# My African Pygmy Hedgehog



## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

*My New African Pygmy Hedgehog {w/Photos}*

→ *SEEKING ADVICE?*

I've recently got my female African Pygmy Hedgehog.
I've named her Noah & she was born on the 18th August 2011.
She's an Algerian Grey, her mum is Champagne & her dad is a Chocolate Pinto.

I feed her mostly chicken flavoured Whisker's dry kitten biscuits & dried
mealworms but occasionally I'll give her some banana or chicken meat.









This photograph was taken whilst she was exploring under my duvet, adorable!
Here she's two months old & you can see how diddy she is compared to a hand.

I handle her daily & feed her from my hand to allow her to learn to trust me which is going pretty well 
so far although she remains keen to explore! Quite the fidget bum. She only huffs when first woken up 
or when approached by someone new which is understandable.

















She's kept in an indoor rabbit cage about 32" by 16" & a half inches lined thickly with newspaper. At 
the moment Noah's cage is pretty basic with just her bedding, food & water bowls. I've chosen a 12" 
Silent Spinner wheel & I was considering getting her a teddy hot water bottle to snuggle with for the
colder nights but I'm not sure if that's recommended? 

What would other owners' recommend I get to make things more home-like for her? 

I'll have to add some more photos of her soon :} 
& Thank you to anyone able to advise me ~
*Ashly Rose*
xo


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## CPT BJ (Oct 30, 2010)

Hi, shes gorgeus!! You could give her a couple of toy balls to roll around, and somthing that they can use as a hide! Habba-Huts or those bendy wooden bridges are ideal!! She sounds like shes doing well and is in a very loving home .


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## CPT BJ (Oct 30, 2010)

They also love those long/wide thick cardboard tubes!!


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## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

CPT BJ said:


> They also love those long/wide thick cardboard tubes!


Thank you for all of the suggestions :}

Whereabouts would I be able to find thick cardboard tubes?
All the ones I come across appear to be a bit on the smaller side,
~ not that the Hedgie is particularly big but she's still growing!


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## CPT BJ (Oct 30, 2010)

IamAshlyRose said:


> Thank you for all of the suggestions :}
> 
> Whereabouts would I be able to find thick cardboard tubes?
> All the ones I come across appear to be a bit on the smaller side,
> ~ not that the Hedgie is particularly big but she's still growing!


 You can usually buy them in Pets @ Home, the Guinea Pig ones would be fine, but they are quite expensive for what they are, im lucky as we get them as part of our packing material so i just use them!


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## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

CPT BJ said:


> You can usually buy them in Pets @ Home, the Guinea Pig ones would be fine, but they are quite expensive for what they are, im lucky as we get them as part of our packing material so i just use them!


Awh,
Cheers for all the advice.

Do you know if hot water bottles are recommended or not?
It occurred to me that a hot water bottle in a teddy casing or something might be something the Hedgie can snuggle up to as mine snuggles into her towel atm & the nights are starting to get much colder.


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## CPT BJ (Oct 30, 2010)

IamAshlyRose said:


> Awh,
> Cheers for all the advice.
> 
> Do you know if hot water bottles are recommended or not?
> It occurred to me that a hot water bottle in a teddy casing or something might be something the Hedgie can snuggle up to as mine snuggles into her towel atm & the nights are starting to get much colder.


 I havent done it myself but dont see what harm it could cause, ive seen other people using them with their hogs.


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## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

CPT BJ said:


> I havent done it myself but dont see what harm it could cause, ive seen other people using them with their hogs.


I guess there's no harm in trying it then, thanks!


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## Shell195 (May 31, 2007)

The problem with hot water bottles is they go cold quickly so you would be better off with a snugglesafe disc or a petnap heat pad


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## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

Shell195 said:


> The problem with hot water bottles is they go cold quickly so you would be better off with a snugglesafe disc or a petnap heat pad


Mmm, those are decent suggestions but I've not had any particular problems with keeping the hedgie warm, I was just thinking of it as a comfort thing? Her cage looks a little dull & I think it's not particularly comfortable atm.


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## heatherj (Jun 28, 2010)

have you tried giving her a fleece blanket/pouch to snuggle in you can also get fleece lined tunnels


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## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

heatherj said:


> have you tried giving her a fleece blanket/pouch to snuggle in you can also get fleece lined tunnels.


She has a fleece lined pouch/sock that came with her from the breeder but it's forever in the wash! I'm thinking to attempt litter training soon. Might have to have a look around & see if I can buy some more though. Thanks.


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## sisha (Nov 9, 2011)

Hi our hedgehog, Dobby, loves his plastic tunnel and plays with plastic cat toys especially ones with bells inside. Live mealworms are better than dried and you can chop in some spring greens or parsnip with his biscuits.Also do you soak his biscuits in hot water first as dry ones can damage their little teeth! Wilkinsons sell cheap cardboard tunnels or the plastic ones.


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## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

sisha said:


> Hi our hedgehog, Dobby, loves his plastic tunnel and plays with plastic cat toys especially ones with bells inside. Live mealworms are better than dried and you can chop in some spring greens or parsnip with his biscuits.Also do you soak his biscuits in hot water first as dry ones can damage their little teeth! Wilkinsons sell cheap cardboard tunnels or the plastic ones.


Ooh, thank you for the advice.


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## Jamiioo (May 8, 2010)

Dry biccies can hurt their teeth? 

Sorry but if you have a healthy hog then there is no reason to soak their biccies in water. In fact dry biccies are better it helps keep their teeth in good condition, plus weaning them back off soft foods can be really hard. If you join a hog forum and talk to the owners on there i am confident that 99% of the people you speak to will advise you against soaking kibble. :2thumb:

The only cases in which i have heard people resorting to feeding wet food or soaked kibble are in cases where the hog has something wrong with its mouth preventing it from feeding or chewing normally, or if they are being syringe fed due to ill health.


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## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

Yeah, I've never heard of an owner soaking biscuits before..
I buy the Whiskers kitten biscuits which are dry & crunchy but not too hard for the hedgie to eat. 
She came with a care sheet & the food do's & don'ts have been pretty accurate so far. 
Cheers for all the advice about the cardboard tunnels.


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## Jamiioo (May 8, 2010)

Good stuff :2thumb:

Should maybe just point out also, i have read that kitten biccies can be a bit fattening for hogs, they also sometimes contain milk derivatives which is not recommended as hogs are lactose intolerant x


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## IamAshlyRose (Nov 7, 2011)

Jamiioo said:


> Good stuff :2thumb:
> 
> Should maybe just point out also, i have read that kitten biccies can be a bit fattening for hogs, they also sometimes contain milk derivatives which is not recommended as hogs are lactose intolerant x


Oh, really?
I'll just get normal cat biscuits next time, cheers.


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