# It's been almost 8 hours and I still can't find her :(



## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

I was really, really stupid and fell asleep while cuddling with Eriza. I was only asleep for about 15 minutes, and then I startled awake with the sudden realization that my hedgehog was no longer curled up in the crook of my arm. I can't find her anywhere now. I took all the couch cushions off, I turn the couches upside down, I cut the fabric cover off the bottom of the couches and looked inside, I pulled the fridge, oven, and washer and dryer away from the walls, I pulled all the blankets off of the blanket shelf, I took everything out of the entertainment center, I looked under and behind the entertainment center, I scoured my room and my closet, shook out every shoe, looked in the furnace closet, looked in the coat closet, looked in my room-mate's room, checked in the bathroom behind the toilet and the sink, checked every corner and nook in every room... I can't find her. How can she just disappear like this?? I've been crying since I woke up and discovered she's missing, I've had her food and a dish of water out in the center of the house (we live in a three bedroom rambler so it's all basically one continuous area, it's not sectioned off) and she hasn't come out to eat any of the food yet, and I'm terrified that she's hurt or dead and I just can't find her!! Prayers/well wishes and suggestions of other bizarre hiding places from your experiences with escapee hedgies would be much appreciated.


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## awbat3 (Jun 2, 2011)

oh no!!! I hope you find her soon!


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## moothecow (Jun 4, 2011)

Don't despair yet, hedgehogs are master hiders! Maybe put the food and water out in a couple of different rooms? And, in some previous threads people have suggested putting down some flour around the food, so that you know where she comes from/where she goes to when she comes to eat. Good luck!!! Please keep us updated!


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## LarryT (May 12, 2009)

If the AC is on I would cut it back/off. Since it's daytime she will seek out a dark,quite place to sleep,maybe if you darken the room she will come out. Praying she finds you soon or you find her first.


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## rivoli256 (Mar 1, 2009)

sending you & her tons of good vibes! you will be reunited soon!


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Hedgehogs can hide in spaces you never dreamed they could. I had one go under a bookcase. 

I'd start out by closing doors. Watch for signs of hedgehog that way. Put a wheel out in a room you think she is in and listen for running. Put food and water in each room. 

Hedgehogs are also amazing climbers. That hedgehog I mentioned earlier also climbed up on top of books in that bookcase.

Be careful where you sit, be careful if you move anything, even if you think its impossible for her to be under, she may be. Also look inside of couches, beds, any boxes you have, clothes baskets. I have a friend who had one climb into a clothing basket that was sitting waiting to go in the washing machine. They can climb up into box springs.... Also be aware that once you move stuff you need to keep searching for her, you may have blocked off her passage out of her hiding place.


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## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

Thanks guys. I tore the house apart again, still no sign. So, there is now a dish with exactly ten kibbles in each room, and a dish of water in each room. In the uncarpeted rooms, there is flour around each dish-- hopefully we can find her! I've close all the doors in my house (there are four doors in my house... everything's really open here unfortunately) even though she can fit under all but one, I'm hoping it at least deters her from moving rooms. 

Luckily, the AC is broken hahaha our whole house is 76 degrees, so she should be fine that way :lol: The windows are all shaded and no lights are on. She's usually not super active (doesn't really wheel much) but I put one out anyways. Hopefully with all this she'll come out-- she's been missing ten hours now and I'm seriously upset. I've got a lot of things going on in my life and losing a hedgie definitely is an added stress... especially since she is admittedly (I know I'm not supposed to say this, but) my favorite hedgie. I'll definitely keep everyone updated-- I'm hoping she's just having the best nap in the world in an obscure place and will get hungry or poop somewhere noticable soon.  :| :shock:


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## beehivehedgie (Feb 13, 2011)

Oh my goodness    That is so scary!!! You will find her though. I am sure. And she will be ok! She will be oook.  So will you! If I were up there i'd come help you find her. I am praying you do.


