# Losing quills and it's not mites



## zoozoo (Nov 15, 2012)

Yesterday is when I noticed that there were 5 quills in hedgie's cage. Today I saw 3 quills. Today took hedgie to vet. She didn't see mites but she said his skin is dry. I read somewhere that hedgie's loose quills again when they r 18 months and he is approximately 1 yr and a half old. Is this normal? Has anyone experienced this before. The temp in cage is a constant 76-80 degrees and he is still eating,drinking, pooing and running on wheel and vet says he looks really healthy


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## sparkmanr (Aug 29, 2012)

I'm not sure about when they requill but I do know that you can't always see mites. My vet did a skin test on Milo and couldn't see mites but he is treating him for mites based on his symptoms. Better to treat than not to from what I understand. On the other hand it could just be he's quilling. I do know that just because mites don't show in the test doesn't mean they aren't there. Milo was losing tons of quills at a time thought, not five or seven. But there are different degrees of mites as well. Catch it as early as you can or you could end up with a partially bald hedgehog like Milo. I thought he was just quilling till he started going bald in the back side.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Treat for mites anyway. They're usually not visible. Did the vet do a skin scrape? If she didn't even test that way, definitely treat for mites. Although, 5 one day and 3 the next isn't a lot at all. Hedgehogs shed quills in small amounts the way we shed hair. Usually it's one or two per day, but 5 a day isn't something I'd be concerned with right away. Watch for bald patches or increased quill loss.


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## zoozoo (Nov 15, 2012)

She did not do a skin test. I will keep an eye on him and see if he is loosing more and greater amts. thank you for the suggestions. It's crazy how attached we get to these little critters that we don't want anything to happen to them


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