[r_k_chic47]

So I've noticed that with the quills on Pepper's sides and "forehead" quills, there is a white ring around them. He does have dry skin but this white is different than "dryness" white because it doesnt look like a flake, but just like the skin is white in that spot. I don't get why its only on his sides and forehead, but it is. Any ideas what this could be?

 

[r_k_chic47]

I have some pictures now, if they help. The first one I think is the clearest. I was surprised it turned out so good, and it really shows the white spots well.

I hope these help!

 

[r_k_chic47]

NOBODY has any idea what this is? I know it's not normal. Please, any help is appreciated.

IDK if this has any relevance, but he has been eating less lately. Back in September, he was eating 70-90 kibbles a night, and now its only 30-50. I don't have a scale, unfortunately, because all the ones I've seen were over $40.

 

[shmurciakova]

That does look odd, although it does not look like mites to me. I suggest you take your hedgehog in for a skin scraping. It could be some kind of fungus...have you tried scratching it off? Is it hard or does it just come right off? I know it might cost a little money, but you really ought to go to the vet and get some treatment for whatever it is. :|
-Susan

 

[r_k_chic47]

Actually the areas with white spots (on the sides and forehead) aren't dry. I've been putting flaxseed oil on his back and putting it on his food once a week, so he doesn't have very dry skin as of right now. I did do a scraping myself a while back(using a butterknife to scrape flakes of dry skin onto a piece of black paper) and a lot of flakes came off then, but I didn't see any moving, even with a magnifying glass. I also did another one recently but couldn't get any flakes. The white spots aren't hard, they're the same texture as the rest of his skin, if not thinner.

 

[r_k_chic47]

Well, thanks for the help, shmurciakova... I wish more people would pitch in but maybe I just need more, better pictures. There are areas on him that have a lot more white than in the pictures I have posted, so I'll try to get more.

 

[shmurciakova]

To me it looks like some sort of calcification, but if it isn't dry and it does not flake off, are you sure it isn't just the color of his skin? I had a white hedgehog so all of her skin was the same color.
I still say to go in to the vet for a scraping, but maybe posting more pictures would be helpful.
Good luck,
Susan H.

 

[LizardGirl]

I honestly don't have a clue what it is. My best guess would be some fungus or buildup of some sort...

 

[r_k_chic47]

No, it's not the color of his skin. The rest of his skin is black, its just these areas that have white spots. I don't think it's possible to have a spotted-skinned hedgehog, other than the mottling on his legs. and even then, thats pink skin with brown spots - not black skin with white spots. So I really don't know :|
Some more pics will be in order I guess.

 

[Nancy]

I have no clue but a vet visit would be a good idea, especially since his appetite is declining.

 

[r_k_chic47]

Okay, here are the new pictures. There are a lot so bear with me. These are much better. I've taken pictures of the skin on his back (which is normal), and of the skin on his sides and forehead, to show you the huge difference. I got his quills wet first, so that when I moved them out of the way, they stayed where I moved them. So in the "normal skin" picture, the white you're seeing is just the water reflecting off the flash from my camera.

What the skin on his back looks like (the normal skin):

Sides & forehead:

 

[Nancy]

Awesome pictures. I have no clue what it is.

 

[PixiesExoticHedgies]

appears to 'possibly' be fungal ....???....
but it definitely is time to take your hedgie to the VET, for a professional diagnosis.

 

[r_k_chic47]

Ok, I'm making an appointment right now. I just wanted to get other people's opinions first.

 

[shetland]

Let us know how Pepper makes out at the vet.

 

[r_k_chic47]

Well, I took Pepper to the vet yesterday. I got him weighed and he was 390g, which sounded like a healthy weight to me. Anyways, the vet came in and asked me some questions, and then he used a cotton swab type thing to get some skin cells from Pepper's skin. He then put it on a slide and looked at it under a microscope, but found nothing out of the ordinary. So next, he did a skin scraping. I decided against using drugs to keep him calm (I don't remember what its called, but it would've costed a lot extra). So the vet was holding him and trying to move the quills out of the way to get a good spot to use the blade on, but he got impatient and decided to pull out some of Pepper's quills! I couldn't bear to watch, I knew he must have been in pain, and I almost started crying at the sight of it. Anyways, he did the skin scraping, but still found nothing. He said the next step would be to do another VERY expensive test and send it in to a Michigan University, but he suspected that all Pepper had was a "vitamin c deficiency", which just means he wasn't getting enough fruits and vegetables.
In conclusion, I really wish I would've knew that before I spent $70 to find that out! But it's better to be safe than sorry. Thanks to everyone who tried to help out here =)

 

[shetland]

How does he know its not bacteria or fungus?

 

[r_k_chic47]

He said he didn't see any bacteria when he looked at the skin scraping under a microscope.

 

[hndspk]

I dont know much about things like this, but in the pictures it almost looks like the white areas are swollen. Almost like they're pus pockets. Maybe it's just the lighting though...

 

[spoogysprouts]

He PULLED out your hedgie's quills? I would have freaked out on the doctor. What an a-hole! o my gosh. I agree with hndspk, they do look kind of like pus pockets. Buut if a skin scraping and everything was done and nothing popped I guess they can't be. It look like it might be fungal tho. I hope he gets better keep us updated <3