[alliehedgiemom]

Hello!

I am a brand new hedgehog owner, my little one's name is Henry and he is 4 months old and he seems to be getting more and more aggressive with each day that passes.

I've owned him for a full month now and in the beginning when I first brought him home he seemed like a sweet little boy, but now he even bites me and holds on to my finger unless I blow on his face to let go, I gave him a tshirt like suggested, let him sleep on my lap, given him treats, the whole nine yards, but it seems like every day he just gets more and more aggressive.

He was quilling when I first brought him home, but it seems like in the past few days that he stopped losing them, so I'm assuming he's done. I also put a little coconut oil on him to help with the dryness and he sleeps in my bedroom which I keep at a pretty comfortable temp for him (around 75 degrees). he also has fleece bedding and he likes to sleep in a snuggle sack.

I'm getting ready to try to clip his nails here soon as well and I already know its going to be tough since he doesn't trust me and he's probably going to hate me more

I NEED HELP!

 

[TheoAndSpud]

Hi! I have a really scared and sometimes aggressive hedgehog named Spud. I rescued him and cutting his nails is really hard! I actually found that giving him a shallow bath (water to the tummy) helped me bound with him. I read that they think you’re “rescuing” or “saving” them from the horrid bath and they associate you with safety. I also find when he’s in water he doesnt curl (learned quick he just water In his nose haha) and then I can hold his little paw and cut his nails.

Sounds like you’ve tried the tricks of Tshirts with your scent, touching his food (gets your scent) and spending time with him! Just try to be patient.

Hope that helps!

 

[Ria]

Hedgehohs dont like water, and wont ball up so they dont drown. Loads of people find it easier to cut their hedgehogs nails in the bath.

When he bites you, do you put him away in his cage after, or put him somewhere else ?? This can make them associate biting as a good thing to get put away and left alone.

When you left the tshirt in there was you changing it weekly, so that your scent was constantly in there ??

Also when you bond, how do you bond ?? And how early do you take him out, for how long ?? Should always start slow for half an hour then play time. And gradually work up. Some hedgehogs will bite when they are annoyed of being awake

 

[alliehedgiemom]

Thanks for the replies!

I used to just let him sit my lap as i watched tv, but i recently started wearing a hoodie and putting him in the pocket!
I guess with the tshirt i just placed it in there once and left it in there for awhile, should I change it every so often so that he always has a strong scent of me?
I'm also taking him to the vet on soon, because I think he might have a skin issue (he has flakes in his quills) and this could be correlated to the way he's acting lately?

 

[Ria]

Yes I would keep changing it weekly.
Putting him in the hoodie pocket is a good idea, if you do this all the time it will become his safe place outside of his cage.

The flakes could be mites, or just really dry skin, you can test of you put him on a black peice of card or fleece, and rub his back, if you see see any moving then its mites.
With mites they tend to scratch a lot to.

Bit of flaxseed oil in their food twice a week can help with dry skin.
And theres other methods but they generally include bathing them, and bathing them too much causes dry skin.