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## beehivehedgie (Feb 13, 2011)

Also, i'm not sure if you're messy like me...but check socks or any clothes/towels on the ground. That is the first place hoggle goes when he runs around in my room.


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## beehivehedgie (Feb 13, 2011)

AND - sorry I just keep having after thoughts. 
And if she is anything like Pearl....if she Huffs at you ever when you say her name or whatever you say to her...it might be good just to go everywhere low and crawl around and say her name. I always say "Hi little girl!" and she always replies with a very angry huff.  GOOD LUCK! AHH


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## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

I was actually telling my room-mate that I wished it was Igel that was lost because he's so fat and loud he'd be easy to find :lol: Unfortunately, 'Za is VERY mild-mannered and quiet. She hardly huffs at ANYTHING, even if her quills are up. My room-mate stepped on a quill a little bit ago, so I'm hoping that's a sign that she's in that room and not just a quill from playing with her in there! Thanks for all the well-wishes and ideas-- good thing I have work off today haha. I just barely got myself calmed down enough to go get dressed and pull my hair back and it's mid afternoon!! Now let's just cross our fingers that Eriza gets a rumbly in her tumbly for a smackerel of kibble and worms and comes searching!!


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

Make sure to looking inside of things like wastepaper baskets. I had a 8 week old girl get loose and was found hiding under a bunch of paper in a wastepaper basket that was over 12 inches tall. I still have no idea how she got in there without tipping it over.


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## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

I will go around and check every basket right this second. It's now 14 hours of her missing and I've got the worst feeling in the pit of my stomach that she's stuck somewhere and I just can't find her. Thanks for the tip!!


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## msviolet (Jun 15, 2011)

I wish I had a few ideas but since I am still a very new owner. However I will keep you both in my prayers. Please keep us posted. My heart goes out to you.
Ms Violet's mommy, Jane


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## KathyTNY (Jan 21, 2011)

Praying you find her soon......I think I would be just about going insane.......

Kathy


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## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

Still absolutely no sign of her. We've literally torn apart every single room in the house and no luck. She hasn't come out to eat any of her kibble, or drink any water. I'm beginning to fear the very worst... How long is the longest any of you have lost your hedgie for? I'm terrified she's stuck somewhere and dehydrated and dying. I seriously have left no place in my house unsearched, she has to be like in the walls or something.


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## xspiked (Feb 27, 2011)

Oh gosh, I hope you find her! I'm always terrified of a hedgie getting stuck somewhere. Not to make you panic. How could they get into walls is my question. I would suggest using a stethoscope at night to listen to the walls. That's probably really silly but I thought I'd suggest it. 

I've had one hedgie escape, and I found him only an hour or so later in a printer cartridge box, so I don't have much hedgie tracking knowledge. I only found him cause the box was moving from his digging.


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## Skullpion (May 9, 2011)

I've lost Oreo once, found him underneath a cabinet where I didn't actually think he'd fit under there. Only reason I found him was because I was still using shavings back then and I saw traces of it. Try to stay calm and maybe you can lift up heavy stuff to look for her? You might have to literally look everywhere. They can go places. XP

*edit
Also, do you have mealworms by any chance? I've found that their scent really attracts most hedgies. Even a strong mealworm scent on something like a wooden stick or something can bait them into coming out? ...so maybe?


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## TikiLola (Jun 23, 2011)

I'll be praying...


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## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

Thanks all. Keep praying and sending all the good energy you can. I'll be honest, I'm starting to kind of lose hope I'll find her alive, I feel like the biggest piece of $#!+ in the world for not being attentive to my baby. Keep praying and I'll keep searching.


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## Skullpion (May 9, 2011)

DasIgelPoggie said:


> Thanks all. Keep praying and sending all the good energy you can. I'll be honest, I'm starting to kind of lose hope I'll find her alive, I feel like the biggest piece of $#!+ in the world for not being attentive to my baby. Keep praying and I'll keep searching.


