Common Ailments Hedgehogs are often very healthy little critters, and most of their health problems can be managed and treated easily by an exotic vet.
OBESITY
This is the most common health problem for hedgehogs. Since a healthy hedgehog is a bit on the plump side naturally, determining the difference between a healthy animal's "chubby" condition and obesity can be somewhat difficult. Since there is such a wide variety of size in domestic stock these days, an obese hedgehog can be as little as 8 ounces to as much as 2 pounds in weight, so weight guidelines are of little use in identifying a fat hedgehog! Of far more use to you than a set of scales is a weekly or monthly visual inspection of your pet's front legs and chin. While a hedgehog
in its normal trim will be a bit chubby in these two locations, an obese specimen will have a double chin and "ham-hocks" for legs and sometimes even
rolls of fat under the arm-pits. Such animals will be so fat that they will even be incapable of rolling themselves into a ball! If your pet should become this fat eliminate all treats from its diet but do not reduce the amount of dry food - the primary source of necessary proteins, vitamins and minerals.
If after a month you see no evidence of weight loss, change the type of dry food that you are feeding to one that has a fat content of at least 20 percent. The theory is that the added fat will cause your pet to "bulk-up" and eat less and will actually help it to lose weight
MITES
One of the most common problems that pet hedgehogs suffer from are mites. Symptoms to watch for are excessive scratching, dandruff, and loss of quills. You may notice movement of little white dots on the hedgehogs skin, these dots are are the actual mites. Another check that you can do is to take a dark blue or black shirt and rub the hedgehog with it to get some of the dandruff on the
cloth. Then take the cloth and place it under a bright light. If the white flakes of skin move around, your hedgehog has mites. Please note, even if the
flakes do not move, your hedgehog may still have mites, but none of them fell off of the hedgehog onto the cloth.
Please keep in mind that losing an occasional quill is normal and losing many quills by an 8 or 12 week old hedgehog is also normal. Young hedgehogs go through a a process called quilling, the time when your baby starts losing their baby quills.
If you think your hedgehog has mites, you will need to take the hedgehog to a veterinarian for treatment. The recommended method of treatment is Revolution. Ivermectin is also commonly administered, however, there have been several
instances of hedgehogs receiving an overdose of Ivermectin and causing the death of the hedgehog. If your veterinarian confirms that your hedgehog has mites, request that they be treated with Revolution.In addition to being treated by a veterinarian you will also need to thoroughly clean your
hedgehog's cage, toys and bedding.
DRY SKIN
some hedgehogs will develope dry flaky skin. This can be caused by dry air, to many baths or defiencies in diet. It can be easily treated though. You can take vitamin E capsules and spinkle the liquid on your hedgehogs food. You can also try putting a small bit of the vitamin E oil on your hedgehogs skin between the shoulders. To do this you just part the quills squeeze a few drops drectly on to the skin and massage it in as best you can. You may also try getting a warm mist humidifier for near you hedgehogs cage.
QUILLING
Hedgehogs go through a quilling at 4,6,9, and 12 week. During this time they will lose alot of their quills as new ones grow in. Alot of hedgies can be very grumpy and uncomfortable during quilling. You can help alliviate the symptoms with oatmeal baths and viatmin E. To give an Oatmeal bath you simple fill the sink with warm water as usual , then take some cooked plain oatmeal and mix it into the water, bath you hedgie like normal, the oatmeal should take away some of the discomfort.
GREEN OR LIQUID POOP
This can happen to hedgehogs from time to time. Stress, such as a new environment or food, can cause these kind of tummy upsets. If it is only a one time occurance it shouldnt be worried about, however if it happens more then once you need to look into seeing a vet to look for under lying issues. If there is alot of liquid poop you should make sure your hedgehog see a vet in 24. You also need to make sure that they are getting enough liquid into them. This may require you to syringe feed him/her some water.
RAGGED EARS
If your hedgehogs ears look ragged or tattered, you should have a vet rule out mites or a fungal infection. If those are not the cause you can try runbbing a tiny amount of Vitamin E oil or vaseline on the ear to keep in moisture.
SWOLLEN FACE/ABSESS
If your hedgehogs face looks swollen or you see an visible absess in the mouth, your hedgehogs needs to see a vet immediatly.
SNEEZING
Sneezing can be cause by dust from bedding, a new smell or other sources. However it can also be a symptom of a Upper Respiratory Infection (URI). If you hedgehog is sneezing alot, or has a rattly sound in there chest, they need to see a vet as URI in hedgehogs can be fatal if not treated with antibiotics.
NOT EATING
Hedgehogs do sometimes go on hungar strikes, however if it has been more then 24-48 hours since your hedgehog has eaten they need to be syringe fed and taken to a vet. Its important to get them to eat as at the 48 hour mark with no food, Fatty liver disease can start to set in.
