Raw feet, abnormally calm, dry ears, loss of appetite. HELP

[shelbie596]

I recently took a vacation for five days, and left my hedgie in the care of my mom's friend. My hedgehog stayed at home and in her natural surroundings. When I came back, seemed perfectly fine. The next night (tonight) I noticed dried blood on the tops of all of her feet. I immediately put her feet in some water to reveal raw, sore looking feet. Her ears are matted and dry. She was not afraid or uncomfortable when i put her in the water, which is extremely abnormal for her. She usually poops in the water as soon as I put her in, but she didn't. She didn't try to escape or run around, she just stood still. My mom's friend that was watching her said she only ate the cat food part of her diet, ignoring the nutritional hedgehog part, and slowly lost some interest in her food as the days went on. I know my parents turned the heat to 85 degrees. I also let her play outside for the first time a few days before we left for the vacation. I need serious help.

[sklock65]

Hmmmm...85 seems a bit too warm to me. Do you have a reading on the temp in the cage? I know they can get lathargic if too warm. I have also seen suggestions to remove the wheel for a night or two so feet can heel after something has happened. I would watch her weight and food/water intake closely these next few days and if things don't improve or become worse she may need a vet visit to be sure.

[shelbie596]

Originally Posted by sklock65

Hmmmm...85 seems a bit too warm to me. Do you have a reading on the temp in the cage? I know they can get lathargic if too warm. I have also seen suggestions to remove the wheel for a night or two so feet can heel after something has happened. I would watch her weight and food/water intake closely these next few days and if things don't improve or become worse she may need a vet visit to be sure.

I ran the fan in my room to cool her down, I had no idea they would turn it up that high in the house. I also dipped her feet in cool water as soon as I got home. I completely cleaned out her cage, left her wheel in (to see if she will poop) but i cleaned that out of course, I will be making a vet appointment in the next couple days and closely monitoring her food/water intake. thank you

[nikki]

Just so you know, the cat food is the most nutritious part of her diet, most hedgehog foods are not very nutritious at all and contain corn.

[alexvdl]

Keep in mind that a fan doesn't actually change the temperature in the room/cage but merely moves the air around. IN order to have an effect on the room temperature, you can put a tray of ice cubes in front of the fan, though this isn't very efficient.