weight gain

[nicole92]

Hi guys,
kind of a strange question but I thought I may find my answer here. I brought home my second hedgehog about a month ago. He eats well, bathrooms regularly, uses his wheel, plays in his playpen, snuggles. Everything I would expect from him. He is super sweet and definitely much more curious than my first hedgehog. Some backstory to fully understand my question:
My first hedgehog was the runt of his litter. When I picked him up, he was significantly smaller than every other hedgie at the breeder. She told me he was the runt but was overall healthy, just small. He gained some weight but stayed under 300g his whole life. Each time I brought him to the vet, the vet said "he is very healthy, I just cant believe how small he is". The vet I use is a hedgehog specialist and the same vet used by my breeder. He said my first was definitely one of the smallest he had seen but was still healthy regardless of his small size.
That being said, I don't know how quickly my new baby should be gaining weight. I brought him home on a Sunday May 17 and his first vet appointment was the following Friday, the 22nd. He weighed in at about 255 grams that day. About a week later on June 1, he was about 275g. Today he is weighing in about 300g. He is steadily putting on weight - which I assume is a good thing - but I am wondering how quickly the weight gain should be happening?
He is definitely larger than he was when I first brought him home. He does not roll in a ball but thats because he is curious, not because he is unable. He does have slight indents on his sides which I know is an indication of not yet being overweight. I just want to be sure I am monitoring his weight gain appropriately!

Thanks!

[Ria]

Most young hedgehogs gain weight pretty fast.

The balling up isnt really the key thing to look for.
You want to look more that shape - are they tear drop/pear shaped when you look at them from above.
Is there any excess fat around the limbs

If they can't full ball up then they are veryyy overweight (which I highly.doubt at this point)

If you want extra assurance then upload some photos from birds eye view and with him stranding from the side.

[nicole92]

thanks for your input, I appreciate it! Im glad to know it is normal for them to gain quickly as babies.
Im not worried about him being overweight yet - he is "big" compared to my first but still on the small side compared to many pictures Ive seen of others. He is the right shape and has no extra fat in strange places, just growing quickly! Like I said my first baby never exceeded 300g which is what my current baby is at now after only 3 weeks so I just wanted to be sure it was normal for him to grow so quickly.
I added some photos just in case, mostly because I think he's pretty darn adorable . I tried to find the pictures that show his size best so sorry that they aren't necessarily the best photos but hopefully will show his shape/size. Thanks again!

[Ria]

Aw yea he looks good. Just keep an eye on those factors you'll be fine!