hedgehogs?

Anyone keep hedgehogs? I heard they were really easy to litter train and roam the house just like a cat!

Lol I've never heard of that!! I don't think that's true...they are kept in cages like hamsters. I have a friend who has one, but it's really hard to get one in Georgia because most of the time you have to get one shipped, but it's illegal here so none of the breeders will ship to a state where they are illegal.

At my college the hedghogs are in cages a bit like hamster cages, and they have little wooden houses

lol

We've got one I found outside as an orphaned baby. He semi-hibernates in a straw-filled box in our cellar during the winter, with occasional trips upstairs when he wakes up and is looking for company, and lives out in the yard when it's warmer. He's never gotten the hang of finding food for himself, so we feed him every day (cat food and/or hedgehog food). He isn't housebroken, but then I never tried, because I hoped to "return him to the wild". Fat chance. He also doesn't understand that he's supposed to be nocturnal.

Originally Posted by jcat

We've got one I found outside as an orphaned baby. He semi-hibernates in a straw-filled box in our cellar during the winter, with occasional trips upstairs when he wakes up and is looking for company, and lives out in the yard when it's warmer. He's never gotten the hang of finding food for himself, so we feed him every day (cat food and/or hedgehog food). He isn't housebroken, but then I never tried, because I hoped to "return him to the wild". Fat chance. He also doesn't understand that he's supposed to be nocturnal.

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Aw! He's really cute! What does Jamie think of him??

Ive kept hedgehogs before.. I think some could be housebroken, but in general they just kinda poop where they walk.

I had one that I gave a litter box in her cage, and she would actually use it.. but on the other hand, when they are in the ball, or on the wheel, they just poop and pee in it.

For the wheel, you cannot use the wire ones.. it must be solid plastic, otherwise their feet fall between the bars and can break their legs.

You do have to be careful of what you use. They are quite sensitive to dust and smells.. so you have to use a dust-fee cat litter. You cannot use cedar chips for bedding.. I used the care-fresh instead of wood.

Their little nails can easily get caught on things, which can cause injury as well. Many people give their hedgies fleece "bags" to snuggle in, but you have to be sure that none of the stitching is exposed, as they can get their nails caught on it.. I gave my last hedgie scraps of fleece to put in her igloo. The other risk is that they can get threads wrapped around those tiny little legs too, which cuts off circulation.

Originally Posted by jcat

We've got one I found outside as an orphaned baby. He semi-hibernates in a straw-filled box in our cellar during the winter, with occasional trips upstairs when he wakes up and is looking for company, and lives out in the yard when it's warmer. He's never gotten the hang of finding food for himself, so we feed him every day (cat food and/or hedgehog food). He isn't housebroken, but then I never tried, because I hoped to "return him to the wild". Fat chance. He also doesn't understand that he's supposed to be nocturnal.

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Ah, how cute!

You must be somewhere in Europe if you found an orphan Hedgie... we dont have wild Hedgies in the US.

Most hedgie people told me that a high-quality cat food is a better diet than the commercial hedgehog food. They also like meal worms.. although they are high in fat. Dont feed the carnivourous "super worms" tho.

Originally Posted by nekkiddoglady

Dont feed the carnivourous "super worms" tho.

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What's wrong with zophobas morio larvae? If you're believing the myth that they're vicious or can chew their way out of an animal/reptile's stomach... well you should do more research. Small animals, such as a hedgehog, have teeth that can easily dispatch insects - the species wouldn't exist otherwise.
Even my leopard geckos, which are much smaller than a hedgehog and don't have teeth, can easily kill a superworm with no problems. The larvae don't display any carnivorous type of behavior unless they're improperly kept, mealworms will behave the same way often chewing on any pupae left in the container with them even if they have plenty of moisture sources.

If one does use mealworms as treats they need to be properly kept and fed. Straight from the store they're usually in sawdust or wheat germ - while they can survive on wheat germ it's not nutritious and thus the worms won't be either. You also can't use the mealworms that have been treated to prevent them from pupating - these are for fishing and not safe to feed to one's pets.
Mealworms have tougher skins than superworms - which also have better meat to skin(exoskeleton) ratio than mealworms do. No wax worms - these are moth larvae that some feed reptiles and other pets as treats. They're supposedly sweeter tasting, addictive, and are very high in fat (they eat honey and bran, so that pretty much explains why). Silkworms would be a very good high protein treat, but are more difficult than the typical feeder larvae to keep.

