# What are the most common illnesses in Hedgies?



## LinzardB (Nov 20, 2008)

I was just curious.. What are the most common illnesses that hedgehogs get? Why do hedgehogs NEED to go to the vet (aside from wellness exams) 

I have heard of Wobbly Hedgehog - which is supposed to be genetic, and mites.. but what else.


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## Reaper (Aug 22, 2008)

Skin disorders seem to be common. Mites, fungus, and bacterial skin infections.


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

Cancer and tumors are very common once hedgies get older...


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

If you read the forums long enough you will find the same ones over and over.

Upper respritory problems

Skin problems most seem to be overly dry skin and mites. 

Cancer is a big problem with our little ones. They get cancer in all areas. However, cancer is not a disease of just the old in our little ones, we had one that developed cancer at age 1 year (one week after his first birthday), but the rest have been over 2. Sometimes if caught early enough the cancer can be removed and the hedgehog can live a normal life.

Mouth and tooth disease. A lot of times this seems to be squamous cell carcinoma, but other tooth disease are not uncommon either.


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## LinzardB (Nov 20, 2008)

Hmm. Does anyone suppliment their food with something like salmon oil or flax seed oil? Or even olive oil to help the dry skin issues?? i did read a bunch of threads about the dry skin issues.. i would think adding some kind of Omega 3 Fatty Acid to their diet would drastically help that. 

On the other hand, cancer is something that, if i had a THOUGHT about what was causing it, i would be on top of the world.. 

Teeth issues are another matter. I had found that offering sugar gliders cork bark for gnawing and chewing drastically helped their mouth health. Something that is NOT food related to chew and gnaw on really cleaned their teeth.. Then again, i KNOW gliders are different.. Gliders eat a mainly soft diet, so that was a BIG deal for them to have something hard to eat.. Also, they masticate their food, so them choking wasnt really an issue, because they didnt swallow solids at all. 

Do hedgies like to chew on things?


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## PixiesExoticHedgies (Sep 4, 2008)

Flax seed oil is highly recommend for hedgies, as well as Vit E. Both can be put on their food or applied directly to their skin. The only chewing that I've seen my hedgies doing, is occasionally on a fleece blanket, my tshirt, or somthing made of cloth. I'd be interested in knowing if anyone has tried other "chewy toys" with success. There are lots of (flavored) ferret toys, that I've thought about trying, but never have.


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## heavenlyhogs (Sep 18, 2008)

My male hedgie Bailey has a chewy habit,i had him on my lap while i was on the phone and he bit onto the cord tugging at it and for the life of me i couldn't get him off,he'slike a prickly pit bull.
He also has a blue bell ball which he chews at and plays with,and a fabric little fish toy that he likes to play tug of war with(gently of course).So maybe he would be worth trying on some other chewy toys.


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## jabment (Nov 14, 2008)

Kalandra said:


> However, cancer is not a disease of just the old in our little ones, we had one that developed cancer at age 1 year (one week after his first birthday), but the rest have been over 2.


Does this mean all your other hedgies have gotten cancer? I know that it's clearly common but is it like, extremely common? Like, to a point where it would be rare or odd to have an older hedgie without it?


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

I would say majority of hedgies provided with proper veterinary care will be diagnosed with some illness at least once in their life. Cancer and tumors are very common.


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## PixiesExoticHedgies (Sep 4, 2008)

heavenlyhogs said:


> ...he's like a prickly pit bull.


 :twisted: *grrrrrr*

:lol:


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

jabment. To answer your question, almost all of those that I have lost have died from cancer or a complication there of (only had 2 die from non-cancer reasons). I have seen 10 different cancers/tumors (1 benign the rest malignant) and in different locations. When we get a diagnosis of cancer I always get upset, my vet kindly reminds me that I own hedgehogs and they get cancer. So, based on my experiences, yes it is extremely common.


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## jabment (Nov 14, 2008)

Very good to know. I knew it was common but wow. Thanks. And I'm very sorry for your losses.


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

I would say that 3/4's of ours have died of cancer. The others have passed either in their sleep or very quickly of unknown causes but there is always the possibility of some internal cancer that we didn't know about. We've had alot of oral cancers, 2 mammary, 2 renal, 2 uterine and one suspected intestinal.


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## LinzardB (Nov 20, 2008)

are there other common illnesses aside from cancer?? I thought i saw some more initials for something on one of the posts.. i had no idea what it was.


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

Was it Fatty Liver Disease (FLD)? This sometimes shows up if the hedgie is very obese.


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