Sonic the hedgehog

After looking for an APH for a while, we drove down to Balbriggan last night and picked ourselves up a lovely little male albino. We named him Sonic and can't believe how tame he is for only being 6/7 weeks old. I'll get pics up after work, but in the mean time, I need some advice. What is the best substrate to use? I'm assuming normal woodshavings won't suffice? Also what food do you recommend? We got a small box of Purina go-cat (I think that's what it's called) as Purina looked to be the dearest brand in Tesco lol. We soaked it in warm water for a few minutes to soften it, before feeding him (the breeder advised this). Any other tips would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks :)

Forgot to ask, how much should it be fed per day? Any way to judge this?

Glad you guys finally got your hog and I am dying for photos but I hate to say you've been given some dreadful advice.

NEVER soak kibble as this is the only food you will give your hoglet that can actually help prevent Tartar build up. As colonizing bacteria which make up plaque are naturally found in the mouth they thrive on the food left behind after a meal based on the hog not being able to 'brush' his/her teeth soaking kibble offers no health benefits. I think you have a short window before they become tartar 24-48hrs (but don't quote me I cannot recall time frame). Now most people know how important oral hygiene is to ourselves and our little hogs are no different.

In fact 'we' tend to feed one of the worst diets to these little animals (as small animals go) as so much bad and incorrect information is still floating around I take it your breeder didn't discuss oral health with you? As hog are prone to tooth decay (we see onset around 1yr old but it's an average and some can be 'prone') I personally advice a finger brush or good size kibble so he/she really needs to use those teeth to brake up the kibble. A good breeder intrudes on the mouth of a hog before they start to cut teeth and then after the teeth start to come in so in the very least the animals is used to mouth inspections. Some hogs after quilling will still allow and others won't BUT in most cases most hogs are less inclined to a nip even if they are not fond of it. So, my recommendation is, regardless of the diet road you choose to go down don't ever ever soak kibble, it is completely unnecessary and does your little one no favours, offer it hole in the form it comes in in the bag, don't worry, they can manage it just fine.

As far as substrate goes, omg, this has caused some heated debates, well so has diet SO what I tend to do is ask people to make an informed decision with all the facts in front of them and then you cannot go wrong and should anyone question you, you have knowledge as your basis and no one can refute facts, not even 'experts' :) Most people use wood shavings, the reason being they are inexpensive. If I am to be totally honest with you they can be one of the worst bedding you can use. Fact number one is hedgehogs need ventilation, good air circulation and are prone (again this prone seems to be when we get involved) to upper resp infections with lower resp not far behind, why does this happen, well, dust from wood shavings and breathing these in especially when in deep sleep is not good for anything especially our little hogs and don't get me started on dust pneumonia for one. So when someone sets their hog up in say a viv (which seems to be the new worst trend ever for housing) with shavings they are just asking for trouble. My own personal opinion based on facts are open top rabbit cages. Anything that has a small plastic base and wire top is excellent. A zoozone is acceptable for hoglets as they can and do squeeze through bars but when sub adult they should be in something that is not enclosed and provides the best circulation available next be being outdoors.

You can use puppy training pads to line the cage, not only are these absorbent they give off no dust. A sleeping area should be 100% shavings free and you can use news paper and or paper towels shredded and packed in, most hogs will then make the nest more comfortable but trust me when I say they sleep far better this way and deep sleep is very important.

If you do use shavings, which I have used in some hog enclosures with no problems myself, you need to follow some simple yet important time consuming rules, even if it says dust extracted, dust is still present so what I recommend is getting your self a Colander and sieve, do this out doors as it can be messy but place a hand full of shavings into the colander and just shake. You should see the amount of dust that comes off some of these 'dust free' beddings and to think this is what your little pet is breathing is shocking. Actually I have applied this rule to mice, rats, rabbits etc...it only makes sense especially for nest builders which hogs are. If you remove all or as much of the dust as you can and keep the bedding area shaving free taking into account some will get in there (it's unavoidable) then you shouldn't have problems related to shavings although funny thing is most people over look this as a cause of their hedgehogs illness and in many cases it must be at least considered.

Feeding wise it is hard to gauge how much each one should have so a small bowl with a hand full of kibble along with his insects daily and you will soon get a feel for how much your hedgie is eating but at this stage he is a youngster and is growing so when he levels out in a few months you'll soon know. I take it your breeder discussed exercise with you and the importance of it. No hog IMO should be caged without an exercise wheel. It is important not only for physical well being but mental aswell. If you set up a cage with loads of hog friendly toy and tunnels, a wheel and a good solid, never see through hide you should have a happy chappy.

