# What else do I need?



## Brillosmom (Aug 28, 2010)

So I am setting up my hedgies cage this week before I get him Saturday. :mrgreen: I went to the store and bought almost everything he needs. Here is a list, let me know if I am missing anything: igloo, wheel, pvc pipe(for crawling in), crinkle tube(for play), food dishes, purina one cat food-chicken and rice, ceramic heat emitter and clamp lamp, thermostat, a temp regulator for the CHE, travel carrier, little tennis balls for toys, a book on hedgies, aveeno baby shampoo with oatmeal, cage 2' x 3' , fleece liner, toothbrush, toenail clipper, litter pan. There goes my arm and leg! :lol: 
What kind of litter do you recommend? Also what kind of treats?


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

I read through your list and I'm stuck on the food. What made you decide on Purina One? There are worse foods out there but there are way better too. Specifically I'm bothered by corn being the third ingredient and poultry by-product being the forth.


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## Brillosmom (Aug 28, 2010)

hedgielover said:


> I read through your list and I'm stuck on the food. What made you decide on Purina One? There are worse foods out there but there are way better too. Specifically I'm bothered by corn being the third ingredient and poultry by-product being the forth.


Thats what someone told me to get... idk.. what would you recommend? I will get him what ever is best


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## Puffers315 (Apr 19, 2010)

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15

This is the recommended food list. Though if others will notice Purina One is on the list, not in the top 20 but the natural blend ones are listed.

Most owners will usually make a mixture of three different foods for a nice rounded mixture of flavor, protein and fat. Remember to slowly introduce the food to him/her, start with just a few pieces of kibble and slowly go from there. A sudden switch can cause their stomachs to become upset. Also keep in mind hedgehogs can be very picky about what they eat, some will eat any kibble, others can outright refuse to eat certain kinds.

But sounds like all you're missing at the moment is the hedgehog.


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## Brillosmom (Aug 28, 2010)

Puffers315 said:


> http://hedgehogcentral.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15
> 
> This is the recommended food list. Though if others will notice Purina One is on the list, not in the top 20 but the natural blend ones are listed.
> 
> ...


Thank you very much for that info  The breeder is sending me home with a bag of what she was feeding him, so I guess I will just half and half it for a while and slowly wean him to what I can find that is best in my area.


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

The food list that Puffers posted is a great resource for learning about food and finding good brand names. Ultimately you have to make an educated decision about the food you feed your pets. 

I feed Quigley wellness and weight reduced performatrin. I'm planning on adding solid gold but I can't find any samples of it anywhere. You will probably be able to find wellness at most pet stores but performatrin is a pet valu brand so you can only buy it there. (feeding wellness on it's own usually causes loose stools) 

Where are you getting your hedgehog from? They should give you some of the food that he/she is already eating so that you can transition slowly.(sorry you just answered this). 

When hedgehogs first come to a new home they are stressed out and you shouldn't make lots of changes all at once. I would wait a week or two before changing the food at all (if you can) and then transition slowly to the new food.


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## Brillosmom (Aug 28, 2010)

hedgielover said:


> The food list that Puffers posted is a great resource for learning about food and finding good brand names. Ultimately you have to make an educated decision about the food you feed your pets.
> 
> I feed Quigley wellness and weight reduced performatrin. I'm planning on adding solid gold but I can't find any samples of it anywhere. You will probably be able to find wellness at most pet stores but performatrin is a pet valu brand so you can only buy it there. (feeding wellness on it's own usually causes loose stools)
> 
> ...


I think im going to add the soup for the cat lovers soul and natural balance to the mix, after he gets settled. My dog eats the natural balance and I noticed she has less waste and her fur is softer and sheds less. Also about insects.. meal worms? do i take the heads off? what other insects can i feed him and how often?


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## Hedgieonboard (Nov 15, 2009)

If you get regular mealworms you don't have to take the heads off but you do have to do that for superworms because they can bite. The number they can eat varies. If they like to run a lot they can have more but if they are less active it can make them chuncky if they eat too many. Mine get 5 a night.


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## Shelobe (Jul 22, 2010)

They can have crickets too. ****tles loves em but they are too much a pain in the ass for me to keep and feed him.


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## Puffers315 (Apr 19, 2010)

I think its LarryT that came up with a good system for feeding crickets, at least if you're having problems with them in the cage. He took some cloroplast and poked a hole in it, and then more or less holds the cricket in the hole for the hedgie to eat. Its a good combo cause the hedgehog doesn't see the hand, so technically its not hand feeding, and the cricket isn't escaping the cage. But yeah, they're a pain to keep around, regular live meal worms seem to be the best, some I know won't touch the freeze dried ones. Loki's previous owner claimed he didn't like meal worms (dead freeze dried ones), I showed him a love one and he almost took my hand off (picked one up to show him, wasn't try to hand feed).

