different animals in my life and none have needed vets as often as my hedgehogs.

Slightly similar to the cage size one but what really bothers me is when people say “…(but) all he does is sleep, eat, drink and wheel.” This is usually said in defence of having a small, fleece lined tub with food/water bowls, a hide, a wheel and maybe a few toys at best. Of course he won’t do anything else if you don’t give him anything else to do! Most hedgehogs don’t ‘play’ with toys like some other animals and since they’re not rodents they don’t really use chew toys either, but there is so much more you can do for them enrichment-wise which focuses on natural foraging behaviours (such as dig boxes, more natural enclosures or toys to hide treats in), scented items (for anointing/new stimuli) etc.