You do have one obstacle yet to deal with and this is quilling. All you need to remember when it comes to this is, it is a painful transition and if your boy displays some aggressions (balling, hissing and clicking with clicking being a full on threat) then he is in pain and telling you to leave him alone, DONT. It is one of the biggest mistakes you can make at this important time in your hogs life as it is in this period some hogs seem to revert and when people do not handle them they can be less agreeable once all adult quills are in. I recommend a bath in warm water as this will sooth the area and you can do this every few nights, it is also excellent cardio vascular and should be on the exercise list. I understand this can be a daunting time for a new owner when you have a hissing ball of spines that leaps to prick you but you need to show no fear and just grab them up. Some will uncurl instantly and be a little grouchy, some will stay in a ball for a long time and some get on with it like nothings happening, they are my faves, obviously :) but don't give up if he is a little grumpy, he should come round for you.

Sorry if I've gone off course a little, I tend not to be able to shut up when it comes to these animals but if you need any advice you know where we are. Now wheres those pictures

Cheers for the advice Tan. Kept checking the forum on my iPhone yesterday to see if you'd replied to the ad. I knew you;d be the 1st to reply as you're very knowledgable about the hogs.

I'll be totally honest Tan, the breeder I got the hoglet off - this was his first time breeding the hogs. He owns a petshop too, so should probably have been alot more knowledgable about them. However, I knew a few basic things to check for to make sure the hogs were all healthy enough. The cage they were kept in was very well maintained etc. The breeder himself didn't mention anything about oral hygiene to be honest. BUT I knew that as soon as I got him home, I'd have a post up here to find out most things I was unsure of (as well as a lot of research online). The exercise aspect I know is very important and we're heading out today to get a large wheel for his cage. At the minute we have him in a guinea pig cage which has plenty of ventilation.

It is for the oral hygiene aspect that I posted up about the food being soaked, because I know with most animals it's better to have firm food, rather than soft (for the reasons you mentioned above) and he does seem to have a good set of gnashers on him lol. I had to google the term kibble as I thought it was a type of food when you mentioned it lol. Hopefully any of the mistakes that were made in raring him from a baby by the breeder are reversible and as I said, he shows all signs (at least from my research) that he's fit and healthy. He's also quite friendly, in that when you lift him, he'll curl a bit, but if you scoop him up gently, in less than 10 seconds, he'll be walking about in your hands and sniffing away.

Think I've addressed all of the issues mentioned in your post lol. Any other advice or things to look out for?

Also Tan, are there any foods in particular that you recommend for the hogs? And would you just have a few mealworms on top of its solid food when you feed it? Here are some pics, if you notice anything out of the ordinary, let me know :) As you'll see from the pics, we used woodshavings or "softwood bedding" as they call it, but this is only temporary until we decided what substrate to use long-term.

Pics:

cute little hog

Sorry guys, kibble is just a name for what some call dog or cat biscuit or cookies as I've heard them called. Dry food wise, aim for 30% + in animal based protein and I also mix in James well beloved ferret food as ferrets need a strict diet and this food is actually excellent for the hogs too.

When it comes to morios I know they love them but keep in mind (and this applies to lizards too) eating morio worms has the same effect inside the body as us living on hamburgers. They can have large deposits of 'bad' fat around the organs and it can lead to an untimely death without going into too much detail about why that is lol.

Insect wise I would offer a few hoppers daily (for nutritional value) and if you can get your hands on them, silk worms, I tend to have some but not for too long a few times a year and these are excellent. The odd morio is fine but not as a base insect. Mix it up a bit, a roach here, a hopper there oh and a pinkie weekly will go down a treat, remember animal based protein, boiled chicken breast is also favoured and does them no harm.

Oh and as far as insects go it is far more productive to make the hog work for his food as in allow him to hunt, hell surprise you but its all part of his exercise and not allowing him to become a lazy caged animal. If you can get those cat/puppy balls you place treats inside it will get him using that wonderful little nose and again working for his food.

I have to say you seem to have really be doing your homework which is great both for your selves as it really is a new world but for your little boy. He sounds like a lovely little hog and I think he looks fantastic too. I am partial to albinos :) and his ears look really clean too

As every day passes, he's settling in more and becoming calmer when being handled. We tried him on the cat food yesterday without soaking at all, but I wanted to keep an eye on him in case he woudn't eat it with being used to it being soaked. I was expecting to have to soak it a little and gradually wean him on to the food being fully dry, but he munched away, so no need to do this :) . Do you use a water dish for hogs, or water bottles that you would use for rabbits and rodents? A few of the guides I read all mentioned meal worms as the insect to be fed, so this is what we've been feeding him with his dry food. I don't think meal worms are as fatty as morio worms (could be wrong though!), but I'll mix it up a bit as we usually have crickets, hoppers, morio worms and mealworms for our chameleons anyway. Also, what about veggies? I seen a few vids of people feeding their hogs cordiander etc. What would youu recommend?

