# syringe feeding a sick hedgie



## ruth (Apr 20, 2015)

Hi I have a very sick little hedgie and have started syringe feeding her but Monday on the way to the vet, I noticed she started making kinda like a dog when he whimpers, she is still actively making this noise I woke up at 4am and she was quite loud and noticed her sleeping outside of her usual pouch, I decided to give her some water, she also seems quite wobbly on her legs she was put under while at the vets Monday any expert opinions or has anyone else experienced this?? we have been to the vets twice in the last week she is being treated is on antibiotics called clavamox


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

What temperature is her cage at? Do you have a heating set up for her?

How much food are you getting into her in a day with syringe feeding? 

Usually two causes of weakness or wobbliness while standing is not being warm enough or being weak from not enough food. She could just be weak in general from being sick too.

I'm not sure about the noises...I don't know if it'd be a pain response or not. I checked your other thread again. Have you had a chance to ask the vet about pain meds?


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## ruth (Apr 20, 2015)

lily, I am new to this site and had a hard time finding my question I left here, the only heating I have for her is a pet safe pad(disc) you warm in the microwave and it looks like my daughter has lost the tmp gage for her cage this morning I was only successful in getting maybe 0.2 ml into her but got about .05 of water along with her antibiotics, I also noticed she keeps coming out of her fleece pouch and find her sleeping in her litter box or outside of the pouch she seems to be more responsive to the water than the food but at this point I am so very worried about her well being


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## ruth (Apr 20, 2015)

I have to leave for work right now but hopefully I can find this again, any advice is greatly appreciated also I seen it might be easier to use a pipette style syringe for the water , she didn't seem to be cold but I put somemore fleece in the cage just in case


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Her temperature needs to be between 73-80*F & needs to stay constant, especially because she's sick and not eating well. A heating disk isn't enough - the whole cage need to be the correct temperature. You need to make sure it is by either making the temperature in the room/house 75*F or so (higher if she needs it), or using a space heater or Ceramic Heat Emitter set up to heat it up. If you can't find the thermometer, you also need a new one (make sure it's digital) since it's not an option to not have one. It's very important that she stays warm enough. If she gets too cold, she's going to attempt hibernation, which will make her overall condition even worse, and it can kill her.

She's still not getting enough to eat. I know it's really hard to syringe-feed them, especially if they're uncooperative! But the goal is to get at least 24ml into a sick hedgie in 24 hours, more if possible. Make sure you syringe feed her as soon as you get home, and do so often if she's not eating much in one session. Put food close to her bed in her cage in case she decides to try some.

That's good that she wants the water. It wouldn't be a bad idea to see if she's dehydrated if she'll let you - pinch the skin between her shoulders & see how quickly it goes back to normal. If it takes more than one second, she's dehydrated.

If you do find this again, you can find your previous posts/threads by clicking the little "Active Threads" button that's in the bar at the top of the forum page. That will show you all of the threads recently posted on & both of your threads will be on the list right now.


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## ruth (Apr 20, 2015)

pinch it where her quills are? hope this doesn't sound dumb, okay after work today I am going to look for a ceramic heat emitter someone said best bet farm supply? any suggestions what strenghth? she is in a guniea pig cage probly 3 ft wide


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

I sent you a pm in response to the one you sent me.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

You'll need a lamp rated for CHE bulbs, and a thermostat to turn the lamp on & off as needed to keep a steady temperature. You might need two lamps if you can get them, each with 100watt bulbs. But if you can only get one, then go with a 150watt bulb, and make sure the lamp is 10" in diameter. You may need to insulate the cage more if you only have one lamp, since it won't heat the cage as evenly as two lamps would. 

And yeah, you'll want to pinch more than just the quills, so you get the skin too! It can be difficult or impossible if they're not in the mood for it, so don't worry if you can't. It's just a good way to tell right away if they're dehydrated or not.


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## ruth (Apr 20, 2015)

what would you recommend to insulate the cage with I use carefresh bedding she has a hedgie hat and I made her 4x thickness fleece pouch wich she loves and she also has 1 of my daughters t shirts I do cover her with blankets at night to help keep her warm, you know when we got her we just wanted to give her a better home and we really didn't research about her, I really hope we can get her feeling well soon


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## ruth (Apr 20, 2015)

ok Nikki I will look for it thank you


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## Soyala_Amaya (Aug 1, 2011)

I can't find anywhere where you list hr symptoms? How is she sick? Green poop, diarrhea, not eating, not drinking, not running? It's hard to even have an idea of what might be wrong when you just say she's sick


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

The important thing is that you guys are clearly trying and you're here getting help.  She's already better off with you than with her previous home if they didn't know any of this stuff in order to let you know.

I prefer blankets for insulating cages. You can use black binder clips to secure them to the cage. If you need to, it'd be best to wrap blankets around the back & both ends of the cage, but leave the front open for ventilation. You can put blankets on the top of the cage as well, just make sure that a) they stay away from the heat lamp and b) that she still gets a good amount of light for 12-14 hours during the day.


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