In case anyone wonders, I've raised supers, mealworms, and crickets - so I do know a bit about the insects themselves and how they should be kept and fed to make sure they're nutritious.


To chausiefan - I suggest you do a lot of research. Join a hedgehog or small exotics forum. Learn to make your own food or how best to make sure you're getting what's right.
Save money. Initial set up for any animal is almost always expensive, no matter how much the animal itself may or may not cost. Find a vet that treats small exotics before hand. You'll need to take it in for a first time check up, just like you would with a cat/kitten or dog, and you'll need that vet later for any other possible problems.

I would hazard an estimate of at least $300 for setup and vet visit alone. This can be a bit easier if you buy a little at a time or just start saving now.

I suggest against letting a small animal have the run of the house. Supervised time out is fine, and you better proof your house to make sure there is absolutely nothing it could get hurt on. Being a small animal it would probably go for small dark areas to hide out in sometimes - make sure those are safe or blocked off!

Goodluck!

I was told that the superworms will bite at the hedgehog and can cause some injury. I was on a hedgehog/chinchilla forum and a lot of the members there advised against feeding superworms.

Originally Posted by nekkiddoglady

I was told that the superworms will bite at the hedgehog and can cause some injury. I was on a hedgehog/chinchilla forum and a lot of the members there advised against feeding superworms.

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Do the people that are against it have personal stories and pictures proving this? Have you personally seen this happen? Or is it a friend of a friend told them supers are dangerous?
I've found that it's often the latter, and the reason people say this is because supers gross them out so it's easy to spread the rumor.

I have some geckos that have very thin soft velvety skin that can tear easily, never once has a superworm harmed them. Though if one was still worried all they would have to do is squish the larvae's head a little until it was stunned or dead, or simply toss it in the freezer for a minute. A dead super can't bite anything.

I'm simply suggesting supers because their nutritional value is better than that of a mealworm, they digest better, and they're relatively easy to find. Also, I'm not entirely sure if the mealworm shortage is done - there was some problems that the main suppliers were having and it left some people unable to find any mealworms at all for several months.

Ive not seen it happen, no. I never fed any of my hedgies the superworms. So many people advised against it. Im not even sure where to buy them anyways! There's not many places locally to get feeder insects.. the nearest ones only have crickets and mealies.

Petsmarts, Petcos, any smaller pet shops that cater to reptile/exotic keepers, and small exotics/birds/reptile shows should have supers. They've really caught on in the last few years because they surpass most of the feeders aside from roaches and silkworms for a nutritious staple.

I've always ordered feeder insects online to start my colonies and to later add new ones in. I tend to be picky about what farms they come from because some feeder farms are well known for having parasite problems. Nothing would be worse than the feeder insects giving your pet pinworms or introducing grain mites into a colony. (crickets tend to be worse for carrying worms/disease than larvae do)

The thing with feeder insects is not only are you responsible for your pet but for the insects as well - they need to have proper care and food if you want them to stay alive and even be worth using.I think it would be best that everyone using insects for their pets research them a bit. It might dispel some myths and prevent some problems.

There's no petsmarts or petco's nearby. There are a few other chain petshops, but I dont shop there because they sell puppies. All of the bigger shops are at least a 30-40 min. drive away.

We have a few small shops close by.. but they only sell some basic supplies and premium pet foods.. they dont even sell pets.

I don't have hedghogs but I do have several other exotic pets. I never buy feeding supplies from pet stores. A lot of their feed for exotics is actually bad for them. I order my supplies online. a good place to get things is www.exoticnutrition.com they have hedgehog supplies as well . As for the super worms, I have fed them to my sugar gliders and they LOVE them. they just chomp their heads off first usually lol so I'd imagine they wouls be fine for hedgies too.

I don't own any hedgies, but I thought I'd throw in my $0.02 on superworms...

I farm mealworms and superworms and always recommend mealies over supers because 1)superworms DO bite and 2)most of my sugar gliders don't like the superworms. They'll bite into them and then shake their heads, liek they're bitter of something, then they throw away the superworm.

I, personally, have never given my superworms a chance to bite me, but my friend has fed her gliders superworms as well and can confrim that they both can and DO bite hard.

Also, my glider, Silvara, would tell you that as well because when she was trying to eat a super she kept pulling her hand away and flicking it because the super was biting her, so I had to take it away.

The best way to feed a superworm is to either only feed the white ones(the freshly-shed ones) or to dunk them in ice-cold water first, to stun them.