My hedgehog has not eaten in about 4-5 days and her skin on her belly is very loose, so I don't think she's been drinking either. I haven't heard her running at night, which is very unusual, and she keeps curling up when I touch her stomach, again unusual. I just went to give her a bath and she usually poops several times, but she only pooped once and it was bright blue/green and she didn't pee. Everything else is normal and she looks fine. I'm going to call the vet in the morning, but does anyone know what this could be/what I could do to help her immediately? She just turned six months and I haven't changed anything in her cage or diet. Thanks!
Please Help!
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It's very dangerous for her to have gone so long without eating. Hedgehogs go downhill quickly after only one or two days without eating. You need to get food into her NOW. Crush up her kibble so it's very fine dust, then mix it with water. You'll need a syringe - you can often find them at pharmacies, you may be able to ask them if you can have a diabetic syringe where the needle is removable, or see if they have any syringes for giving medication to babies. Pet stores will also sometimes have pet feeding syringes, but they tend to be too big for my tastes. You can also get syringes from your vet once you take her in.
Other options for syringe feeding - baby food (I usually suggest a meat such as chicken or turkey plus sweet potatoes), or canned cat food (go for the same brand you're feeding for kibble, if you can). Once you go to the vet with her, you can ask about Hills A/D and Carnivore Care, which are both foods that are meant for syringing to sick pets.
Definitely call the vet in the morning & get her in tomorrow if at all possible. She needs to be seen as soon as possible to see what's going on to cause her to not eat. Possibilities include an infection in her digestive system, mouth issues, or any other number of things. Definitely have her mouth thoroughly checked (she will likely need to be anesthetized for this) and then see what else the vet wants to check. Let them know about her behavior concerning her stomach - that could indicate pain or discomfort with her stomach which could be a wide range of things as well. Anything from an infection to a tumor.
So for tonight:
- syringe feed her (more info about syringing - http://www.hedgehogcentral.com/foru...yringing-tutorial-syringe-feeding-sticky.html )
- offer a couple options of food in her cage in case she's interested - her regular hard food, some crushed hard food, some soaked hard food, and maybe a favorite treat or two. The goal is to see if she eats anything, particularly anything softer which can indicate the teeth issues. If she's willing to eat a favorite treat, that's a good sign. If she's not willing to eat anything regardless of what it is, that's not.
- double check her heat and make sure she's warm enough
Other options for syringe feeding - baby food (I usually suggest a meat such as chicken or turkey plus sweet potatoes), or canned cat food (go for the same brand you're feeding for kibble, if you can). Once you go to the vet with her, you can ask about Hills A/D and Carnivore Care, which are both foods that are meant for syringing to sick pets.
Definitely call the vet in the morning & get her in tomorrow if at all possible. She needs to be seen as soon as possible to see what's going on to cause her to not eat. Possibilities include an infection in her digestive system, mouth issues, or any other number of things. Definitely have her mouth thoroughly checked (she will likely need to be anesthetized for this) and then see what else the vet wants to check. Let them know about her behavior concerning her stomach - that could indicate pain or discomfort with her stomach which could be a wide range of things as well. Anything from an infection to a tumor.
So for tonight:
- syringe feed her (more info about syringing - http://www.hedgehogcentral.com/foru...yringing-tutorial-syringe-feeding-sticky.html )
- offer a couple options of food in her cage in case she's interested - her regular hard food, some crushed hard food, some soaked hard food, and maybe a favorite treat or two. The goal is to see if she eats anything, particularly anything softer which can indicate the teeth issues. If she's willing to eat a favorite treat, that's a good sign. If she's not willing to eat anything regardless of what it is, that's not.
- double check her heat and make sure she's warm enough
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