# Missing Eye - How bad is this, and what should I do?



## Kitta Furen (Jan 12, 2012)

Required Health Info:
1. My hedgehog is about 2 months old
2. I have owned him for 1 week
3. No change in symptoms since we've had him
4. The hedgehogs cage is approximately 68-70 degrees fahreinheit, but I just had the curtains opened for a while so that may have affected the reading.
5. His lighting schedule is from 7 AM to 7 PM

Additional Health Info:
1. I don't weigh regularly, but he's eating okay
2. His poop is normal color, normal smell, and slightly mushy due to a recent diet change from the pet store food to good food
3. His urine color if normal, his urine output is regular
4. His nose is moist, there is no mucous secretion, and when I first wake him up he licks his muzzle and nose
5. Breathing is regular
6. He eats fine, has no difficulty crunching the cat food, I don't count his kibble, has been given a different food than the pet store's for 1 week, drinks well and has adapted from the pet stores water bottle to a drinking bowl well.
7. He doesn't vomit
8. He seems a little lethargic, exploring for a bit before burrowing into a shirt and staying still.
9. He takes no medication now, but while he was at the pet store, they (unsuccessfully) tried to treat his eye while it was only infected, but that was a long time ago (before the eye fell/was eaten out) and I don't know what they were using.

The Problem:
I am a new hedgehog owner. I got my hedgie from a pet store, and they told me that they had kept him in a hamster-sized cage with 5 hedgehogs in it at one point. He was the smallest, because the others ate more, and he had lost an eye due to injury. I wasn't able to get him to uncurl enough to see the eye at the pet store, and thought I could handle it, so I brought him home.

I've had him for a week now, and I've been able to get a look at where the missing eye used to be. It's pink and fleshy looking, kind of moist, and he blinks the eyelid still. The fact that his right eye is missing doesn't seem to hinder him or keep him from being adventurous. I've come to terms with it, and I can accept and love him because of it, not in spite of it. Now, I'm just wondering how I should expect this to progress.

My Questions:
Has anybody else on this forum have a hedgie with a missing eye?
What did it look like?
How did it heal? 
Did it ever dry up? 
Is there anything I can do to help my hedgie heal better? (aside from taking him to a vet, that's not an option at the moment)

Here's a picture of him and his missing eye.


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## jerseymike1126 (Jan 20, 2011)

cage is too cold


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## Christemo (Oct 5, 2011)

You may want to up the cage temperature to about 75.
I would go for a visit to the vet. I'd be scared if there was a possibility of infection and what to do if that were to happen, and the vet may be able to give you ointments for it.

PS - You may want to add something to the subject line of the post if you're still able to edit it for graphic content just in case someone doesn't want to see the picture.


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## ashh51191 (Dec 23, 2011)

his cage should be at least 75 degrees if its only 68 he could attempt to hibernate and if he does this he will not be able to come out of hibernation, you can fix this by getting a CHE there are all sorts of posts on here about them I personally keep the room my hedgies are in at a constant 75 and have thermometers in their cages. Second he needs to go to the vet for a wellness visit at least especially if he's having problems, all hedgies should see a vet they are expensive animals to keep a lot of vets can work with you for payments but he should be seen! What type of food is he on?


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## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

My hedgehog is missing both of his eyes, and they look similar to the missing eye of your little one. Lacking eyesight does not slow him down in the least. Actually, he is far more active and adventurous than my first hog. Out of his cage, I place fleece slightly away from the walls in an enclosed area. This way, he knows the area of the fleece is good to go for a speedway, while when he steps off of the fleece, harder boundaries are around. I keep it consistent.

I agree with the other posts, you will want to increase the heat of your cage.


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## Kitta Furen (Jan 12, 2012)

Wow, you guys reply fast! 

At the time, I had just taken the thermometer out of a window and put it above the cage, and I thought it would register the new temperature in five minutes. But I just checked it again after 1 & 1/2 hours and it reads 76 degrees fahrienheit. Thanks for being quick to call me out on the temperature guys, I need to know this stuff in case of a power outage. 

*basmati*
That's encouraging to hear!  Have either of your hedgies missing eye sockets gotten infected, or are they just going to stay moist forever?

*ashh51191* 
Okay, I'll check out the vet idea. He's being fed Iams Proactive Health for cats, crunchy food. We want to get his tummy adjusted to this before giving him moist food as well.

*Christemo*
I hadn't thought of labeling it for graphic content, but that's a great idea! How do I do that?

*jerseymike1126*
Thanks for letting me know Mike, thankfully, it was just a slow thermometer. It now reads 76.degrees fahrienheit.


