Beligerent Hedgie

[Kalandra]

With Ollie, I started out with putting mealworms in a bowl in his cage for a while. It let him get the taste for mealworms. I stopped putting them in at night with him, and now he only gets mealies when I'm around. Next step: I started putting him in his cage and placing the mealworms in next to him (still in the bowl). Then moving my hand away but continuing to sit quietly next to his cage. He'd eventually uncurl and gobble them up. Later we moved to on my lap with the mealworms still in the shallow bowl. And now we are at the I drop them in front of him, he huffs, puffs and eventually eats them. After the first mealworm, he doesn't usually curl back up now, quills always stay raised, and he's always ready to snap shut at a moment's notice and he does huff and pop when my hand gets near (his clicking is far less), but once he realizes there is a mealworm in front of him, he is on it.

Its been a huge help in getting him to uncurl much faster for me.

How you go about it will depend on the hedgehog. This has worked pretty well with Ollie. With another, the process was much much slower.

Again, I will go back to the use a snuggle bag method too though. Ollie has learned about the snuggle bag and he is a huge fan of it. He will uncurl and lay down in the bag now, and has even started to walk into it on his own when out on my bed.

[Erin132]

Thanks so much for all the advice! I stuck with it and put a few more Tshirts in his cage in addition to the ones that were there and now today for the first time ever he let me rub him under the chin without hissing or spiking!! He still hates being picked up but we're getting there

[Kalandra]

Good job. A little patience can have big rewards. Keep at it and I bet he will come around more.

I was tickled tonight when I got a picture of Ollie's nose. Ok I got more pictures than that, as I was trying to get a photo of a red spot on his face. But look at that cute little nose!

Yeh, I'm just happy to see his nose. It means he is uncurled and he didn't curl back up while I was clicking photos of him trying to see his spot... progress! He got his mealies after photo time.

[Erin132]

Aw brilliant! Ollie is absolutely lovely! Look at his little nose!! I got a lovely picture of ghost in the sun the other day I wish I had my camera on my now he's stretched out fast asleep on my lap lol

http://i.imgur.com/F45rV.jpg

[Kalandra]

Awesome photo! Ghost is gorgeous.

[sami_cutie]

I'm new to the forums, but this is precisely the subject that I came looking for help with.
My little Rocco has been "belligerent" (although that's a mild way of saying it) ever since we got him. Now, he's just had his first birthday (April Fool's... go figure), and we've had him since he was about 8 weeks old. So, for about 10 months, we've been taking him out with us pretty much every day (or at least every other day) and he is STILL angry and vicious. He bites. A lot. And not the "I want to taste you because you smell good" kind of bite, but rather the "I want you to die a slow, horrible death" kind of bite. And I don't know what you guys are talking about when you say their bites don't draw blood... Rocco's does all the time. And the bite wounds take a good few weeks to heal completely because they have a habit of getting infected (because he has a dirty little mouth... lol). We even went to the vet and had him neutered in the hopes that this would decrease his testosterone levels enough for him to be somewhat nicer. No luck.
Now, after reading the blogs, I realize that the fact that he'll sit on my lap and fall asleep on me and whatnot is good news, but he's done this since the beginning. So, really, there's been virtually no change in the past 10 months. He still hates to be touched... anywhere. And, while he hates baths, this is the only place where he'll be happy to see our hands (as they're his life preservers), although last time he showed his disapproval with one of the worst bites I've ever gotten from him (I had to shake him pretty violently to make him let go, letting out a loud yelp in the process and dropping him back into the bathtub). Pretty sure I'll have that scar for life (ripped the side of my hand open a little).
We've bought him treats that he won't eat and we've never had luck with mealworms. The only thing he likes is beef, although after he eats it, he balls up again as if to remind us how much he still hates the world.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. We're at our wits' ends with this little devil. If he weren't so cute, we'd have kicked him to the curb by now.
Thanks!
Sam

