# Question - Leaving hedgehogs unattended



## Djinn (Apr 12, 2015)

Greetings,

I'm a new member (introduction here), and I have a few questions before indulging my 14 year-old daughter's impassioned requests.

First question...

When we owned a chinchilla, the animal could be left with adequate food and water for as much as four days without a problem. We have a pair of gerbils, who can also manage just fine for four days.

We don't do this very often, but we do occasionally go away for the weekend, and while we would enlist the pet-care services of a neighbor for vacations exceeding four days, I'd like to know - can a hedgehog with a fresh refill of food and water be left alone (on rare occasion) for up to four days without issue?

Many thanks.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

No, a hedgehog can't. They should only be left alone for one night at the most - anything longer, and you need someone to check in on them to ensure that heating & lighting is working correctly, change water, change food, and make sure hedgie hasn't injured themselves or attempted hibernation, etc.

I clicked your introduction post and read it. I'm sorry since I'm sure it's really hard to disappoint a kid, but you REALLY should not get a hedgehog if you live in an illegal state - and your state is reportedly the worst as far as cracking down on hedgehogs being illegal. It would be dangerous and unfair to a hedgehog for you guys to get one and risk having it confiscated and rehomed out-of-state (extremely stressful for an animal that takes months to bond with a new owner), or even euthanized. It would really be best if you tell your daughter that she just needs to wait until she's graduated from high school and moved to a place (or if PA finally legalizes hedgehogs) where she can own one. If she loves hedgehogs so much, she will not want to risk the life & wellbeing of one by owning it in an illegal state.


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## Djinn (Apr 12, 2015)

Crap... You're quite right. I had not considered the veterinarian aspect. In all of 21 years, the only time we needed to take our animal to the veterinarian was when he broke his forepaw in a poorly-made running wheel - about 18 years ago. As such, the availability of veterinary care wasn't a prominent consideration, and it should be.

I broke the news to my daughter. She was very disappointed, but she's a smart kid, and understands the reasoning. So she's going back to her campaign of harassing state officials, and as long as she's not calling them at home (I have to draw the line somewhere), she's got my full support.

Many thanks for the information.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

I'm so glad you're both understanding about how serious it is!  It's obvious that your daughter will be a fantastic hedgehog owner someday, and I do hope that she will think to come back to our forum for information & to join our community when that day comes. I seriously admire her for having the guts & ambition to do so much campaigning against this law, and wish her luck! I know it'd make many people happy to have hedgies legal in PA.


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## lifequards (Mar 28, 2015)

I wouldn't advise you to leave it unattended for long. I couldn't do it haha.

Although, my girlfriend's mother forgot to check on her hedgehog for a few days and it was doing okay.


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