# set appointment for vet



## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

on Monday. I am worried because he kept sneezing and I'm not sure if it is because he got water in his nose on the day I got him because I had a bottle running and put a bowl under it to catch the water. Well him being the curious one that he is, he went right under the bottle facing the drops and it kept hitting his nose/face. I also noticed that he itches behind or around the ear. It doesn't do it all the time just a few times in a row. I really hope it's not a infection of some sort for the sneezing because I really like Oreo and it'd make me sad if he's sick and I just got him on Wednesday..

Also I'd like to point out that he might be licking his nose. Well it looks like he is or it could be just his face. His poop is brown and turns black when dried. I've been cleaning out the cage everyday, fresh water and food twice a day. I try to keep the temperature in his cage between 74-78 degrees. I've watched Oreo and he also eats his food and drinks water. If anything he eats alot and drinks alot, lol...


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## Gnarly (Aug 29, 2008)

it's a good idea to bring him to the bet, whether he seems ill or now, since you just got him. 

You might want to ditch the water bottle all together and just use the water bowl, as there are many advantages bowls hold over bottles.

Since he's so young, he's probably going through quilling, and that is where the itching is coming from. If you look at his skin closely, you might be able to see a few quills poking through. If this s the case, be sure to be extra careful handling him, because he will be sore. 

good luck at the vet


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## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

Gnarly said:


> it's a good idea to bring him to the bet, whether he seems ill or now, since you just got him.
> 
> You might want to ditch the water bottle all together and just use the water bowl, as there are many advantages bowls hold over bottles.
> 
> ...


Yea i ditched the water bottle after that day. I just strictly use the water bowl. I'm also thinking about getting a heating pad to put under the cage, but i'll have to think about it since the bottom is plastic.
Thanks I also hope the vet check goes good!!


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## hedgie love (Aug 28, 2008)

I my hedgehog was licking his nose and sneezing a lot so I took him to the vet. It turns out he had a respratory infection. Even though he is better he still licks his nose a lot (I think out of habbit.)


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## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

hedgie love said:


> I my hedgehog was licking his nose and sneezing a lot so I took him to the vet. It turns out he had a respratory infection. Even though he is better he still licks his nose a lot (I think out of habbit.)


Oh no... Is it curable? or is it one of those things like a human (cold) that it passes over time.


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## sebian (Aug 29, 2008)

hedgie love said:


> Even though he is better he still licks his nose a lot (I think out of habbit.)


That's a good point. Our rescue is ALWAYS licking and there's nothing wrong with him. He probably had a URI before we got him and just got into the habit of licking his nose/mouth.


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## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

Well, my hedgehog is at a animal hospital until Monday. I woke up this morning to a everyday active hedgehog and as the day progressed so did he. He stopped drinking water and stopped eating food. He had green diaherea and kept running on the wheel for a few hours, taking a break to walk around the cage then back on the wheel. His right leg went limp for 15 seconds at one time and that was enough for me. So I called over 15 animal hospitals around me and all of them closed, I finally found an Animal 911 hospital that's open 24 hours a day. Drove about 2 hours to get there. And the doctor recommended I leave him til monday so they can monitor him closely, they don't know exactly what is wrong, but they should hopefully know throughout the weekend.
I'm actually sad right now, because I was really liking the fella and how active he is. He's never showed any agression towards me and the way he was laid back and stuff reminded me of myself. 
I'm also pissed at myself for being a idiot and buying it from a pet store (the animal store) and having the most crappy warranty and help. They acted all nice when I bought it then after I buy it and ask them questions reguarding this situation, they act like it's all my fault. Technically it probably is, I should of known better then to take home something that was sneezing off from the start, but Oreo was irresistable.

Sorry if this seems to personal, but I had to get it off my chest.


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## numothehedgehog (Aug 30, 2008)

I hope hes okay!

I got my old hedgie from a petstore. He had to be put down.
They are just to hard to resist huh?


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## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

numothehedgehog said:


> I hope hes okay!
> 
> I got my old hedgie from a petstore. He had to be put down.
> They are just to hard to resist huh?


I'm sorry about hearing your buddy to be put down  . Yea, they are very hard to resist.

I received a call from the hospital for a update, they said he is eating food like a champ, but they noticed something else, that he was having like seizure (sp?) motions. They are thinking he might have hypoglicema (sp?) from not eating since 6am yesterday. Since he's eating now hopefully it is just that low-sugar. If not they are thinking he might have neuro problems. But I have high hopes that he is okay.


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

What is he doing that they consider seizure like motions? If they mean little rhythmic twitches, that is normal hedgehog especially for young hedgehogs.


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## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

Nancy said:


> What is he doing that they consider seizure like motions? If they mean little rhythmic twitches, that is normal hedgehog especially for young hedgehogs.


