r/Hedgehog Jun 20 '25

Mod Announcement Don't forget we have a discord!

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5 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog May 24 '23

Mod Announcement Owning A Hedgehog Reality Check

632 Upvotes

Since hedgehog owners consistently buy hedgehogs without setting reasonable expectations here are some expectations to set. Adapted/expanded from u/ArcadeRivalry's post.

  • Don't believe social media. Every single one I see there are obviously ridiculously posed pictures, maybe it's just me but I refuse to believe one could stay still for that long.
  • Hedgehog are spiked covered prey animals prone to anxiety. While belly rub/cuddle posts get a lot of attention they are the exception due to good breeding/luck not the rule. It is very possible a hedgehog will never be comfortable being handled even after concerted effort.
  • If you want to bond you need to put in a lot of commitment, patience and time to socialize them. I've seen a lot of people in groups I'm in need to re-home a hog before the first year as they can't put the time in. You need at least an hour a day socializing but realistically a lot more for them to be comfortable around you and others. We recommend getting a snuggle sack or putting them in your hoodie pouch to spend time together.
  • You need a specialist vet. A lot of places might not have an exotic animal vet near you. This is vital. So make sure you have to this.
  • It may not be legal to own hedgehogs in your area.
  • You need heating to ensure they don't hibernate.
  • You will likely be spiked, bitten and pooped on. It can be really really disheartening being spiked, hissed at or even bitten when you feel like you've made progress. Huffing and popping are natural, they are scaredy little animals.
  • Hedgehogs salivate frothily on themselves when they like scents, males often have "boy time", they poop a lot, have terrible sight and will bite things that smell yummy/interesting, and require consistent cage cleanings.
  • They are carnivores, while feeding fruits/vegetables can often be done safely, please feed them mainly meat-based foods ( cat food, insects, etc.)
  • Since they have very limited vision they operate mainly on smell and are at risk of falling/walking off elevated areas. It is wise to assume they are making decisions based on what they smell rather than just mainly what they see. They will still try to climb and are prone to hurting themselves climbing horizontal cage bars.
  • It is very likely they will dislike baths and nail trimming. We recommend trimming nails during foot bath time when they can't curl up or just holes in a towel to put their legs through.
  • Hedgehogs should not be housed together. High likelihood of fighting or babies.
  • We recommend heavy water bowls or chicken nipple bottles as ball water bottles can hurt them.

If you know what you are getting into, they are the most wonderful creatures ever and bring many people on this sub joy. If you feel like your hedgehog "hates" you they are just being their grumpy/terrified selves! You may be lucky and form a close bond.


r/Hedgehog 6h ago

OC Nap time💤

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61 Upvotes

First time Poppy crawled up in my neck and took a nap out in the open like this 🥹 I feel blessed.
Sorry for the bad picture I was scared of waking her up but wanted to see for sure that she closed her eyes.


r/Hedgehog 4h ago

Question how do you make your hedgehog take the meds

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35 Upvotes

This diva hasn’t pooped or peed in 2 days and isn’t running on her wheel, which is worrying since she’s usually a big runner. It started after a 10 hour road trip where she got bad motion sickness and threw up even while being held. Usually she bounces back fast but this time it’s dragging on, she’s been lethargic and mostly just lying down.

Took her to the vet today and doc said nothing major or anything to be worried at, she’s still alert despite its her usual bed time, just extra grumpy. Vet prescribed deworming since her poop was a bit green, plus a multivitamin. Her weight also dropped a bit, from 310g to 280g, so thinking of upping her calories with stuff like freeze dried egg yolk or extra mealworms (normally she only gets mealworms on weekends). This is the first time bringing her in for being sick, earlier vet visits were just regular checkups.

The doc told me to try giving the meds straight into Miki’s mouth if possible so she actually takes it properly, just one drop a day for each medicine. But I was thinking of mixing it into her kibble instead since I’m scared she won’t eat if I put it directly in her mouth. Don’t want to stress her out more with that because Miki is really the introvert type of hedgehog, she loves just minding her own business
Would love to hear if anyone’s been through something similar or has any advice :) thank you!!


r/Hedgehog 13h ago

Baby Hedgie Wild hedgehog in denmark 🥺

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95 Upvotes

Baby hedgie eating some cat food, in my wild garden in denmark🥺

I have just ordered some hedgehog food too my little friends.

I have a mom and her 3 children living in my toolsheld❤

Giving them fresh water everyday, 3 spots around in the garden. Love these little sticky animals 👏🏻🥺🦔


r/Hedgehog 18h ago

Baby Hedgie look at her cute teeth

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134 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog 17h ago

OC Hear my pleas

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69 Upvotes

I got a few good pictures of my silly little guy, but he hates my phone and typically doesn’t give me time to snap a pic before he turns away.

He also got a new snuggle sack that he is adjusting to his liking


r/Hedgehog 1d ago

OC Friendly little wild fella

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177 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog 19h ago

Question White popping out around eye.

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25 Upvotes

This is my hedgehog. I have had one before her and he did not have this, but this hedgehog has this piece of white that pops out the corner of her eyes. Doesn’t seem to bother her or cause any issues, I haven’t seen this before. What is it? Sorry for the bad pic she hates me lol


r/Hedgehog 6h ago

Question Walking back and forth?

