# Is this too busy?



## Alastormarie (Jun 19, 2021)

Hello! I am getting a hedgehog soon and I want to make sure my cage looks okay. I have watched hours of videos and read countless articles along with talking to the breeder and this is what I’ve decided on. I went with a bioactive as I have a lot of reptiles and a hamster on a bio set up and see a huge benefit of it. I followed Tyler rugge video (and took into consideration his follow up video) on how to best set it up. I of course still plan to spot clean and see if it works for my hedgie but I know for sure I don’t want to do fleece. I’ve read so much that hedgehogs like busy cages but none of the videos I saw looked like they were super busy so I want to know if this is too busy? It’s about 6 sq/ft cage. The wheel is a niteangel 11inch and I think I’m going to offer a bowl and bottle for water just in case. As far as the set up goes does it look too busy? I will change whatever I need to before I bring my baby home. Thank you!


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## Spiky_Floof<3 (Jun 21, 2019)

If I'm being honest, it looks a little small to me. But Since there is no hedgehog in it I might be misjudging the size lol. It looks good, maybe put a few more interactive toys in there every once in a while?


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## Alastormarie (Jun 19, 2021)

Spiky_Floof<3 said:


> If I'm being honest, it looks a little small to me. But Since there is no hedgehog in it I might be misjudging the size lol. It looks good, maybe put a few more interactive toys in there every once in a while?


Okay! Thank you, I will get some willow balls or something to play with. I do have mealworms in there so they can forage. The exact dimensions of the cage is 38x23 which I thought would be okay for a baby and then I have a zen habitat 4x2x2 for when it’s bigger. Does that sounds okay?


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## Ria (Aug 30, 2018)

What are you working in, cm, inches, feet?
Min size for a enclosure is 4ft by 2ft. Though some places sag 3ft by 2ft, most will find 4ft a much better size than 3ft.

Also it would be better to use the same enclosure the whole way through than start with a small and then change to a large one just go with a big enclosure and stick with it the whole way. 

Also that log to the left of the wheel that has that long bit that comes right out, the ends looks a little pointed which could easily take out an eye or cause other issues, it might just be the picture but thought I'd mention it anyway.


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## Alastormarie (Jun 19, 2021)

Ria said:


> What are you working in, cm, inches, feet?
> Min size for a enclosure is 4ft by 2ft. Though some places sag 3ft by 2ft, most will find 4ft a much better size than 3ft.
> 
> Also it would be better to use the same enclosure the whole way through than start with a small and then change to a large one just go with a big enclosure and stick with it the whole way.
> ...


Oh I’m talking about in


Ria said:


> What are you working in, cm, inches, feet?
> Min size for a enclosure is 4ft by 2ft. Though some places sag 3ft by 2ft, most will find 4ft a much better size than 3ft.
> 
> Also it would be better to use the same enclosure the whole way through than start with a small and then change to a large one just go with a big enclosure and stick with it the whole way.
> ...


oh okay, yeah I measured in inches. Then the zen habitat was in feet. I didn’t know I was supposed to use the same one the whole time I’ll do that instead but a similar layout should be okay? (The stick isn’t very pokey I was worried as well so I trimmed it down but I can trim it down more if it seems to cause interest. It’s angered up so I don’t think they could reach it but I’ll keep a close eye just in case.) thank you!


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## Ria (Aug 30, 2018)

Yea it causes them less stress if you can keep them in the same enclosure from the start. 
Also babies like a big space just as much as adults so theres no worry about it being too big for a little baby hog.

Yea go with the larger cage and keep the same layout.

Thats good, it could be partly to do with how things look in a photo! Keep an eye but you know the object better than me.

Oh I forgot to mention its better to have a water bowl as they are generally better and safer for hogs, so unless the baby is being brought up by the breeder with a water bottle dom't bother with it.
A lot if hogs end up dehydrated using bottles
Their tongues can easily get stuck
Its not really the best way for them as the way they drink is similar to a dog or cat.
They can bash or chew the metal which can cause a lot of teeth issues and being prone to several things you want to limit other risks as much as possible. So my advice only use a bottle if you need to use it while transiting the new hog if the hog is used to a bottle not bowl.


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