[Joey_Joeseph]

So my hedgie is very chill even going through quilling and im wondering if shes just happy to see me or just wants out,

Every time i walk by her cage at night she will run up to the cage doors and start "attacking" it, not like biting but she will scratch at it like a dog would when they want inside,

Is she just happy to see me, Want out, Or its something else

 

[Ragou]

She probably wants out. Hedgies are explorative, burrowing animals and they're trying to get around any obstacles by digging. You could enrich her cage with something like a sandbath or a dig box. Until she isn't old enough for a wheel, give her some floor time in your apartment.

 

[Joey_Joeseph]

She probably wants out. Hedgies are explorative, burrowing animals and they're trying to get around any obstacles by digging. You could enrich her cage with something like a sandbath or a dig box. Until she isn't old enough for a wheel, give her some floor time in your apartment.

I Don't have an apartment I live with my parents and i cant exactly give her floor time cause of my younger siblings are obsessed with her and wont leave my room for anything until they get to hold her

And her cage is too small to give her a dig box or sand bath im currently trying to convince my parents but they wont budge

 

[Ragou]

What about taking her out after your younger siblings went to bed? I often had my own hedgehog during the day in the smaller vivarium and put him for the night in his larger (and much cheaper) plastic playpen. Currently, I have the two connected with each other. You could also get something like this (it's a puppy pen, you can order it from Amazon where you live maybe?):

 

[Kalandra]

I've seen that behavior in hedgehogs who are in enclosures that are too small or do not have the appropriate setup to allow them to burn off energy. Does she run back and forth in her enclosure, basically looks like they are pacing back and forth? Does she have a wheel and/or does she use it?

Basically, if her enclosure is too small, her attacking the sides could be her trying to get out as she needs space to run/explore.

 

[Joey_Joeseph]

I've seen that behavior in hedgehogs who are in enclosures that are too small or do not have the appropriate setup to allow them to burn off energy. Does she run back and forth in her enclosure, basically looks like they are pacing back and forth? Does she have a wheel and/or does she use it?

Basically, if her enclosure is too small, her attacking the sides could be her trying to get out as she needs space to run/explore.

she only attacks the door and she does do laps around her wheel and moves stuff around so i am almost certain that her space is too small but i cant do anything about it cause i am a mere child

 

[Kalandra]

Being a kid makes it harder as you have to convince your parents of that. And sadly many parents rely on what pet stores say is appropriate (which is often too small) and not what someone on the internet says. But sadly she needs an appropriately sized cage. How many square feet does she have now? How much time does she get outside of the cage?

As a youngster she is going to have more energy and needs to burn it off. Hedgehogs can run many many miles each night. Hedgehogs require a lot of space and exercise to be healthy, both physically and mentally.

 

[Joey_Joeseph]

Being a kid makes it harder as you have to convince your parents of that. And sadly many parents rely on what pet stores say is appropriate (which is often too small) and not what someone on the internet says. But sadly she needs an appropriately sized cage. How many square feet does she have now? How much time does she get outside of the cage?

As a youngster she is going to have more energy and needs to burn it off. Hedgehogs can run many many miles each night. Hedgehogs require a lot of space and exercise to be healthy, both physically and mentally.

i dont know big her cage is exactly but im turning 13 in 2 months and her cage is exactly my arm length and yes i keep telling them that she needs a new cage and they kept telling me "the pet store told us 30 gallon reptile tank was big enough" but it certainly is not and i know this but they keep listening to pet stores and dont exactly understand they tell you that to buy more things from the pet store they also bought her Pretty pets premium hedgehog food and have not bought anything else despite me telling them it is actual garbage for them and their only response is "the pet store is feeding them exactly what we bought so its good for her"

 

[Joey_Joeseph]

and i had to take away her wheel cause she caught her foot on something and it started bleeding on the wheel and i know this happened on the wheel cause i have a silent spinner she barely fits on it, falls of frequently and just yesterday her foot started bleeding the blood wasnt bad it was just a little nick and healed within minutes of it happening but i was so worried and i attempted to tell my parents what she actually needed and that her care isnt the same as a dogs but instead i got a firm talking to which made me think that owning a hedgehog isnt as easy as i thought it was i knew what to expect but my parents are dead set on what the pet store told them and wont listen to what she actually needs

