# How much hard boiled egg should I feed?



## rexi10

I have what may seem like a silly question but I was wondering how much hard boiled egg to offer? Also do you feed them the white and the yellow part of the egg? We are going to try a new treat.

I have also read somewhere that freeze dried meal worms are not good for them? Is this true? I also give her freeze dried crickets. We had gotten the gourmet style meal worms and quite frankly they were disgusting. They got all smelly and watery. Real worms wiggle a little too much for my 10 year old daughter. If need be we will deal with it but I'm looking for other options. 

We are currently feed her a 50/50 mix of Spikes Ultra and Wellness Indoor Cat food. I started with just the Spikes as that's what the breeder was feeding. We feed her 1/4 of the cat food and have worked our way up to a 50/50 ratio. I know hedgehog food is not supposed to be good for them but I was wondering if this food was an exception.

Thanks so much


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## ashh51191

I'm not sure where the link is but there is a list of food on here that's good for hedgies, i personally wouldn't feed any hedgehog food but thats just me. Wellness can also upset their little bellies. Give your hedgie the egg white only, I don't know how much I just let my hedgies eat as much as they'd like they don't seem to eat more than half of an egg ever.


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## rexi10

Thanks, hope she likes it. I did see the list, that's where I got the wellness from and later saw a different post talking about upset tummy. I don't think she has experienced that although she can't really tell me. How will I know? I know that sounds silly but I want to make sure I am not missing a signal. Will it be her poop changing? Just want to do everything we can to make her happy and healthy. Thanks again


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## ashh51191

I haven't personally tried this food but I would think she may have some loose stools or unusual colored poo.


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## rexi10

Thanks. That hasn't happened. Should I mix in another cat food as well? I know I should feed a mixture just not sure what that should be.


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## ashh51191

im not sure where the link that im looking for and cant seem to find it, hopefully someone else will come along and give you the link to the acceptable foods list on here if not maybe you can put up another post asking for the link, but innova low fat adult food, chicken soup for the cat lovers soul, and blue buffalo low fat foods all seem to be pretty popular on here.


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## Lilysmommy

If I'm remembering right, it's recommended not to feed more than one egg a week, because of the cholesterol content. You can feed both the white and yellow parts though. Spike's is one of the better hedgehog foods, so it wouldn't hurt to keep it in your mix if you really want to and if your hedgie likes it. Wellness does cause issues for some hogs, but some are fine on it. It causes very loose, messy stools for those that don't do well with it. If she's done fine on it so far, she may not have a problem with it. Sometimes they don't have a problem until you go past a certain level of it in their food, then they start having problems. I remember using it for awhile with Lily, and she never had a problem with it either. 

For other foods, some popular brands are Solid Gold, Blue Buffalo, Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul, Natural Balance, and Innova. It's up to you if you want to add in another food, but it certainly wouldn't hurt. Solid Gold and Natural Balance are both nice because Solid Gold has lamb for the main meat and Natural Balance has a formula with duck as the meat. A lot of people that do a mix like to include a couple different meat sources for variety.

As far as insects, freeze-dried crickets or mealworms can cause impactions, doesn't matter which. It depends on where you read, some people say they're fine one or two at a time, some say you should avoid them altogether. Personally, I'm with the second group. If you're not big on wiggly worms, a good way to get around that is to buy a small container of mealies (at my pet store you can get a 50-count container) and keep them in the fridge. You can take them out once a week to let them warm up and eat so they last longer, but if you keep them in the fridge, they'll hibernate. So when you do take them out to feed to your hedgie, they'll still be pretty slow and may not move much. That may help ward off the icky factor of wiggliness, and your hog gets the benefit of nice fresh mealies to eat. You can do a similar thing with crickets - buy some at the store, where they usually put them in a plastic bag. Then just stick the bag in your freezer overnight. Frozen crickets don't have the dangers that freeze-dried ones do.


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## hanhan27

Here is the cat food old list

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15

And because that list is a bit outdated, here is the link to another more recently made one

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=12755
Don't be confused by the color indicators in this one. Just check out the percentages that you're looking for (35% or less protein, 15% fat for a healthy sized hog, less for an overweight hog, more for a young hog or one that runs a lot and can't keep weight on)


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## rexi10

Thanks for that list. It is amazing. It seems whenever I make a change for the better I find out later that it is flawed in some way. I thought the Wellness food was the best and now it seems it may make her tummy upset. The freeze dried meal worms and crickets are a bummer too. I will definitely give the refrigerated mealies a go and see what happens. I don't want our little girl to have an upset tummy or an impaction. I am assuming impaction symptoms would mean she cannot go to the bathroom? That is not a problem lol. 

By the way hard boiled egg was not a success. She didn't like them in any way. She did get a piece stuck on her top quills like a little hat. Kind of cute but not the fashion choice I would think should be repeated. She did however gobble up her meal worm. I may try scrambled egg tomorrow. 

Thanks again for all of the info. Trying to be a good hedgie mom is hard work sometimes. I'm sure we will get this all figured out soon. We did a ton of research before we got her and thought we knew what we were doing. There is a lot of conflicting information. Love this forum. Great people and tons of information.


