# Red patches on skin?



## siccatron (Sep 3, 2012)

Hi there,
I have a 3 month old boy named Squish and I've had him since early July. He's currently quilling so is kind of grumpy at times but mostly he's quite an affectionate and friendly little guy, despite his habit of biting.
I've noticed over the past few days that the skin near his legs was red and kind of patchy, I'll attatch a picture as I'm terrible at explaining. My mum did some research and thought since he gained weight (we went on holiday and my friend looked after him and completely overfed him) it might be due to sweat, but I'm unsure.
I'm just wondering if it's anything to worry about? we haven't got him insure yet as he only just turned 12 weeks old so if there is anything wrong I'm gonna guess it'll be pricey.

He's my first hedgehog and although I've done a lot of research on him, I'm just really unsure about this.
the picture quality is pretty bad as he wouldnt stop moving then he freaked out and pooped everywhere >_> http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/255/img1694ox.jpg/

He's not got anything wooden in his cage so I doubt it's a mite infestation?

Many thanks!

Also it doesnt hurt to touch him there, he usually huffs but that's cause he likes his personal space but there's been several occasions where I've touched the area and he hasnt responded so I dont think he's in pain. He's eating and drinking normally and loves running on his wheel.


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

It's hard to tell from the picture what that spot could be but if the area is not swollen and doesn't hurt then my guess would be to just see if it goes away. If the spot is just some sort of abrasion then it will probably go away on it's own. if not then take him to the vet. 

It probably won't be that much for an exam (not sure the vet prices in your area) there is usually a base price for an exam, then with hedgies you often have to pay for anesthetic which is by weight (so not that much) and any tests that need to be done. Then if he does need some medication that is also dosed by weight and again not too expensive. It's certainly nothing compared to taking larger pets like cats and dogs to the vet I remember a routine visit with vaccines for my dog could be like $300-$400 whereas my hedgehog visits never got above about $120 except once when he needed x-rays. 

If you take him to the vet it would be a good time to get a full exam done and get to know your vet in case you ever need them for something more serious. Yearly exams are recommended for hedgehogs. 

On a side note I didn't know hedgehogs were insurable. I don't think they are in Canada, I'm pretty sure our pet insurance only covers cats and dogs, unless something has changed since I shopped for pet insurance.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

It could be mites, or something like an allergy. We had a mild case of mites that managed to jump to a few different hedgies - no quill loss but it showed up as kind of scaly, thick, peeling skin on one girl, mostly at the spot where the back legs meets the body. On another boy, he had small sores spots (kind of like hot spots on a dog) in the same area which seemed to be due to bugging at it from the mites itching, but that went away pretty quickly. Depending on the kind of mite, they can come from bedding but it's also possible that hedgehogs have a small number on them regularly that aren't able to cause a problem until the body's immune system is compromised (by stress or sickness.

So I'd say treat for mites (with Revolution) just to be sure, since skin irritation can be an early sign of mites, and that way if that's what it is, you avoid the more severe issues like quill loss that could happen if they aren't reigned in. Also look at things that could be causing an allergy, like the kind of detergent you use to wash liners with.


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