His back leg/legs stop working, they become stiff or they just become limp.


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## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

This is by far the hardest decision I'm having to make. I'm a animal lover and even though I haven't had Oreo for a week yet. I'm attached to him. This is his diagnosis so far Diarrhea, r/o hypoglycemia r/o parasitic r/o neurologic disease r/o congenital disease. This is really costing me a lot of money and the way I see it I have 2 options. Either take it back or keep him. The problem is if I take him back they are most likely going to put him to sleep. If I keep him going at this rate, I'm going to be broke. 400 so far used for medical. I don't want them to put them to sleep, thinking about it makes me sick to my stomach. So when is enough a enough?


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

He is just a baby. I wouldn't give up on him. I totally understand how vet bills pile up. What I would do is bring him home and work on getting him healthy yourself. If he is eating well, that is a step in the right direction and a healthy appetite usually means they aren't in pain. 

Do a write up of all his symptoms, when they started, what the vet says and include his age. Post it here and to CnQ and Hedgehog Help and Welfare and I'm sure someone will have some suggestions for you.


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## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

Nancy said:


> He is just a baby. I wouldn't give up on him. I totally understand how vet bills pile up. What I would do is bring him home and work on getting him healthy yourself. If he is eating well, that is a step in the right direction and a healthy appetite usually means they aren't in pain.
> 
> Do a write up of all his symptoms, when they started, what the vet says and include his age. Post it here and to CnQ and Hedgehog Help and Welfare and I'm sure someone will have some suggestions for you.


Well, I decided I'm going to keep him. I can't accept the idea of him being put down. Life is more precious then money $600 and I will keep my promise to that. He is eating more on his own then them feeding him. But he is still weak, they are going to continue nebulization treatment. He is still weak and lethargic. I asked the vet if when we got him the sneezing could of been the first sign and they said yes. It progressed as the days went on. So basically he has respatory infection and hypoglycemia. They are taking xrays and going to keep him for a day or 2 depending on how bad his lungs are. The sneezing and the nose licking stayed the same throughtout the week and saturday is when things went wrong. I woke up at 6 am and saw him eating, drinking water and taking poos. Everything seemed like the days before, he went back on the wheel did his routine. Well as the days progressed, I notice he was just drinking water and playing on his wheel. I didn't think anything of it, maybe he wasn't hungry. But I watched him closely, he stopped drinking water and just kept on playing on his wheel. Well I noticed green diarrhea so I called the vet I was going to take him to Monday and asked them if he needs to be bought him right away, they suggested that it could be his diet or stressed and to bring in a stool sample on Monday. His poop was just fine til now, I mean nothing has changed, i've been feeding him the same food and I don't pick it up for more then 2-3 times just so he can smell me. Hung up with them and looked online for another vet. I turned away for about 10 minutes and I look back, I see that he's sitting on his back legs and see he try to walk. I pick him up and place him on a blanket and he tried walking, but he couldn't move his right leg, like it had no energy. That lasted about 15 seconds, and that's went I started calling vets and all were closed, but finally I found Animal 911. I told them what's happening and they told me to bring him in right away. I stated before took me 2 hours, but it's a 2 hour drive and I drove there in less or about an hour. They kept him from Saturday to this morning. This morning I went to go pick him up, but they suggested I should wait til the exotic vet comes in at 9. I went to get some BK and I just didn't have the stomach to eat so I just drank the orange juice. I talked to the exotic vet she said they wanted to keep him for a day or 2 and take some xrays of his lungs and keep nebulizing him. And I agreed to do so and they'll give me a update later this afternoon.

I talked to the animal store owner and he said he can replace/exchange it or if I wanted to keep him he can give me $50 dollars for medication. I was pissed as ****, $50 when I just paid $600 in medical bills, when they should of gotten him checked by a vet before they sold a sick animal. There probably isn't much I can do in reguards with the animal store, but I will be filing a complaint with whoever I can.

Thank you for letting me tell my story. Some of my friends don't understand why I am keeping it, but I'm sure most of you guys will understand.
I got to have some time with him before they took in back into care. I held it and it licked my hand with his eyes closed. When I put in back in the cage, it stood up turned around and looked at me


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## Gnarly (Aug 29, 2008)

I'm glad you'll be giving the little guy a chance.


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

just a thought i had while reading your post, you say the vet is nebulizing him, but do they have him on antibiotics too? Respiratory infections respond well to antibiotics.


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

It's good to hear you are giving the little guy a chance. Good luck!


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## incubi (Dec 2, 2008)

nikki said:


> just a thought i had while reading your post, you say the vet is nebulizing him, but do they have him on antibiotics too? Respiratory infections respond well to antibiotics.


Yes they are giving him antibiotics.


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

oh good, i'm glad to hear that, i just wanted to make sure


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