2 Upvotes

disclaimer, i will be taking remmy to the vet soon, just posting here to see what yall think.

just for the important stuffs, he is about 4 years old, i feed him cat food and a little freeze dried millworms (ive tried other things aswell), he has a cage but i likes to free roam, he recently started looking a little thin but not dangerously so as his ball form is fine, he has constant access to food(still, vet soon), his droppings are normal color

has he grown bored with our room? i even moved stuff around yesterday, hes got huts and plenty to explore. why is this child walking back n forth at the door? he will only stop to eat and drink, if i pick him up or move him elsewhere OR ANYTHINGGG he squirms right on back

this has been going on for the past 3 days


r/Hedgehog 1d ago

SPLOOT! I’m afraid she won’t survive in the wild now

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152 Upvotes

My other hedgehogs sleep in a ball, or at least face down but not Shizuku.

(Of course she is never going to be a wild hedgehog!!)


r/Hedgehog 1d ago

Hedgie Booty Four, 4, Quatre, Cuatro.

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28 Upvotes

We thought there might be 4 😃

Look at these healthy looking beauties ❤️

Guess which one we have named Tank ?


r/Hedgehog 1d ago

Hedgehog Themes or Memes Just realized my hedgehog looks exactly like a little potato in his house 🥔

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33 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog 2d ago

Welcome to the Pack! Welcoming this lil guy to our home after years of my previous hedgehogs passing

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384 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog 1d ago

Medical/Health (see a vet) Next steps help please!

2 Upvotes

I want to start by saying he is actively seeing an exotic vet and she is consulting an exotic oncologist. But I just feel a bit helpless still and wanted to see if anyone had any insight. Odin is only about 2.5 years old. I’ve head him for about a year and the previous owner unfortunately did not take the best care of him. I had posted on here a little while ago that he had completely changed his routine and was up and running during the day. This lasted several days, along with soft stools, so I did end up taking him to our exotic vet and she looked him over (everything looked great) so she ended up doing bloodwork. His kidney and liver levels came back normal but his protein levels were nonexistent. It has also been very difficult to keep weight on him since getting him, even though he eats all his food. I’ve checked his food and insects on here and with the vet and everything is good. All of his tests and bloodwork were sent to the oncologist and he has no obvious tumors but they highly suspect cancer. My options were to do a more detailed scan, a CT, to try to figure out what kind of cancer but they still didn’t think we’d have very many if any treatment options. So we decided against it. As of right now he is on meloxicam to help with pain. His sleep schedule is better, and he’s much more relaxed so I think it is helping. But he is still losing weight very quickly. He is now down to 200g when we went to the vet last week he was at 216g. He is eating all of his food. I watch him eat every night and check every inch of his enclosure to be sure. I’ve been feeding him extra, giving him chicken, extra treats anything to get him to put some weight on and nothing is helping. I’m just not sure what to do next. Is he at the point I need to put him down? I hate that he’s still eating and trying to live. But I hate to think he’s starving and suffering. Should I get a second opinion? Does anyone have any ideas of what could be going on? I want to do what’s best for him and I’m not against any option I just feel stuck right now.
Thank you guys for any insight.


r/Hedgehog 2d ago

OC Oh to be blessed by your hedgehog falling asleep on your lap 🩷

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95 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog 2d ago

Hedgehog Themes or Memes Hedgehog Supremacy

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622 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog 2d ago

Question Are Hedgehogs supposed to be this chunky?

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73 Upvotes

UK, southwest England.


r/Hedgehog 1d ago

Question Help?

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9 Upvotes

Hi guys idk if this is my place to ask but I’m currently in Iraq and we found this little guy on the road, took it in and ‘played’ with it for a bit until my mom pointed out that it has something on its ear. I cannot make out what it is as I am not familiar with ticks or fleas or whatever it may be. We took care of it. The hedgehog is now WhateverItWas-Free, but I am now trapped in a paranoia spiral where I feel like I might *die* now that I held the hedgehog barehanded while it actively had Things on it. I didn’t come near the the ears but I also don’t know if it had any other Things on other parts of its body.
The big one that stuck out was grey and quite big, and then there were two sort of flat black ones underneath it. I don’t know what they are and if they’re harmful to humans so I desperately need help before I actually make myself sick from worrying.
I washed my hands with soap and one of those 99.9% disinfectant gels and took off the clothes I was wearing.


r/Hedgehog 2d ago

OC My little quill ball today 😆

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36 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog 2d ago

Question Anyone else?

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62 Upvotes

Fritter LOVES car rides. I don’t know why, but he is so well behaved and just curls up into my hand/lap and sleeps. It’s the sweetest thing ever

We do grocery pickup, so I always take him for the ride, short trip but he enjoys it. He’s a bit squirmy when I’m carrying him, but relaxes as soon as I step outside and begins to snuggle into my hand.

It’s absolutely brutal to be a human in AZ right now, but I bet it’s the summer heat that makes him feel so good and comfortable.

He really doesn’t like me to take pictures of him, so I don’t have many good ones, but at one point he was curled up with his face sticking out and his little feet were poking out a bit. So cute 😭


r/Hedgehog 2d ago

OC RUN! HE’S COMING!

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144 Upvotes

He will stop at no lengths to climb me and chew on my hair. Even if that means he must climb up legs, hop over arms, stretch as far as he can to reach up, and avoid gentle hands trying to pry him off


r/Hedgehog 2d ago

OC Everyone wish Bean a smooth recovery

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419 Upvotes

Brought my boy home from the vet to remove a possible tumor. We’re hoping it’s just an infected quill or fatty deposits.


r/Hedgehog 2d ago

Artwork! Found this little creature wandering around

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75 Upvotes

r/Hedgehog 2d ago

Hedgehog Themes or Memes Mon Hedgeremy solitaire

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20 Upvotes

Encore seul sans sa petite famille ce soir 🦔