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## Lilysmommy

Don't feel too bad - I know when you're first starting out, it feels like everything you do is wrong and it can get overwhelming sometimes. You sound like you're doing great though, and you care enough to try and make the right changes for her, which is a HUGE thing! I honestly think you can leave the Wellness in there, especially if she's not having any problems so far. So don't worry too much about that food. And yup, impaction symptoms would be not pooping as much, the poops looking thin or dried (right after she passes them, not like when they're dry in the morning after all night in the cage), or straining to go. 

Egg can be a hit-and-miss. I know Lily was never a fan of scrambled eggs, so I gave up trying those after awhile. If you're looking for protein treats, plain cooked chicken or turkey is usually well received, or a meat baby food. You can also give canned cat food (look for the good brands of that, just like with dry food) as an occasional treat, and that's usually well liked. For other foods, watermelon, peas, and carrots all seem to be popular treats as well. I know watermelon and peas baby food were two of Lily's favorite foods. Make sure if you try carrots that you either offer it as baby food, or cook the carrots so that they're soft. Raw ones pose a choking hazard.


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## rexi10

Thanks so much for the info on treats. I am still a little nervous about those meal worms. I am such a girl lol. Anything for our new little girl I guess. I will try the water melon. My son has a tortoise and she is kind of picky on her people food too. I am going to have to make a list of what is good to feed to which for myself. Wish me luck on those worms. I feel mean putting crickets in the freezer alive. I know they're just bugs and they're going to get eaten anyway but still... I guess I will have to think about which way I would like to die, freezer or eaten..hmm


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## Lilysmommy

Good luck with the worms! :lol: If it helps any, I think at least 50% of our members on here are squeamish about insects...so it's hilarious that they got animals that eat insects. :lol: Many of them have managed to get over that fear/squeamishness enough to feed mealworms though, and have even come to find that they aren't bothered at all by the mealworms after awhile. I think it helps to know that your hedgie enjoys them so much. And treat lists are a good idea - I had one for Lily and she was the only pet I had to keep track of, lol.

As far as crickets...I vaguely felt bad too, but figured that being frozen, it'd just be like getting cold, then going to sleep. Not quite as traumatic as a giant hedgie mouth full of teeth coming at you. :lol:


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## rexi10

Lilysmom, I did it. I got live meal worms and crickets. I froze the crickets (poor lil bugs). She gobbled up the meal worm but did not have any interest in the cricket at all. I tried several times and she would bite it and spit it out. I thought maybe it was still a little cold even though it felt warm to me. I waited for it to be warm for sure and she still had no interest. Oh well, I was hoping she would like them because they are better for her than the freeze dried which she loves. The meal worms are refrigerated so they are not real wiggly and only somewhat icky lol. I know what you mean about hating bugs and getting a hedgehog. I myself was wondering what i was thinking. But she is worth it. Thanks for the support. I will try scrambled eggs tonight.


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## hanhan27

My hog doesn't like crickets either, which is fine by me because in my eyes, they are more gross than mealworms :lol: It might be one of those things where she doesn't quite understand that crickets are food. You can try to keep offering them once in a while.


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## rexi10

They are the weirdest looking thing for sure. I plan to offer her a cricket now and then while I still have these and see if she becomes interested. She loves the freeze dried ones, I'm nervous now about feeding them to her because of impaction. This has definitely been a learning experience. I don't think I had this many questions when I had my children lol.


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## Lilysmommy

Woohoo, glad you got the bugs!  Crickets are a bit more hit-and-miss than mealies sometimes, but she might just need time to get used to the difference from the freeze-dried ones. I hope handling the mealies gets easier for you, I know she'll thank you for it! And good luck with the scrambled eggs.


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## rexi10

Thanks. I didn't get to make scrambled eggs for her last night. I plan to try tonight. The weeknights are always so busy. She was a little shy last night anyway. We tried bringing her in my bedroom again. She seems much more comfy in my daughters room. Maybe I'll try the eggs in there.


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## glassescactus0

rexi10 said:


> I have what may seem like a silly question but I was wondering how much hard boiled egg to offer? Also do you feed them the white and the yellow part of the egg? We are going to try a new treat.
> 
> I have also read somewhere that freeze dried meal worms are not good for them? Is this true? I also give her freeze dried crickets. We had gotten the gourmet style meal worms and quite frankly they were disgusting. They got all smelly and watery. Real worms wiggle a little too much for my 10 year old daughter. If need be we will deal with it but I'm looking for other options.
> 
> We are currently feed her a 50/50 mix of Spikes Ultra and Wellness Indoor Cat food. I started with just the Spikes as that's what the breeder was feeding. We feed her 1/4 of the cat food and have worked our way up to a 50/50 ratio. I know hedgehog food is not supposed to be good for them but I was wondering if this food was an exception.
> 
> Thanks so much


Freeze dried meal worms can cause constipation, i’ve found that if you soak them in water for a few minutes before giving them it can prevent constipation


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