For my guys, Hester gets 4 a night but she is a heavy kibble eater (70+ a night) and has been doing very well with putting the weight on, since she is only 7 months old. Loki on the other hand gets 8 cause he's 2.5 years old, a maniac runner, eats less kibble (30 to 40) and seems to have slowly dropped weight. 6/11 he was 456 grams and 8/16 is only 427, healthy as a horse but then again I think the 6/11 weight was pre-poop where as I make sure now to do it post poop. He also seemed a touch constantipated at the time, only giving me tiny little poops. Since he's gone onto my mix of food, I get giant healthy logs (not to be gross..).


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## Brillosmom (Aug 28, 2010)

Puffers315 said:


> I think its LarryT that came up with a good system for feeding crickets, at least if you're having problems with them in the cage. He took some cloroplast and poked a hole in it, and then more or less holds the cricket in the hole for the hedgie to eat. Its a good combo cause the hedgehog doesn't see the hand, so technically its not hand feeding, and the cricket isn't escaping the cage. But yeah, they're a pain to keep around, regular live meal worms seem to be the best, some I know won't touch the freeze dried ones. Loki's previous owner claimed he didn't like meal worms (dead freeze dried ones), I showed him a love one and he almost took my hand off (picked one up to show him, wasn't try to hand feed).
> 
> For my guys, Hester gets 4 a night but she is a heavy kibble eater (70+ a night) and has been doing very well with putting the weight on, since she is only 7 months old. Loki on the other hand gets 8 cause he's 2.5 years old, a maniac runner, eats less kibble (30 to 40) and seems to have slowly dropped weight. 6/11 he was 456 grams and 8/16 is only 427, healthy as a horse but then again I think the 6/11 weight was pre-poop where as I make sure now to do it post poop. He also seemed a touch constantipated at the time, only giving me tiny little poops. Since he's gone onto my mix of food, I get giant healthy logs (not to be gross..).


May I ask why should we not hand feed them? They are pets, we are not going to let them back into the wild so why not hand feed? Or will they start to only eat out of the hand and not out of a bowl? just curious


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## Hedgieonboard (Nov 15, 2009)

I think the main concern with hand feeding is that there is a possibility it could lead to biting. This may not happen in all cases but I know how fast mine snatch them up and wouldn't want my fingers anywhere near that since I can't tell them to be gentle like I would my dog  You can always do it if you like, that's just one of the reasons I wouldn't.


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## Brillosmom (Aug 28, 2010)

Hedgieonboard said:


> I think the main concern with hand feeding is that there is a possibility it could lead to biting. This may not happen in all cases but I know how fast mine snatch them up and wouldn't want my fingers anywhere near that since I can't tell them to be gentle like I would my dog  You can always do it if you like, that's just one of the reasons I wouldn't.


Oh I see  I am not really concerned with biting, I have been bitten my numerous things in my life... snakes, gerbils, rats, mice, bearded dragons, birds, dogs, cats, kids, horses, sheep...etc... The only thing that I hate getting bit by are mosquitoes! :evil:


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## NoDivision (Aug 29, 2010)

Brillosmom said:


> Hedgieonboard said:
> 
> 
> > I think the main concern with hand feeding is that there is a possibility it could lead to biting. This may not happen in all cases but I know how fast mine snatch them up and wouldn't want my fingers anywhere near that since I can't tell them to be gentle like I would my dog  You can always do it if you like, that's just one of the reasons I wouldn't.
> ...


YOU might not be concerned by biting, but other people might be. You don't want your hedgie to get in the habit of biting.


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## Puffers315 (Apr 19, 2010)

Yeah its not so much the concern of getting bite because you're feeding them, its more the hedgehog will start associating your fingers as food and will bite at them, even when nothing is there.


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## Brillosmom (Aug 28, 2010)

Puffers315 said:


> Yeah its not so much the concern of getting bite because you're feeding them, its more the hedgehog will start associating your fingers as food and will bite at them, even when nothing is there.


 I guess i will just drop a few in his bowl then. i dont intend on anyone but my family holding him, and if they have a problem with him, well there is the door.


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## Olympia (Aug 4, 2010)

You could use tweezers to feed treats to your hedgie. This way, you get the fun of feeding him yourself one piece at a time and he won`t associate your fingers to food.


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## PJM (May 7, 2010)

Everytime mine see tweezers now, they get so excited! It's really cute.


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## Olympia (Aug 4, 2010)

Ha! Ha! So do mine. Sometimes they even try to bite the tweezers before I get a chance to pick up something with them. Talk about impatience! :lol:


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## Immortalia (Jan 24, 2009)

Haha Feeding with tweezers is great! My boy associates the tweezers with mealies, so when I want him to eat more fruits and veggies, I'll feed him a mealie, then stab a fruit/veggie with the tweezers, and he'll attack and eat it before he even realizes what it was he ate! :lol:


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## PJM (May 7, 2010)

Immortalia said:


> Haha Feeding with tweezers is great! My boy associates the tweezers with mealies, so when I want him to eat more fruits and veggies, I'll feed him a mealie, then stab a fruit/veggie with the tweezers, and he'll attack and eat it before he even realizes what it was he ate! :lol:


Do you think I could get my husband to eat veggies that way? Maybe give him a beer. Then fill the next one with veggie juice?? :lol:


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