# Hedgehog allergy?



## MeowHype (Jan 29, 2014)

So I've noticed when I handle my hedgehog if my arms are bare I get small red bumbs, but I think its only where his quills are poking me. I handle and touch him more with my hands and my hands do not have any reactions. 

I do have sensitive skin, so could this just be a reaction to getting poked with quills?
I never notice the bumps right away, its always the next morning, I notice I have a slight itch on my arm and I see bumps. They don't really get red unless I've scratched at them. It doesn't feel like a persistent itch, I don't think there is a rash. Once I notice what it is I just choose to ignore it and I pretty much forget about it.
Once in a while, if I have felt his quills through my shirt, the next day I will see the bumps, but they generally don't itch. Thats why I think it might be me reacting to a quill poke.

Is this a sign of an allergy? I've never had allergies to animals, and I've had lots of rodents in my life. My breathing is fine and I am not stuffed at all.

Does this happen to any of you guys? I honestly think its just sensitive skin, but I thought I would ask just incase.
Please and Thanks ^_^


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## Altearithe (Jan 13, 2014)

I have no idea about how hedgehog allergies look like since I don't have one yet and thus no experience, but what's happening to your skin is a lot like what's happened to mine when I get an allergic/sensitivity reaction to carrots. >___< I get weird bumps all over my hands, wrist, halfway up my forearms, but the palms of my hands are fine. I also can't even eat it without my throat closing up.

With animals, when I'm anywhere near non-hypoallergenic dogs that I get stuffy, can't breathe, eyes water and itch, ears itch, throat itch, just the whole package, so maybe you only have a sensitivity? 


Hopefully someone with more experience can chime in. ;w; I'd like to know too to know what to look out for.


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

1. Try scrubbing his quills down with a wet toothbrush (sort of an intermediate between just a footbath, and a full soak-the-hedgehog bath). Although we only notice the poop-boots, urine is raining down on them while they run. This is in addition to any other ickiness on the quills from annoiting or exploring. It may not be an allergy so much as it is irritation at all that crap getting poked into your skin.

2. Try washing your hands & arms after handling your hedgehog, rinsing off any allergens.

3. Some forum users have been allergic to the bedding, not their hedgehog, and found that switching the situation (changing from one type of shavings to another, using a different unscented laundry detergent) resolved the problem.

I'm allergic to just about everything, but I am not allergic to hedgehogs. The first few weeks I had my little guy, I had some minor red bumps that would go away quickly. The combination of insisting tiny friend get a bit cleaner, the loss of his hypodermic-needle sharp baby quills for some reasonable adult-quills (quill-sharpness varies by hedgehog), and my hands & arms toughening up a bit means that after the first month or so, my skin didn't react anymore.

For some other people, the bumps develop into welts, persist, and itch or burn. That's an indicator of an allergy. A couple current forum-users with mild allergies have had success with taking benadryl calming the response. However, for at least one current hedgehog owner, and a few archive-users, the allergy response escalated, and they had to consider giving up their tiny friend.


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## Altearithe (Jan 13, 2014)

Oooh that's really helpful! I hope some of those work for MeowHype. 

By the way, not to hijack the thread, but Anne in your experience, how often of a toothbrush scrub between baths is ok for a hedgie? 
(just in case in the future, since I'm crazy sensitive to any type of "dirt" on my skin and Meow might be in the same boat)


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## MeowHype (Jan 29, 2014)

Thats a good idea annie&Tibbers, I'll try to clean his quills a bit during his foot bath tonight and I'll post weather or not that helped. ^_^ I think your right about what might be on his quills.


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

So, the reason for not giving full-baths all the time is because even a good soap still dries out their skin, and hedgehogs have a strong tendency to dry skin already. You also totally soak your tiny friend when rinsing him off, and it can be hard to get them completely dry so they don't catch a cold. :\

But, with just doing a toothbrush scrub, I'm not getting the skin wet at all, and I don't use soap. When my little guy is wandering around getting his foot bath, I dip the toothbrush in the water to get it damp, and give his quills a quick scrub-brush, re-dipping the toothbrush to rinse it off periodically. It probably only lasts about 30-60 seconds unless I actually see something gross that needs to be properly scrubbed (annointing discolouration; poop in quills). 

As for frequency... I give my tiny friend a foot-bath pretty much every night (we skip a night here and there), and I give him a quill-brush during every foot-bath. 

But: I live in a temperate rainforest with constant high humidity, so I suspect hedgehogs around here are a bit less prone to dry skin than those in dryer climates. I haven't heard of anyone else doing this, and I only have experience with my tiny friend. If you try it out and start noticing an increase in dry skin, cut back on it.


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## Altearithe (Jan 13, 2014)

Thanks for being so detailed.  I'm glad there's no need for soap during a scrub. @[email protected]
I do live in a dryer place where dry skin is rampant if there's no moisturizing, which was why I was wondering about the frequency of scrubs. I'll have to do a bit of careful testing when I get my wee one. :3


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

It is possible to be allergic to your hedgehog. I just picked up a male from a lady that had become allergic to him. It started with just a minor reaction like your describing and continued getting worse and worse. She ended up contacting the Hedgehog Welfare Society to have him rehomed.


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## MeowHype (Jan 29, 2014)

I'm happy to report that scrubbing his quills seemed to have done to trick. I handled him on my bare arms the last two days with no more red bumps. ^_^


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## MightyMichelle (Jan 13, 2014)

As it was mentioned, I think it's most likely the dirt from the quills getting into your skin. Once hedgie walked off my desk by accident, and I caught her mid fall, and she was rolled up in a ball. Of course I caught her quills into my palm. It burned so much until I went to bed. I don't think it's an allergy, but just quills and dirt getting in the skin. It is their defense after all.


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## LufaMouse (Feb 20, 2014)

MeowHype said:


> So I've noticed when I handle my hedgehog if my arms are bare I get small red bumbs, but I think its only where his quills are poking me. I handle and touch him more with my hands and my hands do not have any reactions.
> 
> I do have sensitive skin, so could this just be a reaction to getting poked with quills?
> I never notice the bumps right away, its always the next morning, I notice I have a slight itch on my arm and I see bumps. They don't really get red unless I've scratched at them. It doesn't feel like a persistent itch, I don't think there is a rash. Once I notice what it is I just choose to ignore it and I pretty much forget about it.
> ...


This happens to me, but instead of bumps it's red dots that plague my arms.
I usually get them if my hedgehog has been anointing a lot. However, they quickly go away after I wash my arms after interacting with her.

You could bathe him, but not too often because it might dry out his skin.
Otherwise, wear long sleeves, but keep your hands free so he can smell you.


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