Help please? New hedgehog owner and handling?

[elishax]

Like I said earlier, my hedgehog was on its way here It arrived! I'm not sure if it's a boy or girl (I bought it from a pet store. Surprise, surprise, they didn't know the gender!) I have some questions!

(I'm going to call it, it since I don't know the gender right now)

1) It had a long ride to get here (2 and a half hours), should I leave it alone tonight and try to take it up tomorrow? It's terrified of me, if I put my hand a few inches away from it, it starts to hiss and curls up in a ball automatically. How can I get it to come to me? What's the best way to pick it up?

2) As soon as it started to taste its new shavings I THINK it started anointing. I'll post a picture of what it ended up putting in its bristles. http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos- ... 8982_n.jpg It was white and frothy kind of. http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos- ... 6990_n.jpg It ended up putting a big glob on its side.

3) What's the best way to pick it up? Should I swoop my hands on either side of it and pick up shavings and all along with it? What happens if I get it up and it begins to hiss and try to curl up?

4) When I get it up, what should I do with it? Lay it in my lap on a blanket?

5) Is this a good cage? (I paid around 150 for it) http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OjAAEUGFBhc/T ... abitat.jpg

6) This is it's hut, it's also edible http://www.google.ca/imgres?q=edible+br ... 9,r:6,s:58



I'm sorry for all the questions, before you say that I haven't done my research, I have! I've been doing it for years I just figured it'd be better to get some one on one answers with another hedgie owner!

Right now its huddled up outside its hut with its face dug into the shavings! It won't look at me I just want to admire it forever! I can't wait to hold it

[Daleo]

Here is Lizard Girl's book. Download it, read it, and love it.
http://www.hedgehogbook.webs.com/

You can pick him/her up by scooping underneath them. It will cause a little discomfort, but will not be painful. I would wait 24 hours to handle it, so it can get used to it's surroundings.

That cage looks like a good travel cage. A good sized hedgehog cage is 4'x2' but at least 3'x2'. most people here don't recommend using a bottle for various reasons. A quick search will bring up a bunch of results

Ditch the shavings. Liners are best for them, because of mites and shavings can be caught in their personal areas

That hut is probably ok, but not really made for hedgies since their teeth do not continuously grow like rodents

Last, easy way to sex hedgehogs: If it's "parts" are in the belly button area, it's a boy. If the "parts" are closer to where you think they would be, it's a girl.

[Daleo]

I forgot to mention, take down that shelf part that the food bowl sits in. You hedgie can fall off and suffer internal bleeding. (i know it sounds dramatic, but hedgies are NOT meant to be climbers, although some are good at it for escaping)

[elishax]

Originally Posted by elishax

Like I said earlier, my hedgehog was on its way here It arrived! I'm not sure if it's a boy or girl (I bought it from a pet store. Surprise, surprise, they didn't know the gender!) I have some questions!

(I'm going to call it, it since I don't know the gender right now)

1) It had a long ride to get here (2 and a half hours), should I leave it alone tonight and try to take it up tomorrow? It's terrified of me, if I put my hand a few inches away from it, it starts to hiss and curls up in a ball automatically. How can I get it to come to me? What's the best way to pick it up?

2) As soon as it started to taste its new shavings I THINK it started anointing. I'll post a picture of what it ended up putting in its bristles. http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos- ... 8982_n.jpg It was white and frothy kind of. http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos- ... 6990_n.jpg It ended up putting a big glob on its side.

3) What's the best way to pick it up? Should I swoop my hands on either side of it and pick up shavings and all along with it? What happens if I get it up and it begins to hiss and try to curl up?

4) When I get it up, what should I do with it? Lay it in my lap on a blanket?

5) Is this a good cage? (I paid around 150 for it) http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OjAAEUGFBhc/T ... abitat.jpg

6) This is it's hut, it's also edible http://www.google.ca/imgres?q=edible+br ... 9,r:6,s:58



I'm sorry for all the questions, before you say that I haven't done my research, I have! I've been doing it for years I just figured it'd be better to get some one on one answers with another hedgie owner!

Right now its huddled up outside its hut with its face dug into the shavings! It won't look at me I just want to admire it forever! I can't wait to hold it

I don't have the shelf thing up in his cage, that's just a picture of how big his cage is. It's a fair size.

