[nessariel]

I've noticed that Winston seems to sneeze fairly often (once every few hours or so, except right after I wake him up, then he sneezes a bunch). He also makes little whistle noises while he eats. His nose isn't really wet, there's no discharge, he's not licking it (except when he eats), and everything else (poop, wheeling) seems healthy. I'm not even entirely certain it is sneezing, it just sounds like a little tiny short huff. Is that sneezing? If so, should I be worried, or is the odd sneeze normal? (I know I sneeze a LOT)

 

[SnufflePuff]

I've noticed that Winston seems to sneeze fairly often (once every few hours or so, except right after I wake him up, then he sneezes a bunch). He also makes little whistle noises while he eats. His nose isn't really wet, there's no discharge, he's not licking it (except when he eats), and everything else (poop, wheeling) seems healthy. I'm not even entirely certain it is sneezing, it just sounds like a little tiny short huff. Is that sneezing? If so, should I be worried, or is the odd sneeze normal? (I know I sneeze a LOT)

What kind of bedding is he on? If it's shavings or carefresh it's possible that the dust is making him sneeze. Or if you're washing your liners in a scented detergent that could cause the sneezing as well.

All that being said, the sneezing and especially the whistling noises sound like an Upper Respiratory Infection to me. You need to take your hedgie to the vet ASAP to at the very least have a URI ruled out. URI's can get nasty quickly so "waiting to see if it improves on it's own" is a very bad idea as they can turn into pneumonia and lead to death.

Sneezing isn't normal for hedgehogs, the way it is for humans. Even if his nose doesn't seem wet or he doesn't seem to be licking, this doesn't mean he doesn't have a URI. Better safe than sorry IMO

 

[LarryT]

Sounds like a vet visit is in order.

 

[Nancy]

Is the frequency of the sneezing progressing? Does he sneeze while in his bed? It could also be allergy but it's always best to have it checked out. Try and get Gay if you can.

 

[nessariel]

Re: Sneezes *update*

I washed all of Winston's cage liners/bags etc. in unscented detergent, and used an unscented dryer sheet, and TA DA! His sneezing has stopped! I guess he didn't like Tide... I'll keep watching him for a while, just to be sure, but I haven't heard him sneeze since I washed everything, which I consider to be a good sign.

 

[SnufflePuff]

I use tide unscented/dye free, but if you were using the regular tide I could see that causing his sneezing. I can't even use regular tide on my own clothes because it gives me skin irritations, so I can imagine it would be worse for hedgies!

You can also do a "vinegar rinse" after washing with the unscented detergent. Just put plain vinegar where you normally put the detergent and set your washing machine to "rinse only". It still uses the vinegar and rinses with water.

Also you may want to consider buying unscented, dye-free bounch sheets for your dryer. Most people forget about this one but scented dryer sheets can also cause irritations.

Glad your little guy is doing better, just keep a close eye on his eating habits, nose wetness and listen for any more sneezing or wheezing when he's sleeping. If there's none, then hopefully you are in the clear!

Did you get Winston fairly recently? If so, you should take him for an initial check-up anyways. That way you can also rule out a URI just to be extra extra certain.