Also, as regards portion size, would you be able to give me a rough guide as to what we should be feeding him? He only seems to leave 3/4 bits of kibble each day, so he's eating pretty much all of what we leave in his dish and we've been supplementing this with around 5 mealworms each day. I'm afraid of over-feeding more so that underfeeding, so again any pointers here would be great. I'm sure when we know roughly what he should be eating at this age, we can slowly increase this until he reaches his full adult size.

Mealies once gut loaded are not as bad as morios but if you are looking for nutritional value I'd go with Hoppers and Silks etc... I would have done what you did and straight onto the unsoaked dry and I can tell you it wouldn't have been long before he would have fed even if he didn't seem mad on the idea to start off with. If he is leaving a few kibble then you are feeding him correctly at this stage, if/when he starts to clear the dish, up the amount of kibble you offer. Remember his food intake will differ at different times of year with less food taken in when he is less active. If he has a very active day he has burned more calories (how we measure energy in us/animals) so will need to ingest more or more nutritious food not necessarily more quantity wise. You do come across the odd lazy one who refuses to use a wheel or use it often and doesn't seem to do very much and you need to force exercise in cases like that in order to prevent excess weight so use a bath, it really is an excellent form of exercise for them or take him out of his cage and even an hour of free roaming will do him good. I don't think you need to worry about over feeding but it is very hard to give amounts of food as each one is different and whats correct for one is way off for another.

Veg, well, my own opinion is no not really and there are a few reasons, one being they are insectivores, we know this classification isn't hugely accurate when it comes to one genus over another BUT that depends on distribution. Hedgehogs are very versatile animals when it comes to diet as the list includes but is not restricted to berrys (after hibernation) snakes, lizards, birds, mice (any small mammal) earth worms, insects, eggs, carrion, fruits etc... Our own natives have been documented eating berrys if they leave hibernation, to me based on all I know this is a survival skill for bulking and energy more then a base part of the diet as they only do it soon after leaving and not the rest of the year when berrys would be prevalent, so again important at that time of year but not necessary the rest and if it is a big part of the diet why would they choose other foods over these?

Also I have done different studies over the years with some of my own animals and one thing I found is IF you check fecal matter after many different plants or grasses are ingested, most appear to pass with some percentage undigested by the hog, what would this suggest to you? Also in many cases the structure of the feces changed & most hogs either had a sore rear requiring treatment and some bled. Yes it is true many people will feed fruits and many hogs will seemingly live a healthy life but personally I would keep veg and fruit to a minimum. There has been a new trend which is hogs being almost vegetarian and I have to say I totally disagree with this. This has also been reported across the globe so when it comes to these little animals if we get more years of study behind us we may well say you know what, we found feeding some veg weekly actually does them well in the long run but for now I stick with minimal. Remember like with anything the more we study, observe and test the more we learn and what we know now could drastically change in a few years so what I've written now could very well end up tosh but then I think for the good of our animals we need to be able to recognise this and move forward for a better tomorrow.

As far as water goes, dishes all the way. Those water bottles are designed for rodents & lagomorphs whos teeth are open rooted, this means the teeth grow continuously for the animals life time. Our hogs have one set of teeth as adult and bottles damage them over time so I strongly recommend against them. If you ever get a female and decide to breed we need to address water again but for a male a dish for his life time is absolutely fine.

One other thing is you'll drive yourself nuts reading the increasing web sites popping up and looking at videos asking but why do they do this and why is that owner doing that. Of all the animals I keep the hog has to be the one who over the past 20yrs has had so much incorrect advice put out there it's unreal. We are at a stage where people cannot agree on anything so this is why I tend to lean towards irrefutable facts, printed papers on diet, behaviour, plus years invested myself, anyway this only makes sense and I don't think anyone can argue with that.

Oh and very last thing. I know you've mentioned a few times how friendly he is but believe it or not, most hedgehogs I've encountered (apart from long ears), both domestic & native are fairly agreeable animals. I've only ever had one 'aggressive' native hog and any I've ever picked up or have come to me will usually uncurl with many allowing you to touch them. There is a skill to unballing hogs which I love showing people but as their nature goes they are placid little creatures over all.

The reason I mentioned the friendlyness is because a lot of the info pages/care sheets etc I read all said that it is normal for a hog to ball up for a few minutes, but it should uncurl within 2/3 minutes, but if he ever does curl into a ball, it's only for a few seconds, then he's out sniffing about again lol. This is one thing the care sheets said to check for when selecting a hog from a litter and is one of the reasons we selected him from the litter. One again, your input is invaluable Tan and I think I've now got all the info I need (for the time being anyway lol).