# Hedgehog not eating properly - help!



## Mozart (Oct 20, 2013)

I don't know if its the food, or if it could be stress of having a new cage but Mozart is underweight. We're trying her on cat food and by chance just happened to see if wet would work. She is interested and had tried it. How can I get her to eat hard foods again? I've read on here that wet cat food is okay in moderation - and I've mixed it in with her own foods as to get her eating it again. Is this only temporary? It's not because of a lack of food. Any healthy tips I can use to encourage her to eat again?


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

What do you normally feed her? how long has it been since she's eaten?? If she hasn't eaten for 2 or more days you will need to start syringe feeding her. How long have you had her? how old is she?


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## Mozart (Oct 20, 2013)

Shes about 15 weeks old (I got her when she was 5 weeks) and she was eating the hedgehog diet until she stopped. She hasn't been eating for a few days but has been keeping herself hydrated until today. What kind of foods are able to be fed through a syringe?


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

You can grind up some dry cat food or get the "pate" style canned cat food and thin it down to go through a syringe. The vets also sell a food called "Hills A/D" that is high in nutrietion and very easy to syringe. Can you bump the temp of her cage? Do you have a thermometer in her cage? I wonder if she might be cold.


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## Mozart (Oct 20, 2013)

Unfortunately I can't as its a heat lamp. We do have a thermometer in her cage and its at 22 degrees Celsius.


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

22 Celsius is only 71.5 F which is to cold for most hedgehogs. The minimum recommended temp is 74*F.


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

Temperature control with a heat lamp:

Plug the heat lamp into a thermostat. The ZooMed or Zilla 500-watt thermostats are very popular -- available on Amazon in the US, or Pets & Pond in Canada (no duties). Use that to set a target temperature. This will automatically turn the lamp on as the ambient temperature drops, or off if it gets hotter.

If your heat lamp is on ALL THE TIME, the setup is inadequate to maintain heat. Swap out for a higher-watt bulb, add another lamp, or modify the cage to be better insulated.


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## Babs (Oct 20, 2013)

Hi
It can be stress, it can be food she does no like or even parasites.
Try different types of food.
Mealworms are high in proteins.
Try good quality ham, cooked chicken,cooked egg, salami or even soft mackerel (make sure there is no fishbones in it)
My hedgehog is really fussy and will only eat high quality food.
Some dry catfood is to big for small hedgehogs, you may want to crush it a bit.
Otherwise you will need to check her for parasites, check poo if it looks healthy and have a look for any peridental infection or broken tooth.
Good luck


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## ceopet (Sep 20, 2013)

It sounds like she is too cold. 

You might need a higher watt CHE bulb. What size is the lamp? It's recommened to have a ten inch one to make sure the heat is evenly distributed. I use a hundred and fifty watt one myself and it works great. I know so because the temp in her cage is right where I want it and I use a Zillia thermostat. I had the Reptitemp one and didn't like it but the zillia one is great. 

Anyway in the meantime can you get a space heater? It's really important for hedgies to stay warm, you don't want her to attempt hibernation.

What is her staple diet? Generally it's recommened to mix three types of cat kibble together, there is a recommened list in the diet section in here. You ms three for two reasons we don't know exactly what they need nutrionally and also just in case one food changes something or they stop producing it, that way you have something to fall back on that your hedgie will eat.


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

Babs said:


> Hi
> It can be stress, it can be food she does no like or even parasites.
> Try different types of food.
> Mealworms are high in proteins.
> ...


Please do not feed ham, it contains high amounts of salt and sulphites from the curing process and is not healthy to feed to any animal.


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## raurora (Sep 6, 2013)

My hedgie stopped eating too, the vet gave us formula. Syringe feed it. There is a sticky about syringe feeding antibiotics and I use the same technique. You might want to go to the vet and take a stool sample.


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