Hello Everyone,
I am a first time Hedgie owner. I spent about 3 months or so reading up on how to care for a hedgie before I ordered a hedgie from a local breeder's next litter. I just got the adorable bundle of fun on Saturday October 11th. When I got her home I put her in her cage and let her have some privacy. Later on that night when she was done eating and drinking, she started to explore, so I decided to take her out as I read it is OK to handle a new hedgie at least once the first day. She didn't quite roll into a complete ball(she didn't until my cat Alucard sniffed her) sort of went half way
. I held her for about 30 seconds and then she stood up and decided it was safe, however she kept her head quills forward just in case . I put her on my belly while laying on my bed and let her explore a bit. She wandered for about 5 - 10 minutes and then curled up on me and went to sleep, it was soooo adorable ^_^. Sunday rolls around and I disturbed her sleep for a short bit when my mom stopped by my house and couldn't figure out why I had a pin cushion in a cage. However she didn't wake up when I took her out of her cage, she just kept sleeping in my hand . I let her get her sleep for the day and then around 11PM she was up and about so I went to go have a visit with her and she seemed to be quite relaxed this time when I held her. I went and laid down on the couch and let her explore again, again she explored for a bit and then curled up on me and went to sleep again . So I put her back in her cage and she went under the wheel and burrowed into her bedding and went to sleep. 2 hours later she is up and about again so I went to see her again and this time when I put my hand in to get her she walked on to it and waited to be airlifted out of her cage ^_^. This time I let her explore the floor for a bit(which she loved) while supervising her and making sure she wasn't going someplace where I would not be able to get her out of, and to make sure Alucard didn't try to use her as a toy. 11PM Monday I took her out again and she was all set to explore again And again she walked into my hand, and then on to my girlfriend's hand from mine. This is all such a new experience for me since I have only ever had cats and dogs growing up.(My parents wouldn't let me have any small pets because they think them to be useless.) She started being a little pistol tonight when she started to climb her cage because she wanted to explore some more :shock: Since it is late at night and I didn't have many options, I lined the lower bars of her cage with cardboard from boxes. It worked like a charm, even though she kept trying to climb non cardboarded areas of the cage while i was putting the cardboard in(I ended up having my brother play with her while I made the modifications. She is now happily running on her wheel as I write this, but she still comes off the wheel to go to a wall and try to climb the smooth cardboard surface lol . Also, when my girlfriend was letting her explore her stomach, she wandered over to her fingers and sniffed for a bit then decided to latch on to one of them(no wounds but she claims it hurt and it was kind of humorous seeing how she wouldn't let go right away. I read many posts here and saw it posted that you shouldnt put your fingers near their mouths because they may bite, yet all the time I handle her she headbutts my fingers for me to pet her and she seems to enjoy me scratching under her chin.
Anyhow I ranted quite a bit, but this is a first for me and I can't believe how well she has taken to me in only 2 and a half days and only holding her maybe 4 - 6 times. OH Almost forgot, it took me all this time to decide on her name, and her name is Shorty.(I have been calling all animals that for years yet never named a pet with that name) I have 2 short videos on Youtube of her if any of you are interested in seeing her ^_^. http://www.youtube.com/user/jbonkerz
I am a first time Hedgie owner. I spent about 3 months or so reading up on how to care for a hedgie before I ordered a hedgie from a local breeder's next litter. I just got the adorable bundle of fun on Saturday October 11th. When I got her home I put her in her cage and let her have some privacy. Later on that night when she was done eating and drinking, she started to explore, so I decided to take her out as I read it is OK to handle a new hedgie at least once the first day. She didn't quite roll into a complete ball(she didn't until my cat Alucard sniffed her) sort of went half way
. I held her for about 30 seconds and then she stood up and decided it was safe, however she kept her head quills forward just in case . I put her on my belly while laying on my bed and let her explore a bit. She wandered for about 5 - 10 minutes and then curled up on me and went to sleep, it was soooo adorable ^_^. Sunday rolls around and I disturbed her sleep for a short bit when my mom stopped by my house and couldn't figure out why I had a pin cushion in a cage. However she didn't wake up when I took her out of her cage, she just kept sleeping in my hand . I let her get her sleep for the day and then around 11PM she was up and about so I went to go have a visit with her and she seemed to be quite relaxed this time when I held her. I went and laid down on the couch and let her explore again, again she explored for a bit and then curled up on me and went to sleep again . So I put her back in her cage and she went under the wheel and burrowed into her bedding and went to sleep. 2 hours later she is up and about again so I went to see her again and this time when I put my hand in to get her she walked on to it and waited to be airlifted out of her cage ^_^. This time I let her explore the floor for a bit(which she loved) while supervising her and making sure she wasn't going someplace where I would not be able to get her out of, and to make sure Alucard didn't try to use her as a toy. 11PM Monday I took her out again and she was all set to explore again And again she walked into my hand, and then on to my girlfriend's hand from mine. This is all such a new experience for me since I have only ever had cats and dogs growing up.(My parents wouldn't let me have any small pets because they think them to be useless.) She started being a little pistol tonight when she started to climb her cage because she wanted to explore some more :shock: Since it is late at night and I didn't have many options, I lined the lower bars of her cage with cardboard from boxes. It worked like a charm, even though she kept trying to climb non cardboarded areas of the cage while i was putting the cardboard in(I ended up having my brother play with her while I made the modifications. She is now happily running on her wheel as I write this, but she still comes off the wheel to go to a wall and try to climb the smooth cardboard surface lol . Also, when my girlfriend was letting her explore her stomach, she wandered over to her fingers and sniffed for a bit then decided to latch on to one of them(no wounds but she claims it hurt and it was kind of humorous seeing how she wouldn't let go right away. I read many posts here and saw it posted that you shouldnt put your fingers near their mouths because they may bite, yet all the time I handle her she headbutts my fingers for me to pet her and she seems to enjoy me scratching under her chin. Anyhow I ranted quite a bit, but this is a first for me and I can't believe how well she has taken to me in only 2 and a half days and only holding her maybe 4 - 6 times. OH Almost forgot, it took me all this time to decide on her name, and her name is Shorty.(I have been calling all animals that for years yet never named a pet with that name) I have 2 short videos on Youtube of her if any of you are interested in seeing her ^_^. http://www.youtube.com/user/jbonkerz