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## ashh51191 (Dec 23, 2011)

I'm not sure if its true or not but I've heard from a few people that iams can cause fatty liver disease in hedgehogs but like i said its only something i've heard from a couple people....there's a food list on here for some other foods but you could also wait and see if this is even true.


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

His eye looks fine, same as my Peaches did when she lost hers.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

I don't see anything graphic with that image, to be honest, it looks great. There is no redness and it looks like it healed up nicely. 

Hedgehogs that are partially or fully blind do very well. I have had both. My fully blind hedgehog actually confused a few people as he acted perfectly normal. You couldn't tell from his behavior that he was blind until you looked at his eyes.

MGSpikers (Standing Bear), recently posted to hedgehog_help on yahoogroups about missing eyes. He has had several at the Flash & Thelma rescue, that have had theirs missing, and they didn't sew the eyelid shut. He reported that his vets didn't see any reason to do so, other than aesthetic reasons for the owner, and that he has not experienced any issues with it.


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## Christemo (Oct 5, 2011)

Kal - Only reason I said that is because of the much younger crowd on here may think it's 'gross'. I don't see an issue in it.


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## jerseymike1126 (Jan 20, 2011)

for halloween get him an eye patch and a pirate hat


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## Kitta Furen (Jan 12, 2012)

Haha, I'll try, but there's no garuntee he'll wear it! :lol: 

Thanks for all the info guys, I really appreciate it.


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## MGSpikers (Oct 21, 2008)

Here at the Flash and Thelma Hedgehog Rescue, over the last 15 years we have had numerous hedgehogs that have lost one or both eyes for various reasons, or have arrived with missing eyes. The photograph you have posted seems to portray an empty eye socket that is free of inflammation or infection. Our veterinarians have told us that such a condition would not require suturing any more that sewing up the mouth would. At the latest Rocky Mountain Hedgehog Show (October, 2011), just as a hedgehog was to be brought up to the showing table, it was observed that one of her eyes was swollen and inflamed. We mobilized two attendees at the show, a veterinarian and a medical doctor. They worked together to treat Millie the hedgehog, but the treatment was, as they expected, futile - she lost her eye. The beneficial part was that they were able to releive her pain. Millie was irritable and combative for a few days, and was kept in isolation as she healed. But after the trauma, she returned to her sweet tempered self and was able to be returned to live with her two sisters, Eunice and Annie. During her ordeal, Millie had lost about 50 grams (down to 320 grams) but has now gained back her weight. In your report, I am concerned about two things. First, the temperature you are reporting is far too cold. African hedgehogs must be kept at 72 degrees or higher, preferably about 76 degrees. Second, African hedgehogs should be weighed (in grams) every day, not once a month. Their lives are sped up about 12 times faster than human lives. Weighing once a month is the equivalent of weighing a human one a year. Hedgehogs are too small for us humans to determine when they are losing weight due to health problems without weighing them. Weighing every day and recording the weights in a ledger permits the observance of weight trends that may signal health problems in advance.


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## Quills_&_Tails (Aug 28, 2011)

My hedgie Truffles also lost an eye due to injury. your hedgies missing eye area looks EXACTLY like my hedgies. So far i've had no problems with it. my hedgie is doing fine too. he just swivels his head around more to see what's going on. :lol: What i would do, since hedgies already have poor eyesight, would be to always pick your hedgie from the side WITH the eye, so your hedgie wont frightened, and also, try to aviod putting large things in the mittle of his cage (assuming that his wheel and hideout are againt the wall), this helps aviod many "traffic Accidents" :lol: 

Hopw this helps!
Jessie.


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## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

Sonic (original name) was blind in both eyes when I forever homed him this past July. To date, he has not had any infections. His eye socket areas are always moist. I make sure to clean his wheel nightly, to keep anything from dropping in. It is reassuring to get some advice from the Flash and Thelma Hedgehog Rescue. I would think sewing eyelids shut would be painful.


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## Quills_&_Tails (Aug 28, 2011)

OMG, i just noticed how bad my spelling was in my previous post! :lol: I guess i was in a hurry!   :lol:


Hedgies101 said:


> My hedgie Truffles also lost an eye due to injury. your hedgies missing eye area looks EXACTLY like my hedgies. So far i've had no problems with it. my hedgie is doing fine too. he just swivels his head around more to see what's going on. :lol: What i would do, since hedgies already have poor eyesight, would be to always pick your hedgie from the side WITH the eye, so your hedgie wont frightened, and also, try to aviod putting large things in the mittle of his cage (assuming that his wheel and hideout are againt the wall), this helps aviod many "traffic Accidents" :lol:
> 
> Hopw this helps!
> Jessi.


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