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Bite vs nip?

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2.5K views 6 replies 6 participants last post by  Kalandra  
#1 ·
Second day with our baby girl. She is 7 weeks and 5 days old.

A few times last night she sniffed, licked, and then sort of bit a finger. Only she just kind of nipped and let go. It didn't hurt, really, less than a quill poke anyhow. I'm not sure if we should do anything. She will do it once then move on to trying to go up our sleeves or climb up to sit on our shoulder. If she seems overly interested in sniffing our hands or starts to lick them we just wash them again, figuring she is smelling food on them.

She did bite my daughter once where it was much more of a real bite, although still not hard enough to be painful or even leave a red mark. My daughter just touched her nose and Princess P let go. I held her for a few minutes after that and then we put her in her cage and she went straight for her food and ate all of it, two tablespoons! So I'm thinking she was wanting to be put back in her cage so she could eat.

I just want to be sure we don't teach her any bad habits. So if she just nips at a finger and then moves on to exploring, is it best to just ignore it?
 
#2 ·
Personally I'd ignore it - the first was a tasting one, and the best way to deal with them is as you said. Pull away if she seems too interested in sniffing a finger (or any area of skin) or starts to lick - a bite is likely to follow next. The second nip sounds like it was likely a defensive reflex, since the nose and face are both important things for a hedgie to protect, or just her getting impatient with being handled, like you said. Either way sounds like it was a one-time thing & her trying to get a message across rather than a bad habit or aggression. I personally wouldn't try to discipline her at all for either type of bite. :)
 
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#5 ·
In my experience you can't discipline a hedgehog, they won't learn not to bite, just to be afraid of you. If they're prone to biting and they begin the licking moving your fingers is a good way to prevent it. Since you've only had her a couple of days there's a good chance she's just still getting to know you.
 
#6 ·
Getting bitten could sometimes be traumatic. Don't be discouraged! Just be confident in handling her and learn to build trust with each other. Plus, make sure your hands are not fragrant or doesn't smell like food to her.

Good luck! :)
 
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