FATTY LIVER DISEASE
Fatty liver disease or FLD is the build up of fatty deposits in the liver. It can be caused by not eating, but also by excess fat in a hedgehogs diet that cannot be processed by the liver. Symptoms can include; Yellowing of the skin (check under the arms and belly, Fatigue, and not wanting to eat. Most often the excess fat in the diet comes from treats or low quality food. Treats should make up no more then 10% of a hedgehogs diet. Exercise is also crucial for preventing this disease. Fatty Liver Disease can be treated , but prevention is best.
WOBBLY HEDGEHOG SYNDROME
This is a hereditary neurological disorder similiar to MS in humans. I causes the slow deterioration of the white matter of the central nervous system and lead to muslce weakness, atriphy and paralisis. It can only be diagnosed upon necropsy, and cannot be treated.
When to seek a vet:
When to Seek a VetVet care can be expensive and many hedgehog owners I have talked to are reluctant to take their hedgie to the vet for fear of running up high bills
when there really isn't a problem. The list below is by no means exhaustive, but includes some common situations where people often have to decide whether or not to take the hedgie to the vet. The rule of thumb I use is: when in doubt, go! Hedgehogs often don't show signs of illness until they are quite sick, so fast action can often make quite a difference.PLEASE DO NOT AVOID THE VET BECAUSE OF THE COST, a hedgehog fund should be set up specifically for vet bills. Here are some situations people frequently ask me about, and the decision process I go through:
1. My hedgie is acting funny. Behavioral changes are often an important clue.
If an ordinarily friendly hedgie suddenly becomes a grouch, or a hedgie who is
ordinarily quite huffy suddenly becomes passive, this is a sign to me that
perhaps something major is going on. I schedule a vet appointment within 24
hours.
2. My hedgie collapsed and is limp: This, obviously, is never a good sign.
Get the hedgie to the vet as soon as possible. Make sure to keep him or her
comfortable and sufficiently warm, but not overheated.
3. My hedgie hasn't eaten for 24 hours: This isn't necessarily a problem.
Sometimes hedgies go on a hunger strike for as much as a day to three, then
resume their business normally. If it persists longer than that or if there is
notable weight loss, then you will want to schedule a vet visit right away.
Also, if the hedgie has not consumer water for 24 hours, you should schedule a
vet visit, as water is quite critical.
4. My hedgie has ingested household cleaner or other potentially toxic items:
Get to the vet right away. Some substances that are potentially toxic can be
counteracted if treated right away, but are fatal if you wait. Better safe than
sorry.
5. My hedgie is having seizures: Get to the vet right away. You may want to
have the vet check the blood glucose level to rule in our out diabetes.
6. My hedgie is unresponsive and cool to the touch: The first thing I do is
try to warm up the hedgie, either by placing it under my shirt or placing it on
a heating pad set on low, with a blanket between it and the hedgie. The hedgie
may be trying to hibernate. If this doesn't help within an hour, get to the vet
right away.
7. My hedgie is walking stiffly: This could be due to a wide variety of
things- arthritis, injury, Wobbly Hedgehog Syndrome, etc... It's good to get a
vet's opinion right away so you know how to treat it.
8. My hedgehog has dry, flaky skin and/or is losing a lot of quills: Most
likely, your hedgie has mites or perhaps a fungal infection. A vet can easily
diagnose and treat this, and it's usually quite inexpensive. Home remedies are
not uniformly effective and can wind up being more expensive, so seeing a vet
right away is a much better strategy.
9. My hedgie has ruffled ears: Try putting a little lotion on the ears at
least once a day for several days. If it doesn't clear up, you may want to have
a vet check to rule out fungal infection rather than just dryness.
10. My hedgie appears to have a broken limb: Take the hedgie to the vet right
away. An unset limb may heal incorrectly, causing discomfort later.
11. My hedgie has a runny nose and/or discharge from the eyes: Your hedgie
may have an upper respiratory infection. These are quite easily treated by a
vet, but may prove fatal if untreated.
12. My hedgie has an ingrown quill that looks infected: If it's gotten
infected, it may need to be lanced and cleaned by a vet, and antibiotics may or
may not be indicated. Better to get a vet's opinion.
13. My hedgie has an unusual lump or bump: Hedgies are prone to cancer. We
have also had some who developed cysts. The sooner a vet can diagnose and
treat, the better off your hedgehog will be.
14. My hedgie has green poop: If it is sticky in consistency, get to the vet
right away. This can often be a sign of serious internal problems. If it's
loose, think about what the hedgie has eaten in the last 24 hours. If they've
had some new food, it may just be mild gastrointestinal distress. But if it
persists for more than a day or two, then you will definitely want to have a
vet check a stool sample. Green stool is a general symptom of a very wide
variety of things, some quite benign and some very serious.