[Erin132]

oh god that sounds terrible!! I guess I'm lucky that Ghost hasn't been able to break the skin! I'm just trying to think what I did with him that helped.
- He didn't like mealies at first but after I put them in his food bowl and he tasted them he got addicted, so I try give him a few tasty treats to try get him to associate me with good things lol
- He doesn't like being picked up but I've found sitting with him on my lap while I study and stuff seemed to work well. I sometimes put my hand into the bag now and just rest it next to him in a non-threatening way and although he'd huff a bit a first he soon falls asleep on it.
- With the biting I just tried to ignore it. His bites are also the "I want you to die painfully variety" haha I can see how doing that would be much harder with bites that break the skin though :/ I just try to make sure that I don't "attack" him with my hand. Because I've had previous pets that have almost "tested" me by biting so I try very hard not to flinch or draw away, although that's not always easy. With a hamster I had previously I used gloves until he realized that biting didn't get him put back in his cage anymore and he tamed down amazingly after that. I don't know if something like that would work in your case though.
- The last thing I do is put several of my old recently worn tshirts into his cage. For ages he would completely avoid them and try to sleep anywhere that didn't have one but just recently he has started sleeping in them and I think that has made a huge difference.

Sorry I couldn't be of more help. I'd say you must have tried all of these by now and be at your wits end!

[Lussy]

oh my God!!
I was sure that those few bites that Unariccia is giving to us every now and then only when we deeply annoy her in order to bond were bad!!!!!!!!
imagine that!!!!
compared to what u described is nothing!! and still they mostly seem "what-a-huge worm-is-in-front-of-me-now" kind of bites (smelling at our fingers)!

anyway...the only advice I might give you is to figure out what Rocco loves about food, toys, cuddles and do ur best in making him associate these good things with your being around!!
it takes a lot of time and patience...we r still working on bonding and let Unariccia accept our caressing but I'm afraid it will take a bit longer yet...don't give up!!! Rocco is lovely, by the way

[sami_cutie]

Thanks for the replies. And I agree... he is super duper cute.
Rocco has been sleeping on an old T-shirt since we got him (that and my husband's socks too for a while... not sure how he can stand them, but he slept on them for a good few months!). As for the mealies, we've tried leaving some in his food dish and they just ended up dying in there and he ate around them. Very strange. Any other insects that any of you have found they like?
Also, we recently got him a little pen for while he's out with us (it was actually meant for hamsters, but apparently hamsters can maneuver their way out, but hedgies can't!). So we try taking him out and just leaving him in there for a while with his wheel, his blankie, and some treats, but he just sits in his ball the whole time and eventually falls asleep. Does this seem like something we should continue to do?
We also put him on the coffee table (with nothing on it) so that he has nowhere to hide (saw this trick online to force them to interact). If I put my hands flat at the edge of the coffee table, he'll actually seek out and walk across my hands onto my lap so he has somewhere to hide (and no biting!). This is the best type of interaction I've had with him, but he still hates to be touched (for some reason, especially when he's pooped and we try to clean it before he can walk in it... that's the time he likes to back up and ball up the most... so that the poop spreads and gets all over him, of course). I'm pretty sure this is progress, so I'm not complaining, but it just feels like I'll never be able to touch him without him freaking out... even when he's at his "happiest". I get so jealous when I see videos online where people are rubbing their hedgie's belly or holding and petting them without a freakout occurring. I hope this will happen sometime down the line for us...

[Hillybean]

Not all hedgehogs like to be pet. If he is biting you when you are petting him, that could be the cause. Some hedgies, just plain don't like it. Having him willing to be out and exploring on you with no aggression is awesome..he very well could be an explorer and not a snuggler.

One of my hedgies also dislikes baths, but he had never had one before I got him..so he is still getting use to them. I also don't think hedgies in general like baths. We are working on petting, but honestly he hates it. The only real petting is done around his front legs, when he is exploring...so very quick. He lays all of quills down when exploring, and is a sweety over all though.

Dubia roachs..is an insect I choose to give over mealies and my hedgies love them!