[connorshogs]

Personally I pefer to use a mixture of shavings and the paper bedding mixed. Its a personal prefrence. I would ditch the hut and get a reg plastic one and theirs someone on here that sells covers for them and the help the Hedgie be in the dark and feel safe. Only thing I wouldn't like the hut is because the top looks like straw and hedgies shouldn't have any kind of hay. The cage looks like a perfect size. If you decide to switch to liners make sure you get a fabric that is loop free. The wheel you got is nice and quite )

[Hedgieonboard]

Your new hedgie is beautiful If you are able to get a picture of the underside we will be able to tell you if its a boy or girl. The hut house you posted can be dangerous because the straw on the house is an eye poking hazard. Plus it's very hard to sanitize because it's porous. If you have an empty butter tub laying around you could always make a temporary hideout until you can get an Igloo or other type of hide. Plastic works well because it's easy to wash but some people use hedgie bags too, just to give a few ideas

[shawnwk1]

i disagree with the wheel, it is unsafe for hedgies and hurt their feet because of the grooves. it is unsafe for three main reasons. one...it is made of two pieces glued together where it is not impossible for hedgie nails to get caught. two...the slits made for urine to drain out also can easily catch nails and cause serious injuy very quickly. and three these wheels have been known to tip over very easily and come apart very easily causing serious injury and even death to hedgies and other animals. most on here recommend a comfort wheel or a bucket wheel that you can make yourself. larry makes very nice ones priced reasonably and ships quickly.

[hanhan27]

1) I would definitely leave it alone for tonight, at least. Some hedgies might need 2 nights to get settled and not be overwhelmed by being taken out of the cage. It's very rare that a hedgehog will actually *come* to you Once it's a little more social, it will probably just end up being tolerant of you picking it up.

2) That definitely looks like the aftermath of a good anoint.

3) In the beginning, you want to take things really slow and calm with your little one. There should be no swooping I find it best if I gently wake my Mildred up either by saying her name or touching the fleece she is hiding under softly. Then I show her my hands. She usually quills up and huffs and then I slowly move my hands to her and pick her up. Some nights she decides to huff a lot and not calm down, so I take a piece of fleece, lay it over her back and tuck it under her tummy, then pick her up. Someone said that it won't hurt to pick hedgie up, but that depends on your pain tolerance and your hedgehog. I have been handling my hedgie for 5 months now and I still can't pick her up when she's in a ball because it hurts my hands. Start off using some sort of cloth (no gloves!) to pick it up and eventually either your hands will get used to the quills or she won't get so upset when you try to pick her up.

4) The best thing to do in the beginning is to either use a snuggle bag or a piece of fleece, a blanket, whatever, to hold hedgie on your lap. It will want to burrow around and hide from you and whatever light you have on. Start off letting it sleep how it wants to, whether that's all wrapped up in a blanket, or with it's head out. Eventually, introduce laying your hand down over hedgie's back. Do that for a while, then maybe start putting your hand near hedgie while it's on your lap so it can smell you and get used to your hands being near it's face. Take everything slowly, step by step, until you can work up to laying your hand directly on it's back or having it sleep on your arm, on your stomach, etc. I have read that holding hedgie by your chest can help with bonding because they can hear your heartbeat? My hedgie seems to like it.

5) You already got answers about the cage, but remember - bigger is better. A lot of people here at HHC seem to have cages that are around 6 square feet. 4 square feet is recommended, but by the time you put in bowls, the wheel, a place to hide, toys, etc, there isn't an awful lot of room left for hedgie.

6) You definitely want to invest in an igloo. The recommended size seems to be the medium size, which is around $6-$8.

Also, you should put some duct tape on your wheel over the spot where the two pieces of plastic meet. There's a groove that runs between the 2 pieces and there have been reports of issues with it. Save up for a Carolina Storm wheel! They are wonderful wheels and the guy who sells them (Larry) is great.

It's wonderful that you came here with your questions. And it's also great that you are so excited to bond with it! Just remember that hedgehogs are naturally defensive animals and it will take a lot of patience.

[shawnwk1]

ha ha ya that's what i meant sorry larry