[rebeccaeric18]

Hi, My names rebecca and im from Canada! I just bought a new hedgehog and i have a few concerns about her.

Firstly. I need to know what her skin should look like underneath her quills. im not sure if it is dry, Secondly i have had her for about 5 days...she seems quite comfortable with me already, I am concerned about her stool.
The first day we had her she had mucusy green poop, which is a sign of bile? but i read that it is a sign of stress or a food change.
The next 2 days i have noticed a very small amount of blood in her stool.. Which could also represent constipation? She has had very frequent stools since and no traces of blood are to be found..

I also want to know what is suitable for dry skin on the hedgehog and what bedding is preffered, Right now i am using white pine bedding and feeding her sunseed sunscription vita hedgehog formula as well as some mealworms for treats.

Thank you for your help

 

[emeko]

Welcome! Green poops can be a sign of stress, but if the blood persists, I would seek vet help. I'll wait for more experienced owners to offer more insight on that issue. If you think her skin looks dry/flaky, it probably is. Ideally, it shouldn't be flaky, just a nice solid grey (depending on what colour your hedgie is?) If her skin is dry, you can dry putting a little flax oil on her, or adding it to her food. I like to cut open Vitamin E tablets and work it into their quills and skin.

Most of the owners here advocate using fleece liners, as they are overall less expensive and wasteful, less dusty (and prevent respiratory problems).

Seeing that you said your're feeding Sunseed, that could be part of your poop problem. My hedgehog, and many others that I've read about, simply can't tolerate it. Which is surprising, because for a commercial hedgehog food, it's ingredients DO look decent. It could be the blood meal in it that causes the problems. It seems to causes excessive, runny, tarry poops. I'd recommend checking out the sticky list of high-quality cat foods on the nutrition forum. Mealworms are good, but everything in moderation. Are you feeding live or dry? There's another good sticky list of treats.

Post pictures soon if you can!

 

[Bengall77]

The food could be causing the bloody poops. I would choose one or two cat foods from Reaper's list in the nutrition section.

As for bedding - pine shavings are fine but make sure that they have been heat treated (aka kiln dried) and the oils are gone. If you like wood bedding I would recommend Aspen shavings as they don't contain damaging oils that have to be heated out of the wood. Most people prefer and recommend cloth liners because they eliminate the threat of mites and caustic wood oils and they're cheaper in the long run. Something as simple as a folded fleece baby blanket would work. Other people use CareFresh, but it's rather dusty and can potentially cause respiratory problems in the future.

Meal worms are a great treat. Feed 3-5 small/medium sized ones about three times a week. Canned, live, and freeze dried are all good options but make sure to be extra careful to not give them too many freeze dried ones and to always have plenty of water available in their bowl. Freeze dried meal worms can cause intestinal blockage if they're given too plentifully and too frequently.

 

[rebeccaeric18]

Hi guys! Thanks for all the info.

So if i just buy some fleece and place it on the bottom of the cage it would be better for my hedgie?? I am going to buy chicken soup for the cat lovers soul food..as i hear a lot about it, The mealworms i feed her are live.
I am going to try putting vitamin e tablets like you say emeko,i also heard of putting pure oatmeal in their baths to hydrate the skin?

As for a picture. I dont know how to upload any!

 

[Bengall77]

You can actually buy liquid vitamin e oil. It comes in a liquid form and a liquid gel capsule form. Both are fine and good for dry, flaky skin. Just put a few drops in a cup with warm water and rinse his back with it.

Colloidal oatmeal (not quaker instant) or aveeno baby oatmeal body wash are good during bath time for itchy, quilling skin.

Yes, you can just buy some fleece and cut it to size. It won't unravel and it doesn't have to be sewn. Most people layer it so that they can peel off the top, dirty layer and throw it in a hamper. When you get several that need to be washed take them outside and shake them like a maniac, then load them in your washing machine on the hot/regular setting and wash them with an unscented (usually labeled as dye free & perfume free) laundry detergent. Fleece doesn't absorb water so they'll be fairly dry when they come out of the washer. You can air dry them, hang them up, or put them in the dryer on a low/tumble setting with a non-scented dryer sheet.

 

[rebeccaeric18]

Okay, i will go out tommorrow and buy some chicken soup for the cat lovers soul food (any suggestions on what type ? light? senior?..)as well as some liquid vitamin e..

As for the fleece i will go out and buy a few sheets to layer her cage with and see how that works!

PS. How often should her nails be trimmed. Any suggestions on how to do it safely?
Thank you!

 

[LarryT]

You can use flax seed oil,vit-E or my personal favorite Jojoba Oil.
Stickie on clipping nails: viewtopic.php?f=33&t=75

 

[rebeccaeric18]

Thanks larry!

 

[LarryT]

Here is a link to the Jojoba Oil:
http://www.vitaminshoppe.com/store/en/b ... id=VS-1697
Just put one drop on hedgies back,no need to put in food or bath water.

 

[rebeccaeric18]

Perfect! I will go out and buy some for her tommorrow!!!

 

[LarryT]

Perfect! I will go out and buy some for her tommorrow!!!

Oh yea almost forgot...Harlow is adorable :mrgreen:

 

[rebeccaeric18]

Aw thank you! I love her to death !

 

[shetland]

Harlow is a tiny and beautiful bundle! Just adorable!!!!!

