# Hedgehog jumping every time its touched?



## Fungie (Feb 7, 2019)

Ive had my hedgehog for a couple weeks now, when i first got her she was really sweet, sleepy but sweet. I make sure to take her out everyday, handle her carefully, feed her whenever she is hungry, give snacks (even though she is very picky) but in a matter of 2 days she keeps jumping now everytime i touch her or try to hold her. She bit me for the firat time, didn't hurt but I had no idea where the behavior change came from. Am I doing something wrong, is she an aggressive hedgehog?


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## Ria (Aug 30, 2018)

Sudden behaviour changes can sometimes mean something is wrong is wrong.

How old is she ?? They go through quilling which can make them more huffy and jumpy and sometimes aggressive, they prefer being handled less but you should still take them out for bonding. Just leave her in a sack and bond like that.

Has anything in her environment changed ?? Smells, noises ect this
Did you start to do anything differntly when taking her out ??


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## Fungie (Feb 7, 2019)

She is almost 4 months old, born in December 4th. Her environment hasnt changed at all, its been the same since I brought her home, I read a little about quilling, do you think that's whats causing her to be jumpy and irritated?


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## Ria (Aug 30, 2018)

Yea, have a look if you can for new quills growing, has she had any quill loss since becoming more jumpy ??
It seems very likely to be quilling due to age and the way she is acting.


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## Fungie (Feb 7, 2019)

Her quills do look a little uneven but I havent seen any quill loss. Is there anything i can do to make quilling process more easy on her, how long does quilling usually last?


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## Aj.t (Jan 29, 2019)

Hey there! Quilling is a natural behavior, much like us losing teeth. However, there isn’t much you can do to ease the process, other than limiting one on one contact. Like Ria said, bonding is still crucial, especially at this age, but do so with her in a cuddle sack, fleece blanket, or the likes. Keep her on your lap while you’re watching tv or just on your bed while you’re doing things around the room. That kind of bonding will familiarize her with the smells associated with you and her surroundings, and will expose her to enough movement/noise to adjust her to those things. She most likely isn’t an aggressive hedgehog, but rather simply in an uncomfortable situation!
With all of that being said, the biting could definitely be from her being uncomfortable, but it could also simply be her “feeling” her way around. Hedgehogs do bite at various objects to get the taste/smell in their mouths and to familiarize themselves with that object, and will likely create foam to smear on their backs in the process of anointing. Sounds gross, but it’s a common behavior! Now, you would likely be able to tell the difference between an anointing bite and a bite bite- the former is more of a “scrape” across the surface, whereas the latter is a “crunch”. 
Hope this helps 🙂


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## Ria (Aug 30, 2018)

You can mix a drop of olive oil in the bath water when you bath them mind this cant be done all the time but it lossesns the skin which helps make it slightly more comfortable for them, this also helps with dry skin at the same time. Please do rinse this oil off. Also watch for skin irritation, although most hedgehogs are perfectly fine and dont react to olive oil,you should still watch.

Coconut oil can help a bit too as again it also loosens skin, things can be brushed on their back a few times a week, as far as I'm aware is doesnt need rinsing, but for your peace of mind if you want to just run a wet toothbrush down their back and then dry completely. Again watching for reactions for the same reason as olive oil. This also helps with dry skin at the same time. 

Always avoid tea tree oil as its toxic to hedgehogs.


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