A reminder about injuries

[abbys]

Pig had a little mishap and I figured it was a good reminder about how skilled hedgies are at hiding illness and injury.

A week ago, Pig jumped off the couch. He looked/walked just fine and he's done it before so I thought nothing of it.

Then yesterday afternoon I noticed he was limping, but even when I manhandled him to trim his nails he wasn't huffy or defensive or anything to lead me to believe he was in pain.

I finally got a look at his front left leg and up around the shoulder, under the fat, it was purple and slightly swollen (but the rest of his leg looked totally normal), so I removed his wheel for the night and the next morning I made an appointment with the vet.

X-rays showed that he dislocated his shoulder! He fell last Friday, which means that he was walking/running/behaving/eating normally for A FULL WEEK before he showed any sign that something was wrong.

He's just fine - he'll be on pain meds and isn't allowed to wheel for a few days. But it was a good reminder that they can hide injury from even a 2-foot fall like that very very very well.

So moral of the story: If your hedgie has taken a spill, remember to keep a close eye out for limping, swelling, bruising, or abnormal behavior, for several days. They can hold out for a surprisingly long time!

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[Lilysmommy]

Definitely a great reminder. Shame that you & Pig are the ones to provide it for the rest of us though! Glad you did discover his injury and that he'll be fine. Silly Pig, you can't fly, so don't try!