 

[rebeccaeric18]

I am very concerned about her today.. She has a cold belly and she seems almost wobbly... I'm worried about WHS syndrome. I am cuddling her with a heater on and she Is laying with me right now but I am very concerned. We gave her a bath yesterday.. Maybe it was too soon? Please help..

 

[SnufflePuff]

I am very concerned about her today.. She has a cold belly and she seems almost wobbly... I'm worried about WHS syndrome. I am cuddling her with a heater on and she Is laying with me right now but I am very concerned. We gave her a bath yesterday.. Maybe it was too soon? Please help..

*EDIT: if she's still cold put her on your bare skin (like your stomach), this is the best way to warm her up.

WHS is a genetic disorder and doesn't show symptoms that early on, from what I've heard. If she has a cold belly and is wobbly chances are she is cold / attempting to hibernate. What kind of a heater are you using, is it on ALL the time and what temp? It is important hedgehogs be kept at a constant temp of about 75-79 F and that they have 12-14 hours of light, so make sure you leave a light on for most of the day too as they will hibernate if they don't get enough light.

Also... did you make sure to completely dry her off after the bath? It is recommended you intitially dry her with one towel, then switch to a dry one to finish drying her off. Also, you can put a human heating pad under a blanket to warm her/ dry her after a bath. You could also go out and buy some human "hand warmers" and put them in a pouch/wrap them in a small blanket and put them in her house to help her get some extra warmth until she seems better.

If you already have all the above mentioned, I would probably take her to a vet to outrule underlying problems.

Also, if she wasn't dried off properly she could develop an upper respiratory infection so watch for sneezing, runny nose, wheezing sounds over the next little while. Did she get her head under the water at all / get any water up her nose? This could also lead to pneumonia so keep a close eye out.

Hope that helps

 

[Stephanie76]

I am very concerned about her today.. She has a cold belly and she seems almost wobbly... I'm worried about WHS syndrome. I am cuddling her with a heater on and she Is laying with me right now but I am very concerned. We gave her a bath yesterday.. Maybe it was too soon? Please help..

Sounds like a possible hibernation attempt to me. SnufflePuff gave very good advice on getting her warmed up and slowly. How warm is her cage/room? What are you using as your heating source? Are you providing enough light for your beautiful hoggy (12-14 hours is the standard here)?

One sure fire way to tell if your hedgehog is attempting hibernation is to feel it's stomach. If it feels cold it needs to be warmed up immediately.
Other symptoms are lethargy, lack of appetite, drinking less, inability to un-ball, wobbliness, unable to move and heavy breathing.
A hedgehog can be attempting hibernation even if it is moving around. Attempted hibernation is a state in where the hedgehog stops eating and begins lowering it's metabolism. While a hedgehog's metabolism is lowered it may not just go to sleep in a ball, but may wander around wobbly in search of a warmer place.
-Hedgehog Wikki

 

[rebeccaeric18]

I just deleted everything i typed so here i go again!

She was warmed up with 2 towels yesterday and i cuddled her until i felt she was warm enough.
Her wobbling has dissapated and she is a little bit more active now that i have warmed her up..
I am going to go buy a thermometer and some hand warmers for her in a bit...
We bought fleece to line the cage so hopefully that helps a bit
The room she is in is my bedroom and it is fairly warm in here, i am using a space heater near her cage to keep her warm.

I dont belive she got any water in her nose.. not from what i seen.
I will keep a light on, as the days here are short and its dark by 5pm (light at 8am)
Hopefully i can help her from slipping into hibernation. I am so worried about her

 

[SnufflePuff]

I just deleted everything i typed so here i go again!

She was warmed up with 2 towels yesterday and i cuddled her until i felt she was warm enough.
Her wobbling has dissapated and she is a little bit more active now that i have warmed her up..
I am going to go buy a thermometer and some hand warmers for her in a bit...
We bought fleece to line the cage so hopefully that helps a bit
The room she is in is my bedroom and it is fairly warm in here, i am using a space heater near her cage to keep her warm.

I dont belive she got any water in her nose.. not from what i seen.
I will keep a light on, as the days here are short and its dark by 5pm (light at 8am)
Hopefully i can help her from slipping into hibernation. I am so worried about her

Just make sure you leave the space heater on ALL the time, if you are not comfortable doing this (ie. fire hazard) then you will need to invest in a different heating option (ceramic heat emitter with thermastat or leaving your house warm enough ALL the time). Once you get a thermometer you will have a better idea of the temperature and can adjust the heating accordingly. You will need to watch your hedgie for a few days however, as some do need higher temperatures than the 75-79 range in order not to hibernate. As long as you check on her frequently, and warm her up as needed, you should hopefully be able to prevent hibernation attempts until you have a proper heating system set up. Until you get a thermometer, I would turn the house heat up just to be safe.

Also, what kind of cage is she in? I recommend getting a 2 thermometers if it is a large cage, and spacing them out in the cage, as cages aren't always a consistent temp throughout.

Good luck

 

[rebeccaeric18]

Okay. I will bring the space heater up here and turn it up to keep her warm. She is in a metal cage with a plastic bottom, The cage is 2 feet long. We will watch over her and make sure shes okay frequently.
Ill upload a picture to show you our cage and set up for right now.
Thank you for your help!

EDIT*

Heres her cage

 

[rebeccaeric18]

UPDATE:

Harlows belly is now warm andshe is active again.. though i do have another concern now.. she has green very sticky poop and it smells very bad!

Im not sure if its maybe because yesterday she was sick? or if she has a stomach upset from the food we have fed her.
Please let me know