# Curious



## MsKate (Apr 10, 2009)

Hi, I am new to this forum and am looking to purchase a baby hedgehog. I live in Houston, Tx and was wondering if anybody knew anything about this pet store(http://www.sandsexoticanimals.com)..?! If anybody knows any local breeders here in Houston, please let me know as well. Thanks!


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## Herisson (Jan 7, 2009)

Hi,
Here is a link to the breeder list from HHC:
http://hedgehogcentral.com/breederusa.shtml
There is one listed in McKinney


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## Quills (Feb 18, 2009)

Skimming their website, I noticed their care sheet which had some outdated information " _In captivity, the staple of their diet can be high quality commercial hedgehog food made by Pretty Pets_" to outright dangerous such as "_Hedgehogs do not require sophisticated housing. They can be housed in aquariums. They are usually *housed in pairs* or individually. Untreated wood shavings or aspen bedding can be used but should be changed frequently_." There are more errors throughout the sheet.

I'd be wary of purchasing a hedgehog from a pet store that seemed so ignorant of the animal's needs. There have been several members who unknowingly ended up with pregnant female hedgies after they had been housed with males.


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## MsKate (Apr 10, 2009)

Quills said:


> Skimming their website, I noticed their care sheet which had some outdated information " _In captivity, the staple of their diet can be high quality commercial hedgehog food made by Pretty Pets_" to outright dangerous such as "_Hedgehogs do not require sophisticated housing. They can be housed in aquariums. They are usually *housed in pairs* or individually. Untreated wood shavings or aspen bedding can be used but should be changed frequently_." There are more errors throughout the sheet.
> 
> I'd be wary of purchasing a hedgehog from a pet store that seemed so ignorant of the animal's needs. There have been several members who unknowingly ended up with pregnant female hedgies after they had been housed with males.


Yeah, I was already really sketchy about this place, but I was just curious if anybody else knew anything about them. They seem like they are one of those exotic animal pet store that just carry all these animals for the sake of having them. One of my friends has been there a couple of years ago and told me that they even have a tiger and a lion on the premises that are in very small inclosures. *shakes head*

My hedgehog Cooter Bandicoot passed away back in October and I just really want another one. I miss the little guy sooo much!!  It just sucks because there are no other places here in Houston that sell baby hedgehogs. I managed to find an adult female that needs adopted at another rescue here(http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displa ... d=13269163), but I haven't made an appointment to go look at her yet. Cooter was given to me without me knowing much about his past. He wasn't very social either which is why I really kinda want to get a baby this time around or one that is very friendly.


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## MsKate (Apr 10, 2009)

Herisson said:


> Hi,
> Here is a link to the breeder list from HHC:
> http://hedgehogcentral.com/breederusa.shtml
> There is one listed in McKinney


Yeah, I already saw that link, but I was looking for one more in my area. :/


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## Herisson (Jan 7, 2009)

MsKate said:


> Herisson said:
> 
> 
> > Hi,
> ...


This is from from HBA:
http://hedgehogbreederalliance.org/texas.htm


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## kandyhedgie (Mar 23, 2009)

There might be breeders on that list who will ship to you though...


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## dorasdaddy (Dec 23, 2008)

I would recomend against shipping, it can be stressful for the hedgie, and I consider a pet purchase a very personal thing and would always want to see how they react to me and fit my personality before i ever made a purchase or commitment of this magnitude.


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## kandyhedgie (Mar 23, 2009)

I'm not a breeder, so I wouldn't know how stressful it is for hedgies. But I would think shipping would be better than buying one from a shoddy petstore (and supporting unethical practices at a petstore).

I guess the other option is to drive a long distance to the breeder, if that option is available for the OP. Might still be stressful for the hedgie to be driven that far (especially if the poor lil guy gets carsick )


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## dorasdaddy (Dec 23, 2008)

I would still say carsickness would be better than air sickness, since there will be somebody right there to check on the little guy. Also I have found that shipping is not very cost effective at all....It is usually the same price as the hedgehog if not more. We drove over 3 hours to get both of our little girls and other than a minor upset tummy problem with the second one we had absolutely smooth sailing.


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## Herisson (Jan 7, 2009)

I think you should try calling about the rescue you found in Houston. It's in your area and in need of a home


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## dorasdaddy (Dec 23, 2008)

If this is her first one that may not be a good idea....May have undisclosed health problems, not properly socialized...etc.

