Pancake gave birth!

[Catters]

Pancake gave birth last night to a hoglet I named Poffertje (basically a Dutch very small version of a pancake). I took the wheel and climby stuff out, gave her her other, bigger house, mealies and put her kibble and water closer to the house.
I've only had her for 2,5 weeks and although I did a lot of reading on hedgies and possible babies, I'd love to get advice from an experienced breeder. Her terrarium is in my living room and is entirely made out of glass. Should I cover it so she doesn't see people passing? Surely it would not be wise to move her terrarium and her and her baby to another room now?
I've read about the other kibble to be fed together half in half with her kitten kibble. Could I also replace the other kibble with mealies?

many thanks!

[Lilysmommy]

I'm not a breeder, so I'll leave the cage location/covering question for them. I'd suggest against adding a lot more mealies to her diet though - too many at once can cause constipation issues, even with live mealies. The Royal Canin Babycat that's suggested is suggested because of the higher fat content, and also because it's good for weaning babies onto, with the tiny kibble size. I'm glad you've been reading up on all the info and I hope she does well with the baby! Remember to resist the urge to peek or bother them for the next couple weeks. Can't wait to see pics of the little one once it's safe!

[Catters]

thank you!
This pic was the only one I took. I lifted her tree trunk to see why she was so grumpy and hissing, and found out why! As the rabbit house she has is bigger, I thought it would be safer to put that over them than the tiny tree trunk where the baby could get a foot stuck, or possibly get mites.
I draped a liner over the half of the cage where the house and its door is, so we can't see each other unless she decides to walk to the other side of her terrarium. Will resist to peek, and I put the noisiest kitchen devices in another room. Will not play any music or watch movies in that room for the coming weeks, so she can have an environment as quiet as possible. Does that sound well?

[Catters]

After reading about Plumeria's babys, I have a question for you: Is it regular for a hedgehog to only have 1 baby? Poffertje (the baby) is 2 finger bones long and I expect Pancake to only be 2 or 3 months (but I do not know for sure as the pet shop where she's from is not exactly experienced with hedgies and don't know who the breeder is).
Now I hope there's not a breach baby in the way. I don't want to invade in the nest of course, but is there a way I should check for a dead baby lying around? Or should I set up another house in the cage so she can move to another house with her litter (of 1 or more)?

The day after she gave birth (my boyfriend heard it but thought she was dreaming) I only saw one. Surely it would be a long time in between to have another one 24 hours later?

thanks in advance for your time and advice!

[nikki]

Just leave everything in the cage the same now, changes are very stressful to a new mom. If she's used to people walking by she should be fine with it. Just try to stay as far from the cage as you can. Only go up to the cage once a day to feed and water her and talk softly to her when you do. She may only have one baby, some hedgies only have on or two in a litter, some have more. As long as mom is eating, drinking and taking care of the baby I wouldn't worry. Don't look for any babies or add any new houses, if a baby didn't make it mom will either get rid of it herself or move it out of the nest.


Try to leave mom and baby alone as much as possible and don't make any changes in the cage now.

[Catters]

thanks nikki, that really helps! what about giving her food she never had before? in this case bell pepper, cucumber & tomato

[nikki]

I wouldn't give her anything new for treats, you don't want her to have an upset tummy while taking care of baby. You can add a bit of Royal Canin Babycat 34 to her food for extra fat while she's taking care of the baby.

[Catters]

Makes sense. I already added babycat half in half with her royal canin kitten food and she eats all of it. Will take the veggies out, then. Remarkable how calm she is, quills down when eating while she knows I'm there. And she's only been here for 2,5 weeks!
Thanks for the advice! Cheers from Pancake & Poffertje

[Catters]

omg she might have two babies! Or it is one that is HUUUGE and very long and slim..
Will check later when she starts eating, and keep you updated!

[Catters]

So it seems to be the latter: one baby that is already 1/3 of it's mother's size. No wonder she is eating like mad!
From Tuesday on, I will check the sex and start handling the hoglet - if mommy approves..
I do have a picture, but it's only showing a quilly baby back. Will come back later with cuter pics ^-^