# Tips for a Skittish Hedgie?



## ktdid (Aug 7, 2012)

I was wondering if anyone had tips on how they got their hedgie to not be so skittish. Fitz is friendly but really chill. He is not the adventurous or curious type our bonding time mostly consists of him napping on me. If he decides to walk around and explore a bit he just finds a place to stick his head under. lol. Anyways, even when I am holding him if I move my fingers he will jump and huff a bit. If he is laying on my lap and he sticks his nose out to sniff and look around and I move any part of my body he will jump and huff and bury his face. Even if I just start talking to him he will jump and huff. He always calms down nearly immediately and he does it even when his quills are down. I try my best to move slowly and talk quietly etc, but like I said it can be the smallest of things, like my fingers when he is in my hand. Sometimes if he is particularly happy and maybe has had a few meal worms he will let me pet his back without huffing and even if he does huff if I keep up with softly petting him or whatever I am doing he will calm down and stop reacting to my movements. Oh also typing. If he is sitting here when I'm on my laptop and he starts feeling my hands and fingers moving with the sound of typing he will jump and huff and then just lay back down. It's so silly to me.

I'm not particuarly worried about it, as I figure it is probably just his personality, but I do feel bad because it seems like I am scaring him all the time! So does anyone have any tips or tricks they have come up with when dealing with a particularly skittish, yet nice hog?


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

The best method, in my experience, is to make a point of exposing them to things that are going to make them react. The more they experience those things - sounds in particular - the more used to them they get. Some hedgehogs will always react a little bit, but the "move slowly and talk quietly" thing is counter-productive. Don't try to avoid doing things that will make him flinch, huff, etc. - try for the opposite. Anything that bothers him is going to be better for him in the long run. 

Taking a hedgehog out on little trips (to the store, running errands, whatever) in a carry bag is one of the best ways to socialize them. You can also set up a small radio near the cage and have it on at a normal volume (not excessively loud, but also not quiet) for at least a few hours each day, which will help get him used to having regular noise around and eventually he'll be less bothered by it. If he doesn't like when you move too quickly or shift around while he's sleeping on you, make a point of manhandling him - and again, the carry bag thing comes in handy for this. You can carry him around with you while you do things around the house, even for hours at a time, and the jostling will become something he's more accustomed to. Use a regular tone of voice. Don't shy away from things like the sound of typing, vacuuming, using a blender, playing music, or loud noises on TV or from video/computer games. Better yet, make a point of having him out, in your hands or in a carry bag, when you do those things, so he has close proximity. The point is to bother him until he's not bothered anymore.


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## momIImany (Oct 14, 2012)

Great advice, I'll have to try that too! Thanks. Oh, by the way Moxieberry, who is that beautiful face in your avitar?


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## ktdid (Aug 7, 2012)

Hmmm I'll start carrying him more around the house maybe then. I tend to be pretty quiet and live alone and don't watch much tv and stuff (I'm a reader) so maybe that is the problem. I do try to take him places. At least once a week we go out somewhere, either to my mom or dads (who both of dogs and stuff), or he has been with me to starbucks for study groups and just this past sunday we went to the pet store and tractor supply with my dad and his giant dog. I definitely do not shy away from doing things that make him flinch or walk around him on tip toes or anything. So I feel like I am doing the things you mentioned but maybe I need to be more aggressive about it and make sure he goes places with me more often. 

I think I'll try the radio thing too when I am not at home during the day. Although he doesn't seem to be as skittish in his cage so I'm not sure how much difference it will make, but it can't hurt. The tv is literally right next to his cage and he doesn't mind when it is on when he is in there. I have even seen him wheeling while the TV was on.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

How old is Fitz? If he's youngish it may just be that it's something that will go away with time. Hedgehogs sometimes become more confident as a adults, simply by growing up. Keep doing what you're doing with the trips and such, but yeah, definitely don't worry about upsetting him with the sound of your voice or any normal household noises.



momIImany said:


> Great advice, I'll have to try that too! Thanks. Oh, by the way Moxieberry, who is that beautiful face in your avitar?


Not a problem! The manhandling and regular exposure to "triggers" (for lack of a better word) has proven the best method of socialization and desensitization over and over again for us. Sometimes the results aren't apparent right away, especially if the hedgehog is quilling, but it really does make a difference in the long-term.

My avatar is Archimedes, taken when he was around 5 weeks old (a visit to his breeder, now our mentor, before he was old enough to come home). As you can see by the photo in my signature, he kept the mask (though it's lightened to more of a golden-brown color now) but he ended up snowflaking heavily. The first litter he's sired is due in three days, hopefully the babies will inherit his good looks! And thank you for noticing it.


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## ktdid (Aug 7, 2012)

He is 17 weeks old. I thought it might be because he is still kinda young and he literally just stopped quilling too so hopefully with being more aggressive about it will get a little better. At what point are hedgehogs considered adults?


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Around 6 months. At 4ish months, which is around where your boy is, there can still be some residual quilling grump or timidness, it really depends on the individual. From the sound of it, since he's already fairly friendly and just a little "reactive", so to speak, there's a good chance he'll relax more over the next month or so.


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