# Archimedes is home! Finally!



## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

We brought him home yesterday, yay!

He had a nice, cozy ride home in one of his hedgie bags, with his Pooh bear blanket (made from the reeeally soft fleece meant for infants) and a pair of hand warmers tucked inside socks. We stopped by Nick's work on the way home, because he was being so calm and curious, not at all nervous or grumpy. He did great there, just peering out at everything from my hands, and he didn't get at all nervous from having various people come over and ask questions about him. We'll be taking him on little trips like that in the future, they're a lot of fun!

He loves his cage. The first nap he took, after exploring his new home, was inside a bag under his house. Then, ever since he discovered the dig box full of fleece strips, that's his favorite place to sleep. I had expected when he first went in there I'd see the fleece spilled out of it from his digging, but he just burrowed right in underneath so it looked completely undisturbed. I didn't even know he was in there the first time until I realized his bag was empty, haha.

He took to his homemade bucket wheel right away, and also to his new food. The new food we mixed in a little with what we got from the breeder, and he devoured the combination without any trouble. No evidence of any stomach upset at all - no green poop or anything. So it looks like it'll be an easy transition! He's such a messy eater, but he got no poop or pee anywhere in the cage except the tray underneath his wheel. He obviously used the wheel quite a bit during the night, because there was plenty of poop all around on the inside. And, of course, it's gotten on us a few times while we've been handling him - he even managed to plop a huuuge poop on the floor when I took him out of his cage earlier today, haha.

He has so much more personality now that we've really spent time with him! He was familiar with us already, from the two visits before we took him home (1.5-2ish hours each), but this is so different! He loves to climb and explore, and he's a cuddly little doll when he's not too distracted by new surroundings. But he gets /so/ grumpy when he's woken up from sleeping - kind of like me in the morning! It doesn't take long at all to get him relaxed in our hands, though, and maybe he'll get used to the naptime intrusions. He seems to especially like being held so he's nestled at the top of my boobs, he'll just relax and doze off there. He's quilling right now, but it doesn't seem to be bothering him really at all (unless the just-woke-up grump is actually worse than usual, or something). We'll be giving him another oatmeal bath in a few more days, and I dribbled a few drops of flaxseed oil onto his back to help with that too.

I noticed that his little nubby tail has one dark spot on it, perfectly round, the color of the dark skin underneath his quills - it's the cutest thing ever. He also has black splotches all over his feet, which makes it look like he ran through mud. While the breeder was giving him a bath and trimming his nails to get him ready to go home, she pointed out his black nails - of all her hedgehogs and the babies she's bred, he's the first one she's ever seen with black nails. And those faint badger stripes haven't faded yet, though one of them is still definitely more visible than the other. Ahh, he's just so handsome, and such a litter charmer!

I've been kind of distracted with the cuddling, etc., to actually take many photos since he got home, but here's a few of the ones I've taken so far:









Yesterday - he was exploring our bed and decided to snuggle into one of our blankets. I'm sure it has our scents all over it!









Yesterday evening, snoozing on my lap. Or more like my stomach. (And yay, polar bear pajama pants!)









Today, while exploring the kitchen counter. He had one of his blankets with him and at one point he got his head under it and was trying to crawl in deeper, but because the counter surface is smooth and slippery, he ended up just pushing himself and the blanket around in circles, haha.

He's currently asleep in my lap again, after having gotten a few hours of exploration and socialization (interspersed with quick cuddle-naps, naturally).


----------



## Christemo (Oct 5, 2011)

ohmygosh, he's a Dumbo! Loot at those ears!


----------



## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Christemo said:


> ohmygosh, he's a Dumbo! Loot at those ears!


I know, they're so big and mousey, it's adorable! He'll probably grow into them, but I wouldn't mind if he didn't, haha.


----------



## LarryT (May 12, 2009)

Aww he's a little stunner!  Congrats!


----------



## shetland (Sep 2, 2008)

He is gorgeous! I love big hedgie ears!!!!!!!!!


----------



## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Thanks! I really hope he stays dark, too. I know he'll lighten a little as he gets older, but I hope it's not too much. He's sooo dark; the banding on his quills is black, though the lighting of some of the photos has been making it not so accurate. I love that last pic of him here, love love love it. XD


----------



## JackieMackk (Nov 24, 2011)

He is so cute! Congrats


----------



## ReginasMommy (Apr 13, 2011)

Oh goodness, what a cutie patootie!!! More pics!


----------



## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Thanks! I'm tempted to start a photo thread for him, where I'll post the photos that I already put up before, and be able to continue to post them all in one place instead of making new threads now and then. Right now I keep being too distracted whenever I'm handling him to remember to take pics, but I'll get more eventually.


----------

