# Sheldon is in rough shape :(



## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

We took Sheldon out for his daily play time and he stunk badly so we decided to give him a bath. He lost a lot of quills ... 8 or 9. Closer look of his skin looks pinkish white with black speckle scabby look to it. I am so worried about my baby - think now its mites. 4hawns going to spot me the vet money and will take him tomorrow if possible tuesday the latest. -m so worried about my little grump


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## Hedgieonboard (Nov 15, 2009)

Oh no, hope the little guy feels better soon. Revolution is the best treatment for mites. Some time vets will try to give invermectin and that isn't good and has caused issues in the past with other hedgies. You may already know this but anytime I see anything about mites I feel like I better say just in case because of some of the stories and how heartbreaking it must have been for those people. 

Hope the little guy does good at the vets and good luck to both of you


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## Guest (Jul 17, 2011)

Oh my! I hope Sheldon gets there and everything is alright. In the mean time its always a chance someone can provide some info if you can get a few pictures.

While a potential health issue is never to be taken lightly, I would point out this may be one of the blocking factors in your bonding efforts with your little guy. So lets hope if it is something it will help him trust you further .


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

Hey TWOCOGAR,

We throught so too, hard to bond if you are feeling sick  Poor liTtle guy. Tried getting some pix of his skin but my blackberry won't capture it 

Hopefully we can get an appt for tomorrow


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## Guest (Jul 17, 2011)

shortnerdy said:


> Hey TWOCOGAR,
> 
> We throught so too, hard to bond if you are feeling sick  Poor liTtle guy. Tried getting some pix of his skin but my blackberry won't capture it
> 
> Hopefully we can get an appt for tomorrow


Well I am hoping for the best for the little guy glad you got someone like Shawn to help you out with him. He is very lucky and I am thinking he'll pull through this and begin to realize he has a chance to be so much happier now with his hedgie mommy and daddy


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

Thanks. I hope once he's well him and I can bond better. Shawns a great guy when I cam out of the washroom crying with Shelly in his towel he offered to help. He loves shelly too and is amazing for wanting to help out.


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## Guest (Jul 17, 2011)

Just keep giving him all the love and attention you can until the vet visit ensure he eats and drinks and is stimulate  You hedgehog needs both of you more then ever to know you are there for him to comfort, care, and love.


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

Thanks everyone. Looks like Wednesday. Shawns got 2. - 12 hours shifts. Still better than friday. In the mean time I'm going to talk to him and stuff but avoid picking him up in case his skin is sore.

I'm going to get sheldon his sweet potatoes as a thankyou for being a good boy as we'll""

Maybe by some mira0le shawn will beable to get down here early


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## Guest (Jul 18, 2011)

shortnerdy said:


> Thanks everyone. Looks like Wednesday. Shawns got 2. - 12 hours shifts. Still better than friday. In the mean time I'm going to talk to him and stuff but avoid picking him up in case his skin is sore.
> 
> I'm going to get sheldon his sweet potatoes as a thankyou for being a good boy as we'll""
> 
> Maybe by some mira0le shawn will beable to get down here early


That's good to hear, I would still find time to bond with Sheldon, he needs you now more then ever. All he can have until Wednesday is your care, comfort, and love for him and you will want to reinforce that even more now


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

Thanks for the kind words ill make sure he gets his nightly cuddles tonight


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

I spoke to the Vet, we are in for thuirsday. I advised about shellys wildness right now and they said they may need to get an anesesiologist in to knock him out ... She couldn't give me a cost yet. Anyone have experiance with this? Costs and what its like for them?


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## Guest (Jul 18, 2011)

shortnerdy said:


> I spoke to the Vet, we are in for thuirsday. I advised about shellys wildness right now and they said they may need to get an anesesiologist in to knock him out ... She couldn't give me a cost yet. Anyone have experiance with this? Costs and what its like for them?


Mine hasn't needed to do that and hopefully they can get to him by scruffing and other methods as that can be dangerous to hedgehogs but sometimes it is the only option with any animal to find a root cause.

As for price I haven't the foggiest, make sure they let you be present for everything if possible. Prices can vary so much between vets.


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

Thanks twocogar, but Shawn whose 6'4 and has huge can't can't even get his hands around to scruff Sheldon  I hope they don't have to use gas but it might be nessasary


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## StellaWithaBow (Dec 18, 2009)

shortnerdy said:


> I spoke to the Vet, we are in for thuirsday. I advised about shellys wildness right now and they said they may need to get an anesesiologist in to knock him out ... She couldn't give me a cost yet. Anyone have experiance with this? Costs and what its like for them?


Depending on your vet anesthesia can run around 50-60 dollars for about 15 minutes... and that's just from a few estimates given to me when I had to consider surgery for my little gal.

Anesthesia can be dangerous for such little critters, but as far as that goes, if you have a trusty vet it shouldn't be too much of a stressor for your hedgie. I've heard nightmare stories, but I wouldn't get too worried.

