# How to bond with really grumpy hedgie



## LuthienWolff (Dec 5, 2017)

Hi,

I am new, and have recently bought a hedgehog, is a female, brown color, and 4 months old, she eats mazuri once a day, has a excercise wheel that she uses daily, also her enclosure is 1.20 meters long by 70 cm wide.

She sleeps mostly by day, is very weird to see ther outside her blanket during day and she wakes up at 8 or 9pm.

I place her in a kiddy pool for her to be "close" to us, and so we can see her eat and run around a while in her wheel.

The thing is that she´s always grumpy, I cant touch her in any way she curls up and can stay like that for even 10 to 15min. 

It worries me because I think she will need her nails trimmed soon and she just curls up all the time.

I´ve had her for 2 months now and I really dont know what to do.

Nobody disturbs her, or grabbs her or anything alike. We have a bunny rabbit that shares the room with but he also never bothers her.

She doesnt like fruits or vegetables, she only eats the mazuri and I need help to bond with her.

Any feedback is appreciated.

Thank you


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## Prue (Feb 20, 2016)

Hello and welcome! You must be so excited to have a brand new bundle of quilled joy. That cage sounds great, she is a very lucky hedgie.


Using the kiddie pool is a great idea to get her out and about, but what you need most right now is for her to be close to you and get used to you touching her. The best way to do this is to buy a snuggle sack/hedgehog sleeping bag and just let her hang out on your lap while you watch television, go on the computer, or read a book. The longer the better, but about an hour a day is ideal. It's important that she becomes familiar with your scent, as she is a prey animal by nature and until she associates you with safety she will be scared and "grumpy." Gradually she should warm up to you and picking her up will become less stressful for both of you 

As a side note, it's important that young hedgehogs have food available at all times. They are generally more active than adults, and growing takes a lot of energy. As a result, free feeding makes the most sense.

I hope this is helpful, and congratulations on your latest quilled addition!

Prue


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## duckie (Jun 14, 2018)

Regarding the nail trimming... putting my boy in the bath was the only way that he would unball for sure in the beginning. It really worked for me and I was able to touch him all I wanted and cut all his nails as long as he was in the bath. Hopefully this method works for you too!


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

Please check the date on threads before posting. This one is from 2017 and neither member that posted on it are still on the forum.


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## ktap (Sep 15, 2018)

duckie said:


> Regarding the nail trimming... putting my boy in the bath was the only way that he would unball for sure in the beginning. It really worked for me and I was able to touch him all I wanted and cut all his nails as long as he was in the bath. Hopefully this method works for you too!


Thank you duckie!! This is very encouraging advice!!


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