# My Hedgehog is...weird.



## Hootie (Sep 9, 2009)

I love my Hootie to death and have had him since about August, however he is acting really weird, and not how I understood to be "normal". I was always under the impression that Hedgehogs were clean animals but Hootie will go out of his way to sleep in his own poop. I got him a litter box and all he would do with it was treat the litter like confetti during his wild night time parties. He poops everywhere and rubs it into his cage. I have to clean his cage with lysol or else I can smell poop all over my house and its just getting worse. For Christmas, I got him a plastic tube for him to play in and during the day he crawls into the middle and puffs up so I can't even get him out and only comes out when nobody else is around. He used to be very social. He eats about twice what he used to and seems to be getting really fat. Is there something wrong?


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## krbshappy71 (Jul 17, 2009)

What kind of wheel is he using?

Is he also pooping on the wheel so you know if he's using it?

What kind of food do you have him on?


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## LarryT (May 12, 2009)

Do you interact with him daily and if so for how long?
Hedgies need to be handled daily to help keep em social.
I personally would not use Lysol to clean a hedgies cage.
You could try buying an air purifer for your room they work great.I use this one:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Therapure-HEP ... er/9189156


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

Instead of lysol you should try white vinegar and then a product called Nok-Out that is gentel
on animals (safe to use directly on Dogs and Cats) but gets the smell out of all kinds of surfaces. 

What kind of food are you feeding. How old is your hedgehog?


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## Hootie (Sep 9, 2009)

He has a Flying Saucer wheel that my breeder recommended and he makes sure to poop all over it and I hear him on it at night. 
I have him on purina kitten chow which is also what my breeder had him on. He is about 7 months. 
I used to pull him out of his cage every ngiht when I would do my homework and he would sleep in my lap or crawl on my shoulders, now he just hides. 

btw, thanks for the suggestions on cage cleaning, I will try that.


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## LarryT (May 12, 2009)

Hootie said:


> I have him on purina kitten chow which is also what my breeder had him on. He is about 7 months.


He is old enough to be put on adult cat food.
A link to the Dry cat food list:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15
When switching food do so slowly mixing alittle new food in at 1st and gradually more and more till you will no longer need the kitten food.
Lots of people here like Natural balance green pea and duck,Wellness indoor,chicken soup for the cat lovers soul,just to name a few.


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## SnufflePuff (Apr 16, 2009)

Hootie said:


> I love my Hootie to death and have had him since about August, however he is acting really weird, and not how I understood to be "normal". I was always under the impression that Hedgehogs were clean animals but Hootie will go out of his way to sleep in his own poop. I got him a litter box and all he would do with it was treat the litter like confetti during his wild night time parties. He poops everywhere and rubs it into his cage. I have to clean his cage with lysol or else I can smell poop all over my house and its just getting worse. For Christmas, I got him a plastic tube for him to play in and during the day he crawls into the middle and puffs up so I can't even get him out and only comes out when nobody else is around. He used to be very social. He eats about twice what he used to and seems to be getting really fat. Is there something wrong?


How often do you clean the cage and what kind of bedding are you using?

I use liners and I "spot clean" as neccessary (I even have a mini vaccuum I use when the hedgies aren't in the cage) but my Puff lets me know when its time to change the liners by pooping right by her bed (she is usually perfect about using her litter). You could try "litter training" by scooping up the poop and placing it in the litter box. This can be done with pee too by absorbing it in a paper towel then placing the paper towel in the litter.

Also if your bedding isn't a liner and youre using shavings/paper bedding the "litter" and the bedding may be too similar for your hedgie to tell the difference. Or it's possible your hedgie doesn't like the "confetti" litter. I would give yesterday's news a try, it has a more pellet shape and your hedgie might like it better. Also it doesn't get stuck on them so they don't track it all over their cage which is fantastic!

Chlorhexidine is a safe cleaner too when diluted and gets rid of smells quite wonderfully. You can usually get it through a breeder or your vet clinic should be able to special order it for you.

I would consider getting a bigger plastic tube, or cutting a slit in it if you can. If you can't get him out when he puffs up, he could get accidentally stuck if he grows any bigger.

As for the moodiness...how old is he and has he gone through his quillings yet? My Chloe used to be a sweetheart and is now a huffy ball of quills I am currently re-socializing because of quilling. Also how warm is the temperature and how many hours of light is he getting? If it's too cold (should be 76-79F) and there's not enough life (should be 12-14 hours) this could be making him sleepy and grumpy and lead to a deadly hibernation attempt.

As for the weight-gain, LarryT is right it is time to switch to an adult food, the high fat content in the kitten food is the weight-gain culprit.

That's everything I can think of...hopefully it helps


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