I would have your bet be sure to avoid gloves on the little guy, Stella FLIPPED OUT :shock: when one of the vets I tried out came at her with gloves on. If they're doing a simple skin scrape and microscope test it shouldn't be too hard to detect the mites.

Just make sure your little guy knows help is on the way, and keep him comfy and happy!
 Stay positive for him and just known we're always here for you at HHC!


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

Stella you are awesome, I get off work at 4 will spend some cuddle time with Sheldon tonight worried about hurting him tho. He flips out when I hope his cage or go near him so he will likley behave that way with a vet, I might as well be a stranger *sigh* but I talk to him and make light kissy sounds. And gently hug through his blanket and rock him which he smees to like.

*facedesk*


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## MissC (Nov 15, 2010)

Rivoli has had her guys/gal 'gassed' several times and it's a non-issue for her. She says it seems way less stressful for them than it is for HER...and after seeing Snarf scruffed and hearing his heart-wrenching crying...it may just be less stressful than scruffing. There are dangers...sure...but issues are fairly rare, I think.


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## ReginasMommy (Apr 13, 2011)

Regina has had anesthesia three times, and so far she has had no problems. Of course, no mommy wants to see their baby lolling around like a drunken sailor... but this way the vet can do a much more thorough and detailed exam, without stressing the hedgie. Just make sure your vet is experienced and trustworthy and knows the right amounts to use.


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

I called the vet again. Shelly needs to be in for 830 am. From there he will be transported to the animal hospital where techs will be ther with Dr Mogavero and he will be gassed and looked after. +nly going to be about 130 not including after treatment if he needs medicine. They will clip his nails too. 

I did my cuddle with Sheldon but kept it shorter he dropped a ton of quills and large flakes of skin, I included a pic of the pile of quills from his bath last night and his cuddle time today. 

Also the best pic I could get of his skin/quill lossage. Hard to capture on my blackberry.

:e must be hurting a lot as he chomped down on the fleece like crazy tonight. Its breaking my heart. Thursday better get here soon.

Send happy Hedie vibes to Sheldon guys, He needs it.


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## StellaWithaBow (Dec 18, 2009)

Poor little grumpers! It's good that they're doing his nails too, especially since he'll be out- he won't have anything to huff and puff about :lol: 

From your pictures I couldn't see too much, but the loss of quills is definitely noticeable. There aren't any new quills coming in, perchance?

I know how awful it is to see the little baby in such discomfort.


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

@ Stella,

I don't see any new ones coming in  maybe the scabby llooking brown dots are new quills? I guess we will find out. I know you all said to keep bonding but I feel like -m hurting him when I pick him up  I kept our time shorter tonight. Will keep talking to him and when I take him out tomorrow ill be very gentle with him


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## hanhan27 (May 12, 2011)

So sorry to hear that your baby is unhappy.  

As far as cuddle-time, maybe you could just set him on fleece and keep your hands under him and cuddle? I know when my Milly was quilling, she hated it when I accidentally touched her back or laid her fleece blanket over the top of her, since she was so sensitive.

Sending good vibes your way! Hope everything goes smoothly for both Sheldon and you.


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## Alastrina (Sep 18, 2009)

Poor Sheldon, I hope the vet visit goes well and they are able to help!

I saw you mention a few times that you see little spots on his skin, like dark colored spots, and I wanted to ask what color Sheldon is. My boy Charley is an Algerian Gray, and his skin has the darkish spots all over, though mostly on his spine and shoulders. I thought he was dirty when I first brought him home, but nope, the spots are part of his skin coloring. I wondered as I read your posts if these spots might not be part of Sheldon's coloring.

The flakes, itching, and quill loss aren't normal, so I'm glad you're able to take him to the vet


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## shetland (Sep 2, 2008)

Poor baby Sheldon. It is so hard to have a sick baby-you feel so helpless. I will say a prayer for a quick recovery.


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

Vet saying 310 now with knock out, nail clip and everything. I'm worried. But thursday will be over


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

Update; Just got home and counted another 13 quills lost. Sheldon was making a lot of "licking" sounds and licking his lips a lot. Wonder what that's about. Vets updated now over 300 not counting skin scrape or meds.... Thank God for Shawn. Thursday morning better hurry up. I'm deing the best I can with Shelly telling him he will get his first Mealworm experiance payday and some sweet potatoes if he hangs in a bit longer. So far so good.

Odd thing, when I was holding him he smells like maple and brown sugar oatmeal?? Talk about weird!!


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## StellaWithaBow (Dec 18, 2009)

Just checking in on Sheldon! How is the little man?

What did the vet say/do/ prescribe?!


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## shortnerdy (Jul 3, 2011)

I made a new thread called sheldons first vet vist  all the details are there


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## hanhan27 (May 12, 2011)

My fiance thinks I'm crazy because Milly's poop smells sweet to me (like maple syrup). I'm thinking it has to be caused by food lol. What foods does Sheldon eat?


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