You have to believe she'll be fine. Likewise, will have your girl in my prayers as well. Know how it feels like to experience what you're going through and I don't miss it. I hope she suddenly just pops out right when you least expect it. (Like how most do from what I've read haha)


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## ReginasMommy (Apr 13, 2011)

I am hoping so much that you find her, alive and well. Don't give up yet! And please, please don't be too hard on yourself. I will say a prayer that you find her. My thoughts are with you.


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## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

I FOUND HER I FOUND HER I FOUND HER I FOUND HER I FOUND HERRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:     :lol:    


The little brat was curled up inside the fitted sheet on my bed where it tucks under the mattress-- I've peeled the bedding off of my bed five times today and she wasn't there before, she must have been watching, the little brat!! She's extra quill-y, I think she's scared after her brush with feralism :lol: Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your help and prayers-- I am a very lucky hedgie mama to have found her safe and have such a great support group! She seems very hungry and tired but overall just fine. She inhaled about 20 kibble, drank for about ten minutes, pooped in her box, and retired to her shirt (well, my shirt that she uses :lol. I will never, ever, ever, ever fall asleep while cuddling my baby ever again-- this was the LONGEST day of my life!! Thank you again for all your prayers and well wishes!!


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## firephoenixla (Sep 13, 2010)

oh yay! congrats! I hope she has a 'normal night' and a good tomorrow! ..the both of you ;P


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## TikiLola (Jun 23, 2011)




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## xspiked (Feb 27, 2011)

cheer cheer hoorah!


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## panda (May 23, 2011)

HOORAY!     she would be right where you left her hehehe :roll: . sneaky little hoglet.
so glad to hear you are both reunited and ok! have a good night


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## Skullpion (May 9, 2011)

Good Lord I am so glad and happy for you that you found her. It's such a relieving feeling hahaha. Yeah they get extra quill-y after their escapes for some reason. Is that because of them being scared or maybe they'd rather stay "escaped"?


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## LarryT (May 12, 2009)

So glad you found her safe and sound!


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## ReginasMommy (Apr 13, 2011)

Yay!!! I'm so glad you found her!


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## DexterTheHog (May 22, 2011)




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## tut (Feb 27, 2011)

YAY! Good to hear you found her! :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:


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## beehivehedgie (Feb 13, 2011)

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am happy she was just sleeping. We all knew she would just be sleeping    What a naughty! Glad you can breathe now!


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## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

Thanks everyone!!  How she made it off of the couch, to the other side of the house, down three steps, into my room, up my bed, and in between the sheet and the mattress, I'll never know, but she did lol. She still seems very tired and hungry-- she put away about 50 kibble in two takes, with a 20 minute nap in between (she usually eats 20 kibble a night, she's tiiiiny!). Then she ventured over to her litter pan to potty and fell asleep in it :lol: She's had some nice normal poops over night, so it doesn't look like she got hurt at all (I was worried with all her adventuring she'd gotten internal injuries or she'd eaten something she shouldn't have!), and I'm just letting her rest for the rest of today and probably tonight lol. I'm going and buying a fresh batch of worms for all the hedgies after work today to celebrate her return :lol: Thank you again for all your help guys.


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## moothecow (Jun 4, 2011)

Hurraayyy! I'm so glad she is found! What a little adventurer :lol:


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## Nebular (Dec 28, 2010)

Wow, sounds like she had quite the adventure. Glad to know she's okay.


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## KathyTNY (Jan 21, 2011)

Thank you Lord ! I am sooooo happy you found your honey!!!! 

I lay on the sofa with my pog on my chest and I have fallen asleep but thank the Lord my Tiggy is such a lazy butt, she just keeps on sleeping and snoring ....... I am going to be SUPER careful though because yours story has taught me a valuable lesson!

Happy for you!
Kathy


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## panda (May 23, 2011)

yes i know theres been a few times i nearly dozed off with Norma out. but i have been lucky enough to catch myself and put her away first, it really is easy to doze off like that.... luckily you and your little baby are happy now hehe. i'm sure they will be even happier to get their fresh worm treats


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