 

[Kalandra]

Yeh, pet stores like to sell what they carry, whether or not its good for them. Pet stores also don't care for hedgehogs long term. Often times they base their information on outdated sources. I have had many an argument with pet stores & even a couple of veterinarians on recommendations as they were using sources that are well known to cause harm. I have almost 30 years experience caring for these guys, and most of them have been rescues vs their books...

Sadly, many make it sound like hedgehog care is easy. It is not. They have many requirements in order to stay healthy. I have taken in too many from owners who were under that assumption and realized hedgehogs were not the right pet for them. Now don't get defensive, but as a Rescuer I have to say it.... Should you not be able to provide an appropriate enclosure and food, you may want to reconsider having her and helping her find someone who can.

Now with that said lets try to get back to helping...

Minor foot wounds tend to heal quickly, but Silent Spinners are well known for hurting hedgehogs, you can find a few images of wheels that are covered in blood on here. There are two other wheels that are OK that you may be able to find in the pet store, or your parents could purchase online. The Kaytee Comfort wheel is safer, but still not a great option. There was also a new wheel that was posted on here recently. I have no experience with it, but it looks like a better option: Noisy Comfort Wheel Alternative!

If you need help convincing them that her wheel is bad, talk to them about her foot injury, and maybe hunt down one of those photos of a bloody wheel and ask if they can at least improve her wheel. Hedgehogs must have wheels and exercise. Veterinary care, if she was to really get hurt, is costly. The cost is $65 for an exam here, and anything extra (meds, sleepy gas, etc) will quickly double and triple that number.

Does your aquarium the type that has the doors that open? Get a ruler and measure it, but I think a common dimension is probably like 36" x 18", which is about 4.5 square ft. Are you allowed to take a picture of it to post it? Maybe we can help figure out how to make it better for her.

Sorry for the novel...

 

[Joey_Joeseph]

Yeh, pet stores like to sell what they carry, whether or not its good for them. Pet stores also don't care for hedgehogs long term. Often times they base their information on outdated sources. I have had many an argument with pet stores & even a couple of veterinarians on recommendations as they were using sources that are well known to cause harm. I have almost 30 years experience caring for these guys, and most of them have been rescues vs their books...

Sadly, many make it sound like hedgehog care is easy. It is not. They have many requirements in order to stay healthy. I have taken in too many from owners who were under that assumption and realized hedgehogs were not the right pet for them. Now don't get defensive, but as a Rescuer I have to say it.... Should you not be able to provide an appropriate enclosure and food, you may want to reconsider having her and helping her find someone who can.

Now with that said lets try to get back to helping...

Minor foot wounds tend to heal quickly, but Silent Spinners are well known for hurting hedgehogs, you can find a few images of wheels that are covered in blood on here. There are two other wheels that are OK that you may be able to find in the pet store, or your parents could purchase online. The Kaytee Comfort wheel is safer, but still not a great option. There was also a new wheel that was posted on here recently. I have no experience with it, but it looks like a better option: Noisy Comfort Wheel Alternative!

If you need help convincing them that her wheel is bad, talk to them about her foot injury, and maybe hunt down one of those photos of a bloody wheel and ask if they can at least improve her wheel. Hedgehogs must have wheels and exercise. Veterinary care, if she was to really get hurt, is costly. The cost is $65 for an exam here, and anything extra (meds, sleepy gas, etc) will quickly double and triple that number.

Does your aquarium the type that has the doors that open? Get a ruler and measure it, but I think a common dimension is probably like 36" x 18", which is about 4.5 square ft. Are you allowed to take a picture of it to post it? Maybe we can help figure out how to make it better for her.

Sorry for the novel...

Thanks for the help and i will post measurements and a picture of the cage when possible and i am perfectly fine with reading that.