OBESITY
This is the most common health problem for hedgehogs. Since a healthy hedgehog is a bit on the plump side naturally, determining the difference between a healthy animal's "chubby" condition and obesity can be somewhat difficult. Since there is such a wide variety of size in domestic stock these days, an obese hedgehog can be as little as 8 ounces to as much as 2 pounds in weight, so weight guidelines are of little use in identifying a fat hedgehog! Of far more use to you than a set of scales is a weekly or monthly visual inspection of your pet's front legs and chin. While a hedgehog
in its normal trim will be a bit chubby in these two locations, an obese specimen will have a double chin and "ham-hocks" for legs and sometimes even
rolls of fat under the arm-pits. Such animals will be so fat that they will even be incapable of rolling themselves into a ball! If your pet should become this fat eliminate all treats from its diet but do not reduce the amount of dry food - the primary source of necessary proteins, vitamins and minerals.
If after a month you see no evidence of weight loss, change the type of dry food that you are feeding to one that has a fat content of at least 20 percent. The theory is that the added fat will cause your pet to "bulk-up" and eat less and will actually help it to lose weight
MITES
One of the most common problems that pet hedgehogs suffer from are mites. Symptoms to watch for are excessive scratching, dandruff, and loss of quills. You may notice movement of little white dots on the hedgehogs skin, these dots are are the actual mites. Another check that you can do is to take a dark blue or black shirt and rub the hedgehog with it to get some of the dandruff on the
cloth. Then take the cloth and place it under a bright light. If the white flakes of skin move around, your hedgehog has mites. Please note, even if the
flakes do not move, your hedgehog may still have mites, but none of them fell off of the hedgehog onto the cloth.
Please keep in mind that losing an occasional quill is normal and losing many quills by an 8 or 12 week old hedgehog is also normal. Young hedgehogs go through a a process called quilling, the time when your baby starts losing their baby quills.
If you think your hedgehog has mites, you will need to take the hedgehog to a veterinarian for treatment. The recommended method of treatment is Revolution. Ivermectin is also commonly administered, however, there have been several
instances of hedgehogs receiving an overdose of Ivermectin and causing the death of the hedgehog. If your veterinarian confirms that your hedgehog has mites, request that they be treated with Revolution.In addition to being treated by a veterinarian you will also need to thoroughly clean your
hedgehog's cage, toys and bedding.
DRY SKIN
some hedgehogs will develope dry flaky skin. This can be caused by dry air, to many baths or defiencies in diet. It can be easily treated though. You can take vitamin E capsules and spinkle the liquid on your hedgehogs food. You can also try putting a small bit of the vitamin E oil on your hedgehogs skin between the shoulders. To do this you just part the quills squeeze a few drops drectly on to the skin and massage it in as best you can. You may also try getting a warm mist humidifier for near you hedgehogs cage.
QUILLING
Hedgehogs go through a quilling at 4,6,9, and 12 week. During this time they will lose alot of their quills as new ones grow in. Alot of hedgies can be very grumpy and uncomfortable during quilling. You can help alliviate the symptoms with oatmeal baths and viatmin E. To give an Oatmeal bath you simple fill the sink with warm water as usual , then take some cooked plain oatmeal and mix it into the water, bath you hedgie like normal, the oatmeal should take away some of the discomfort.
GREEN OR LIQUID POOP
This can happen to hedgehogs from time to time. Stress, such as a new environment or food, can cause these kind of tummy upsets. If it is only a one time occurance it shouldnt be worried about, however if it happens more then once you need to look into seeing a vet to look for under lying issues. If there is alot of liquid poop you should make sure your hedgehog see a vet in 24. You also need to make sure that they are getting enough liquid into them. This may require you to syringe feed him/her some water.
RAGGED EARS
If your hedgehogs ears look ragged or tattered, you should have a vet rule out mites or a fungal infection. If those are not the cause you can try runbbing a tiny amount of Vitamin E oil or vaseline on the ear to keep in moisture.
SWOLLEN FACE/ABSESS
If your hedgehogs face looks swollen or you see an visible absess in the mouth, your hedgehogs needs to see a vet immediatly.
SNEEZING
Sneezing can be cause by dust from bedding, a new smell or other sources. However it can also be a symptom of a Upper Respiratory Infection (URI). If you hedgehog is sneezing alot, or has a rattly sound in there chest, they need to see a vet as URI in hedgehogs can be fatal if not treated with antibiotics.
NOT EATING
Hedgehogs do sometimes go on hungar strikes, however if it has been more then 24-48 hours since your hedgehog has eaten they need to be syringe fed and taken to a vet. Its important to get them to eat as at the 48 hour mark with no food, Fatty liver disease can start to set in.
