OT: Possibly getting a Hedgehog

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EEEM

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I know many of you have large zoos in your homes:p but does anyone have a hedgehog? My future roommate is looking intoa little hog as a pet. We saw an ad and he had been thinking of gettingone for a while anyway... Just thought you all might have some tips fora new potential hedgehog owner. He's quite excited about the prospect.:)
 
samandshawn wrote:
I was quite surprised to see hedgehog food for sale in mypet store. It looked a bit like bunny pellets
Depending on the quality of the pellets, hedgie pellets might *be*rabbit pellets in a different package. Not long ago, Istumbled across the fact that VitaCraft rabbit & hedgehogpellets were identical... pretty disturbing when you realize thatrabbits are herbivores & hedgies are insectivores. o_O

I've never lived w/ a hedgie... all I know is that they're adorable,but can be tricky to keep... especially since they've been pets for arelatively short time & therefore optimal nutrition &vet care hasn't been completely ironed out, yet. I thinkanyone who's willing to commit the time/money required to research& care for an exotic pet that might never be"cuddly"would probably enjoy a hedgehog companion. :} If you can finda vet in your area w/hedgie experience, so much the better!


 
I've never had one, but I do think they areadorable. (It's actually one of the things I've long thoughtabout adding to my zoo.) I've encountered a few and all werevery sweet. You do have to watch as they are prone to fungalskin infections. I also know they enjoy some meal worms(nasty, smelly little worms) on occasion. LOL

Jen
 
We've been doing alot of research together andhe's ready to commit to the tough stuff about hedgehog owning. And weeven found a hog savvy vet nearby! He's a very patient guy and I thinkhe'll really enjoy working with the little spiny kid until he'shandleable. I'm excited as well! I wonder how the bunnies would reactto it.

And on the food end, a breeder in the area we talked to said she's hadgood luck with feeding cat food and supplementing some meal worms,crickets, and veggies. Food basically just needs to be high in protien,low in fat and iron. There are also insectivore zoo diets availableonline. So we'll see what works.
 
Alice wrote:
samandshawn wrote:
I wasquite surprised to see hedgehog food for sale in my pet store. Itlooked a bit like bunny pellets
Depending on the quality of the pellets, hedgie pellets might *be*rabbit pellets in a different package. Not long ago, Istumbled across the fact that VitaCraft rabbit & hedgehogpellets were identical... pretty disturbing when you realize thatrabbits are herbivores & hedgies are insectivores. o_O
I went to the pet store that I saw the hedgehog food and readthe ingredients it contains beef and chicken. as well as cereals.
 
You can keep hedgehogs as pets in America????Wow, the nearest we get to that here is watching The Wombles on TV.....they're totally classed as a wild animal and not meant to be kept asdomestic pets here!
 
LindseyandKen wrote:
You can keep hedgehogs as pets in America???? Wow, thenearest we get to that here is watching The Wombles on TV..... they'retotally classed as a wild animal and not meant to be kept as domesticpets here!
There are some states where it's illegal to keep hedgehogs, &some that require special permits, but yes, it's legal in most of theUS (not sure about Canada). The hedgehogs kept here as petsare different from the ones you guys have in the wild, though. :}


 
Since we are on the subject of some animalsbeing illegal to keep in certain places, wherever you are, can you havehorses in city limits? What about goats?Sheep? Here in Tucson, Arizona, you can't own any of thoseanimals in city limits. What about where you live?
 
Ilive just outside of city limits, but my countydoes not have ANY zoning laws whatsoever. None! SoI could open a McDonalds and have a pig farm and childdaycarenext door in my neighborhood. How weird isthat?
 
My old roomate had an African Pygmy hedgehog. Itwas cute and well tempered. It was not a very interactive pet since itwas mostly nocturnal and ran on a wheel. It seemed to not smell everand she fed it cat food. It was pretty quiet and such. Hope that helps!:)
 
thatrachel wrote:
My old roomate had an African Pygmy hedgehog. It was cuteand well tempered. It was not a very interactive pet since it wasmostly nocturnal and ran on a wheel. It seemed to not smell ever andshe fed it cat food. It was pretty quiet and such. Hope that helps!:)



A hedgehog on a wheel? LOL I'm having really wierd images here: hasanyone got a piccy of US hedgehogs? Aren't they the long snouted spikeycreatures that we have in the UK? :shock:

Lindsey xx


EDIT: Just found them on the net, and they are the same! So cute: I want one! We just feed the ones we find in the garden....
 

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