Disregard this post...lol....just re-read and saw this will not be her first...lol


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

A little late but I'd just like to say I am 100% against that pet shop. Makes me sick just looking at the site. :evil:


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## MsKate (Apr 10, 2009)

Yeah I know what you mean. It really seems like they just want to try to get/carry any kind of exotic animal they can get their hands on. I did further research last night and I found a breeder close by, but they go through "that same" pet store. So I think I am going to just go investigate the place for myself and see how the actual pet store looks and how they are taking care of these poor little guys. After all its the least I can do.. :/


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## happy.pancakes (Jan 4, 2009)

I would NOT buy from this pet store. I live in Spring Texas, which is VERY close to Houston and the people at this petstore are VERY uneducated about their animals and where they come from and much about them at all. They don't do any research and can't tell you anything about their hedgies. I've gotten a hedgie from here before I was well educated, and they hedgie was NOT healthy at all. It took SO long to get him back into health. They put the girls with the boys and my friend Sarah, who also got a hedgie from this place got home with a PREGNANT hedgie. I would NOTTT Buy from here.


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## MsKate (Apr 10, 2009)

happy.pancakes said:


> I would NOT buy from this pet store. I live in Spring Texas, which is VERY close to Houston and the people at this petstore are VERY uneducated about their animals and where they come from and much about them at all. They don't do any research and can't tell you anything about their hedgies. I've gotten a hedgie from here before I was well educated, and they hedgie was NOT healthy at all. It took SO long to get him back into health. They put the girls with the boys and my friend Sarah, who also got a hedgie from this place got home with a PREGNANT hedgie. I would NOTTT Buy from here.


Thanks sooo much for the info. I will definitely take it into consideration. If you know anyone or any decent breeders close by, PLEASE let me know. Thanks!!


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## calexica (Mar 29, 2009)

I live in Austin, TX and I also had a difficult time finding a local breeder. There just are not that many in TX in general. Unless you go with a pet store you should probably expect to do a little bit of driving. TX is a big state and you may have to go a few hours, but really, I'd think of it as an adventure for your new pet  An air flight would be VERY stressful and should be avoided at all costs. The first car ride home with my Lulu was stressful enough for was it was.

There is a brand new hedgehog related store - opened by hedgie breeders - that opened in the DFW area. This breeder and the one from McKinney (already mentioned) seem to be the biggest in TX, from what I can tell. Apparently they often work together when breeding, so some are surely related to one another. Here is Mrs. Tiggy Winkle's site: http://www.freewebs.com/texashedgehogs/dfwresources.htm. I considered driving up and purchasing one from them, however, I thought their owner screening process and contract were a little too intrusive. (I understand it is for the animals best interest, but I won't go into my reasoning now and derail the thread ) That's all I really know for hedgie-only breeders. The other non-pet store breeders I found bred several kinds of exotics and may or may not know a lot about hedgies in particular. One is in San Marcos, but that will also be a bit of a drive for you.

If you were wondering where I got mine - and yes I expect to get frowns and finger wagged for this - I got her at a pet store in Austin called Herpeton. The first pet store (zooxotics I think it was) clearly did not know how to house a hedgie. There was no wheel and his little bed was only partially secluded. When I went to Herpeton they had a nice cage set up for Lulu, a wheel, and she was highly socialized. She did not mind being held at all. The woman who worked there seemed to have a particular liking for her and seemed to know a few things about hedgies, so that sold me.

In the end I wouldn't get too caught up on the whole pet store versus breeder debate. One can be just as ignorant and neglectful as the other, so I wouldn't assume a breeder is always better than a pet store purchase. A responsible pet store will always be well educated in all of the animals they care for. (I just think that is somewhat rare to find.) I've had several breeders tell me some shady biased information to harm their competition, so it works both ways. Just make sure your new hedgie has been cared for properly by an educated caretaker and that your hedgie is in good health. References are always great. I hope someone here can help guide you in that right direction


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## Luna012 (Oct 5, 2015)

Never never never ever get one from s&s exotics. They are terrible people. Sick animals. Horrible reviews. I almost got one from there but I found this breeder in Houston, Hedgehog Heaven. I love my baby and the breeder told me all about how awful s&s is. I'm so happy I got one from a breeder and not that awful disgusting place. When I went there all the hedgehogs had green poop, the reptiles had the AC right on them. When they needed a humid environment, sick puppies. Just awful stuff. DO NOT BUY FROM S&S! Look at reviews!!!! I got my hedgehog from http://heavenhedgehog.wix.com/hedgehogheaven


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

This thread is from 2009. Please do not post on old threads.


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