FATTY LIVER DISEASE
Fatty liver disease or FLD is the build up of fatty deposits in the liver. It can be caused by not eating, but also by excess fat in a hedgehogs diet that cannot be processed by the liver. Symptoms can include; Yellowing of the skin (check under the arms and belly, Fatigue, and not wanting to eat. Most often the excess fat in the diet comes from treats or low quality food. Treats should make up no more then 10% of a hedgehogs diet. Exercise is also crucial for preventing this disease. Fatty Liver Disease can be treated , but prevention is best.
WOBBLY HEDGEHOG SYNDROME
This is a hereditary neurological disorder similiar to MS in humans. I causes the slow deterioration of the white matter of the central nervous system and lead to muslce weakness, atriphy and paralisis. It can only be diagnosed upon necropsy, and cannot be treated.
When to seek a vet:
When to Seek a VetVet care can be expensive and many hedgehog owners I have talked to are reluctant to take their hedgie to the vet for fear of running up high bills
when there really isn't a problem. The list below is by no means exhaustive, but includes some common situations where people often have to decide whether or not to take the hedgie to the vet. The rule of thumb I use is: when in doubt, go! Hedgehogs often don't show signs of illness until they are quite sick, so fast action can often make quite a difference.PLEASE DO NOT AVOID THE VET BECAUSE OF THE COST, a hedgehog fund should be set up specifically for vet bills. Here are some situations people frequently ask me about, and the decision process I go through:
1. My hedgie is acting funny. Behavioral changes are often an important clue.
If an ordinarily friendly hedgie suddenly becomes a grouch, or a hedgie who is
ordinarily quite huffy suddenly becomes passive, this is a sign to me that
perhaps something major is going on. I schedule a vet appointment within 24
hours.
2. My hedgie collapsed and is limp: This, obviously, is never a good sign.
Get the hedgie to the vet as soon as possible. Make sure to keep him or her
comfortable and sufficiently warm, but not overheated.
3. My hedgie hasn't eaten for 24 hours: This isn't necessarily a problem.
Sometimes hedgies go on a hunger strike for as much as a day to three, then
resume their business normally. If it persists longer than that or if there is
notable weight loss, then you will want to schedule a vet visit right away.
Also, if the hedgie has not consumer water for 24 hours, you should schedule a
vet visit, as water is quite critical.
4. My hedgie has ingested household cleaner or other potentially toxic items:
Get to the vet right away. Some substances that are potentially toxic can be
counteracted if treated right away, but are fatal if you wait. Better safe than
sorry.
5. My hedgie is having seizures: Get to the vet right away. You may want to
have the vet check the blood glucose level to rule in our out diabetes.
6. My hedgie is unresponsive and cool to the touch: The first thing I do is
try to warm up the hedgie, either by placing it under my shirt or placing it on
a heating pad set on low, with a blanket between it and the hedgie. The hedgie
may be trying to hibernate. If this doesn't help within an hour, get to the vet
right away.
7. My hedgie is walking stiffly: This could be due to a wide variety of
things- arthritis, injury, Wobbly Hedgehog Syndrome, etc... It's good to get a
vet's opinion right away so you know how to treat it.
8. My hedgehog has dry, flaky skin and/or is losing a lot of quills: Most
likely, your hedgie has mites or perhaps a fungal infection. A vet can easily
diagnose and treat this, and it's usually quite inexpensive. Home remedies are
not uniformly effective and can wind up being more expensive, so seeing a vet
right away is a much better strategy.
9. My hedgie has ruffled ears: Try putting a little lotion on the ears at
least once a day for several days. If it doesn't clear up, you may want to have
a vet check to rule out fungal infection rather than just dryness.
10. My hedgie appears to have a broken limb: Take the hedgie to the vet right
away. An unset limb may heal incorrectly, causing discomfort later.
11. My hedgie has a runny nose and/or discharge from the eyes: Your hedgie
may have an upper respiratory infection. These are quite easily treated by a
vet, but may prove fatal if untreated.
12. My hedgie has an ingrown quill that looks infected: If it's gotten
infected, it may need to be lanced and cleaned by a vet, and antibiotics may or
may not be indicated. Better to get a vet's opinion.
13. My hedgie has an unusual lump or bump: Hedgies are prone to cancer. We
have also had some who developed cysts. The sooner a vet can diagnose and
treat, the better off your hedgehog will be.
14. My hedgie has green poop: If it is sticky in consistency, get to the vet
right away. This can often be a sign of serious internal problems. If it's
loose, think about what the hedgie has eaten in the last 24 hours. If they've
had some new food, it may just be mild gastrointestinal distress. But if it
persists for more than a day or two, then you will definitely want to have a
vet check a stool sample. Green stool is a general symptom of a very wide
variety of things, some quite benign and some very serious.