# Crabby Hog



## spikesmcgee (Dec 17, 2008)

Hi guys, i'm a new mother to a little hoglet. When we first got her, she did no mind being picked up or played with...but she had very dry skin so we took her to the vet (which was a terrible experience). From this point on, she will NOT let you pick her up, she never comes un-prickly and doesn't want to be around anyone. We try to hold her everynight as scheduled, but she wont have it.
Is there anything i can do?


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

She looks very friendly in the pictures! Try just talking to her to get her used to your voice, and you can put a T-shirt that smells like you, in her cage to sleep in.


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## Zalea (Sep 12, 2008)

Are you still actually picking her up at playtime? If not, she probably learned that puffing at you gets you to leave her alone. You can try using a piece of cloth that you slept with (a shirt or blanket, etc) to pick her up while she's balled up if you're too worried about doing so with bare hands. She needs to be handled every night in an effort to socialize her--even if she puffs up and acts like she doesn't want to be handled. Don't let her push you away.
If you HAVE been picking her up, keep doing so. Try to spend half an hour or so a night handling her and talking to her. You can get frontal carriers (bonding bags) from people who sell them specially for hedgies, so you can just wear it around and leave her in the front so she can sleep and get used to you at the same time. You might consider one of those. The main thing is to keep picking her up and interacting, though.
She's a beautiful little girl, by the way.


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## spikesmcgee (Dec 17, 2008)

we have used the shirt idea several times, and wash her liners with out same detergents too. not much luck, especially because she refuses to litter train  
we do use a shirt to initially bring her out of her cage, if you try to scoop her up, she will roll around your hand (i have small hands) and it is a bit painful. she will also shove her shoulders outward while rolled up, so that you get poked (this accompanies a bark or two usually).
Where are you located in WV?
We are students at WVU, and would love to meet other hedgie parents! :roll:


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## Zalea (Sep 12, 2008)

A bark? I've never heard a hedgehog bark...that's interesting. Do you mean like an actual bark, or more of a hiss/growl? I wonder if anyone else has had experience with that.
My hedgehog won't use a litter pan, but he uses a certain area of the cage all the time (behind the wheel). I put a paper towel or two back there for easier clean-up and he's gotten to where he'll use the paper towel. If you notice your little girl going potty in a certain area, you might try that.

I'm about an hour away from Morgantown, in the Philippi area. I commute to D&E in Elkins--I'm a college student too! I have some friends at WVU. A couple in the band, and a couple slackers that just went there because they were dating people in the band. :lol: 
There is a mail group on yahoo for the Hedgehog Welfare Society, and we've recently figured out on there that there are about 8 HWS members who live in the local area (Buckhannon, Fairmont, and other surrounding areas), so we were actually thinking about starting an HWS chapter in the area. If you're interested, you might join up on the mailing group (if you haven't already, that is). I'm just amazed there are so many people in the local area. For awhile, I thought I was one of the only ones. I was pleasantly surprised otherwise!


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## hogmother (Nov 16, 2008)

Just on the barking thing, I've seen a funny one on Youtube, wondering if this is the noise yours makes. It sounds like a baby crying!


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## numothehedgehog (Aug 30, 2008)

Im sorry but I do not find that funny at all. I think that no hedgehog should ever be screaming like that. The poor thing is terrified.

The owners are complete jerks. Not doing anything about it and just letting the poor hedgehog scream.

What idiots.


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## Cimredopyh (Oct 13, 2008)

They don't only scream like that when they are in pain or afraid, sometimes they do it for rather silly reasons, almost as if they are throwing a tantrum.

When i first got Barley she once screamed like that early in the morning. She was not injured or scared, in fact she looked calm and quite happy to see me. She was standing out in the open sniffing at her empty bowl. The only thing she wanted was more food... ( at that time she was eating up to 4 full bowls a day, i suspect she was possibly underfed at her previous home )
Nancy has a hedgie that screams when her cage gets re - arranged. 
A hedgehog owner from a local forum that i used to frequent had a hedgehog that screamed for no apparent reason one evening. Later he realized that it might have been because he was too busy to let her have out of cage time for a couple nights and she was letting him know how she felt about it :lol:


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## numothehedgehog (Aug 30, 2008)

Thats weird.
I would throw a panic if Numo did that.
But that video is still ridiculous.


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## Grouchyhog (Jan 21, 2009)

numothehedgehog said:


> Im sorry but I do not find that funny at all. I think that no hedgehog should ever be screaming like that. The poor thing is terrified.
> 
> The owners are complete jerks. Not doing anything about it and just letting the poor hedgehog scream.
> 
> What idiots.


due to the fact theyre at the vet, I'd say they're trying to help their hedgehog, so maybe they just want to know why its screaming


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## numothehedgehog (Aug 30, 2008)

Maybe. We dont know the story.
But I still find it outraging how they aresitting there LAUGHING .


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