# Giving Hedgie Medication...HELP!



## GaspeLisa (Oct 8, 2008)

Hi Everyone, 
We took Hitch to the vet yesterday, and they gave him pretentative antibotics. When they showed us how to give it to him, all went well. It seemd as if he LOVED the stuff. 
Any way, the dose is twice a day, and last night was hard, but he took it. This morning, not a chance would he let me give it to him  They gave us a little syringe (sorry if thats spelled wrong) to put in his mouth, and he now refuses to take it. So he has now only had 2 doses..and skipped this morning. We are supposed to do this for 10 days!! 
Are there any tricks to this? The vet made it seem so easy...


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

Does he like mealworms? If so, you can inject the meds into a mealworm. Same with other treats, try mixing the meds with a small amount of a treat that you know he likes.

Is there a canned food he likes, you can mix the meds with it and syringe it to him. Only use a small amount of the food in case he doesn't eat it all. Normal canned foods need to be strained or they won't go through a syringe.

Some can be difficult and often it is because they do not like the taste of the meds. Disguising it with something they like often solves the problem.


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## GaspeLisa (Oct 8, 2008)

Thanks Nancy!! 
I would have never though of putting the meds in a mealie...
Would this turn him against mealies in the future if he really doesn't like the taste of it?


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

It won't turn him off of mealies permanently but he may catch on after a few times. Some are really smart and catch on quickly, others like mealies so much they never figure it out. :lol:


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## rtc (Sep 5, 2008)

Thanks a lot Nancy. Both Lisa and I had a very emotional time this morning trying to "help" the little guy.. makes you feel bad when he doesn't want to take it 

R.


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

Some are really good about meds, others it's a constant battle that I'm not sure there ever is a winner. Try talking to him and tell him he needs the medicine so he'ell feel better. Tell him it would be much easier if he would co-operate cause you really want him to get better. I often tell whomever, if it will make you feel better, go ahead and bite me but just take the medicine. Never been bit yet. :lol: 

If he balls up, use another syringe and wiggle it into where you think his tummy is and squirt a bit of yummy food on his tummy. Sometimes they will get a taste and and then will accept the syringe. 

I keep canned Hills A/D on hand just in case I have to syringe feed someone. I've never met a hedgehog yet that didn't like it and often they start to look forward to being syringed.


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## Luck (Sep 4, 2008)

I would think that hedgies would smell the meds. :|


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## Melissa (Sep 19, 2008)

I used to have this problem with Aero when he got his meds as a baby. Now he doesnt put up as much of a fight. But before was terrible. So what I had to does was play with him for a bit and talk to him until he relaxed.. Then once he was fully relaxed I would rub my hand on his back a few time. Then I would scruff him and give him the meds that way.

Now its super easy. I just cuddle him and put the syringe by his mouth and he will bite it and take it from me with no problem. 

You can play with him and make it seem like there is no other motive then just play time. One he relaxes then try.

Keep us updated! And Good Luck!


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## hedgie love (Aug 28, 2008)

When I had to give Herisson his medicine I held him on his back and waited for him to poke his head out. Then I would stick the syringe into the corner of his mouth (they will open their mouth to bite on the syringe). It worked great for me! Just don't squirt the medicine in too fast or your hedgehog will end up spitting it out. Make sure you put it into the side of your hedgehog’s mouth; they can choke on it if it is given to them from the front.
Good Luck!!!


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## GaspeLisa (Oct 8, 2008)

Just a little update... 
We tried your trick Nancy..about putting the meds in a mealie..well, I guess he's a smart little cookie, cuz he didn't eat it right away. We then tried to fill a cricket, and well, he's not really fond on those either, so he just sort of bit into it, maybe ate a little piece, and then that was it for the cricket. 
Finally, we tried him again with the mealie, and he ate it
Hopefully he will be able to eat another one in the morning. 
Will keep you all posted.. 

oh yeah, and now, he has some meds crusted to the side of his nose - poor little guy
This was from this mornings attempt and giving it to him by syringe, he did not want anything to do with it. I wish he would just bite on it!! 

**very frustrated**


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## hedgie love (Aug 28, 2008)

You could wash his nose off with a damp cloth. I had wash Herisson's cheek off when he spit it out.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

One thought I had. How do you approach the hedgehog with the syringe? Are you coming from front on or from the side? Hedgehogs have lots of tiny hairs around their mouth that are extremely sensitive. Often if you go from the side near the back of the mouth you will have better luck getting them to open up than if you approach from the side.

Also, what meds is he taking? Baytril? If so, Baytril has a horrible taste and should be flavored. If doc didn't flavor it, I'd be surprised if you can get much in him.


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## GaspeLisa (Oct 8, 2008)

He is on Trim/Sulfur - the doc said that it is cherry flavored...
It seems to be working now with the injecting it into the mealies...BUT now, we have 
noticed a big decrease in appetite. 
We checked out the side effects online, and one of them is loss of appetite, but I didn't expect this much
I am going to go out and get some baby food to see if he will eat that
he seems to be drinking normally, which is always good I guess

We would like to thank everyone for the BIG help with all of the great suggestions. 
Will be keeping you posted!
Lisa


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## sebian (Aug 29, 2008)

Nancy said:


> I keep canned Hills A/D on hand just in case I have to syringe feed someone. I've never met a hedgehog yet that didn't like it and often they start to look forward to being syringed.


I'll have to introduce you to Ivan. He would rather eat his liner than Hills A/D. (I still keep a can of it too, though, just in case  )


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## rtc (Sep 5, 2008)

So both Gaspe Lisa and I have decided that we are really running out of patience. 

We tried: 
-feeding the antibiotic to him directly
-feeding it to him off a finger or two
-feeding him the antibiotic to him thru a syringe while standing, in a ball, on the couch
-feeding him the stuff via a baby food (he loved the straight up baby food) 
-feeding it to him via a meal worm (if one meal worm has the stuff, he eats the others)
-feeding it to him via a cricket

We are out of idea except for one. We were told to be a little bit rough with the little guy and pin him down gently under a piece of fleece and kind of force feed him the antibiotic; both Lisa and I have no intention of doing it to him. We don't have the heart to do it... I'd be worried that I would hurt our little fella...

Any other ideas? We might try a little piece of cooked chicken with the antibiotic in it also.. 

Sigh.. I would hate being a parent 

R.


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

Do not force him. There is too much risk of him aspirating it into his lungs which can cause inhalation pneumonia which is almost always fatal. Being rough doesn't help and only makes them more scared. 

Have you tried scruffing him? Some hedgehogs are easy to scruff, others not so much. When he is relaxed, quills down, grab the skin right on his back about neck area. Be sure to support his body with your other hand so he isn't hanging by the scruff. When you go to scruff him, do it without thinking about it. I find if I think about it too much I can't do it. :lol: Once scruffed put the syringe to the side of his mouth.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Sometimes you just have to sit and be patient. I find that hedgehogs can be one of the hardest animals to medicate. Their defensive mechanism is very effective for preventing medication to be give. I'm guessing you have tried just sitting and waiting him out. If scruffing won't work, talk to doc about the problem and ask if you can get an injectible antibiotic.


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## zoologist (Sep 2, 2008)

my vet suggested i mix the meds with pancake syrup and give it to cloud that way. It worked like a charm, for the most parts. I still had to force him to take the meds every once in a while.


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