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Hedgehog Homes

African Pygmy Hedgehogs are happy to live in an indoor rabbit cage; a good example of this is a Zoozone. A well ventilated vivarium also makes a good home.  we have found that the Zoozones are more practice as they are easy to move around & easy to clean,  The only problem we have found with them is the difficulties of fixing a wheel or a water bottle to them, but these problems are easily solved by using water bowls & free standing wheels.

I would not recommend cages with wire sides as it has been known for hedgehogs to climb the bars & get injured.  Spending a little more on a cage without wire far outweighs the Vet bills!

There is a varity of substrates available I use Aspen bedding, which the hedgehogs love as they roll around in it as soon as it is changed, I imagine it is just like us having clean sheets!

Hedgehog in Wheel

Accessories

The most important item you will need is a Water Bowl or Bottle, as with all animals Hedgehogs require water to be available at all times.  Along with this you will need a food bowl.  I tend to use stainless steel hamster bowls with most of my hedgehogs as they are easy to clean & do not break, however some do require a heavy pot bowl as they treat the bowl as a toy & will try & throw it around.

You will need some kind of a bed for your hedgehog, some people use Iglos but I like to use the soft rabbit bed with a small towel over for them to hide under, this is especially useful when you first bring your new arrival home as you can ensure the towel has been handled by you & will therefore help with the bonding process.
 
A stable good quality wheel is essential for a happy hedgehog.  I tend to use a Big Rat wheel for example a Silent Spinner or a Comfort Wheel, however I have seen that some people are using the flat wheels , I have not tried these myself but have been told that the hedgehogs adapt to these pretty easily.  

Hedgehogs also like cat toys, the ones with the little bells in them seem to be favourites.   Another alternative is toilet roll tubes, but it is important to slit the tubes in half to stop the hedgehogs getting their heads stuck.   Occasionally I come across the larger sized cardboard tubes which make excellent play tunnels for the hedgehogs.

You may also require a litter tray, many people have been able to train their hedgehogs to use a litter tray, I have never been successful.  Despite this my hedgehogs do only use one corner & never ever their beds.  For this reason it is impotant to consider where their eating area & sleeping area will be as you do not want to encourage them to sleep or eat in their toilet.


Food

Hedgehogs will eat most things, their main diet should be a good quality cat buscuit.  They will also eat wet cat food, Spikes Hedgehog Relish, however it is important to feed dry buscuits to avoid dental problems in later life.  Hedgehogs love Meal Worms, however these should be fed as treats as they are very fattening.  

Raisens & grapes should be avoided.
littlebit eating

Bath Time

Hedgehogs will require a foot bath pretty regularly as they tend to get their feet dirty while running on their wheels.  The will also require a full bath every now & again, you can buy hamster shampoo in pet shops or online for this purpose, however I would not advise this as a regular occurrence as it will dry out their skins.  Some Hedgehogs even enjoy swimming!  

It is important to ensure that hedgehogs are dried off with a towel after their bath & that they are kept warm until they are completely dry.


Handling

Hedgehogs need to be handled often if you want them to be friendly.  If you put the time in you will have a very loving pet.  Some hedgehogs like to climb around you, while others will simply want to snuggle in and chill out with you.  I have had grumpy Hedgehogs that are difficult to handle & take a lot of work & your time to come round.

Ball of Spines



Nail Clipping

It is almost certain that you will have to cut your hedgehogs back claws.  This is because hedgehogs run with their back feet up so do not tend to file their claws while running on the wheel.  If you are lucky you will not have to trim their front claws.

 It is easy to do this task with a well handled hedgehog, however you might find it easy to trim their nails while they are having their bath, as no hedgehog likes to get their nose under the water.

 I tend to either trim nails in the bath or while they are busy thinking about something else.  It is a simple procedure done by cutting with nail trimmers about the size of human nail scissors, the special clippers ara availble from pet shops for a couple of puunds.  All you need to do is trim the tip avoiding the quick, if you are unsure how to do this then go to your vet who will show you.

If you do accidently cut the quick & the nail bleeds then dip the nail in flour.  There are products on the market like "quick stop" but I have heard that these can sting & it is not something most people have in their house just incase.

Hedgehog self-anointing

Hedgehog Habbits

If you own a hedgehog you will certainly come across something called self-anointing.  It is perfectly normal & often happens when your hedgehog smells something new & or interesting.  Your hedgehog will start by sniffing, licking then chewing whatever it finds interesting, then pause & start spitting over their selves.  No’ one knows why they do this, some people think that they are scenting so they remember the smell or that the spit is a way to disguise their smell to predators or that the "foam" produced acts as a mild toxin.  Honestly it sounds worse than it really is!  

 
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