# Help! His quills seem to be stuck up!



## JessHog613 (Jun 20, 2012)

I don't know if any of you have experienced anything like this before, but I looked at my little guy this evening and a bundle of quills on his right side seemed to be stuck up, while none of the others were. I did everything I could in the way of checking it out. there doesn't seem to be any kind of a lump there, there doesn't seem to be any pain. he does nothing different when I touch them. it just seems like what I would think to maybe be a muscle spasm? I gave him a short bath and it seemed to calm down a little, but they're still stuck up.
eating, drinking, and activity habits seem to be exactly the same. it's about 11pm here and he's running around like mad, eating and drinking, and just being his general hedgehoggy self. 
I'm hoping that this isn't something major, and that it might just be a bit of a passing thing, but I am concerned and need to know if there's something more serious going on.
I will observe him as much as possible over the next few days and report anything new I find. 
thanks guys!


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## smhufflepuff (Aug 28, 2008)

Mine have had small bunches of quills stick up when the rest of their quills lay flat. Typically, it occurred because my girl anointed with something that, in effect, glued the quills together in such a way that survived any bath. If they're all in a bundle and do not separate from each other, I'd say it was due to enthusiastic anointing. My boy had that happen too... not from anointing, but as an effect of special boy time. My girl also had a handful of skin irritations over the course of her lifetime - ingrown quills that would become problematic. A few quills around the affected area would stick up in odd directions until we resolved the issue. 

That said, are the quills that are sticking up "glued" together or do they move independently from each other? When you touch the spot where they're standing up, does he flinch, huff, or otherwise act differently? Look between the quills (pet him from the back going forward - which will raise the quills up and give you a good view) for any bumps, cuts, etc... do you see anything at all?


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## JessHog613 (Jun 20, 2012)

well, the quills didn't seem to be "glued" together as if from anointing or any other reason, but there were no bumps, cuts, or other injuries either. 
after his bath last night, they mostly laid down, and they're completely down this morning. I was wondering if maybe he'd just done something to strain the muscle there, or maybe slept on it and it went to sleep like ours sometimes do. 
regardless, he seems fine for now. I'm just going to keep an eye on it and be concerned if it starts to be come a recurring thing.


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