# Help really aggressive hedgehog! !



## mona (May 26, 2014)

OK so here's some background, I was given a hedgehog from someone who was given the hedgehog, that was given the hedgehog, from someone that was given the hedgehog. I was told she's not even half a year yet and has been past around like a hot potato. No one wants her because she's so aggressive. I see YouTube clips of "aggressive behavior" and I'm like how cute, I wish. So despite the aggressive behavior I have had her for over a month now. I got her in a tiny enclosed plastic hamster cage with a tiny cardboard box of a home that lifted off the ground with her inside and no wheel or bedding. Right away I bought a 14" wheel a medium litter tray a large dome and a huge guinea pig cage. She had mucus green diarrhea so I switched her food from corn based to meat based with a decent amount of protein and the highest fiber I could find for cat food. And stopped the freezer dried meal worms to an assortment of live. She now looks and poos very healthy as far as I can tell but still super aggressive. If I walk near her cage she puffs and hisses from inside her dome. If I put my hand inside and she comes charging out quills down over her eyes like a bull(she's gotten me a few times while cleaning her cage). I still pick her up tho. We have a routine, every night I clean her cage. Fresh food and water. I pick her up, some times she balls up and sometimes she doesn't but balled up or not she puffs hisses and charges. We spend at least a few hours every night in very low lighting trying to socialize. And every night when I hold her she bites me at least once. Now I know not to give in and let her get her way by putting her down and even tho she bites down hard I try to talk softly and calmly. She doesn't just bite either she does this rag doll thing where she shakes her head too (eg. She got me on the side of the finger, her top teeth slid in along side my fingernail and she held on, and using her font legs to try to push herself backwards while she savagely shook her head back and forth. Tho I wanted to, I didn't yell at her and i dont think i could have even put her down off my lap if I wanted to. I stayed fairly still and talked to her calmly. This lasted at least 20 minutes then my finger finally gave way and she had a big chunk of finger in her mouth and was covered in blood). In her cage, out of her cage , wrapped in a blanket or in a snuggle bag she'll try to attack any thing that moves. She finally starts to settle after about 2 hours and thats only if you don't move and as I'm trying to get her used to me I continue to move. When she starts to calm and by calm I mean stops biting, as the charging never stops, I give her some worms as a treat and she still growls hisses chirps and squeaks even while she eats. I'm afraid for when I'll have to clip her nails again or if she gets sick. Not sure what else to do. Please anything you could suggest to help cheer her up might just be what it takes to help her out of this bad rut. I'd like to see her happy instead of scared and angry. Sorry about the long winded post and thank you so much.


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## Shaddybear (Apr 9, 2014)

Wear a Tshirt to bed for a few nites, and then put it where she sleeps.. This way she'll begin to associate ur scent with being cozy and safe..and just have patience  the poor thing was prolly never handled if she's been passed around to so many houses In such a short period of time.. How long have u had her? I got my hog from someone who sd they just didnt have the time to properly care for him, and he was VERY skittish at first-- would ball up instantly, hiss and click and pop at just about everything. I did the Tshirt thing, and made sure to take him out of his cage every nite for at least an hour,and I would give him some mealies or baby food as a treat and now 7 weeks later I can definitely see an improvement. He still doesn't like to actually be picked up (most hedgie don't from what I've read) but he does a half hearted attempt to ball up for maybe 2 seconds n then his little nose starts sniffing in the air lol he now lets me touch his ears gently, and when I hold him on his back n he balls up with his face sticking out--like my avatar pic-- he lets me pet the sides of his face n occasionally his belly!! My hog is not an explorer type so I'll set him down on my lap or my chest n he'll find a place to cozy up on me n fall asleep  last week he even fell asleep in my hands!! N 2-3 days ago he came up to my shoulder, stuck his head behind my neck n went to sleep 
Sorry to ramble on about my hedgie, but he's the only one Ive had experience with, and I just wanted to show u that with some patience (and treats lol) she will most likely start to come around


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## LittleHedgie (May 24, 2014)

if your hedgehog really bites you could probably find something to hold her in while shes out. you could use some sort of blanket or towel just to hold her in so she can't bite /directly/ onto your fingers! 
when i first got my hedgie she was a little scared of everything but not really aggressive, so i would hold her in a bandana or just stick her in my hoodie pocket. there were times i just let her run around my bed while i sat there with her, so then she could explore everything and eventually she would ever start to come up to my legs or arms to sniff them  

are you fully cleaning the cage every day? or are you just replacing any bedding that gets nasty / spot cleaning a fleece liner? you definitely don't have to replace everything every day, usually bedding can last for a week (or more if you really just don't have the time!) 

i would definitely just suggest spending time in a way with her where your fingers aren't at risk. even if that's just letting her run on a bed or table, or sticking her in a pocket to take a nap. i just sit with my hedgie and toss her treats sometimes, they can be anything from cat treats to even dog treats, or just mealworms like you've been giving her.  i think they can also eat some fruits and veggies but i'm not sure whats good and not good for them!

anyway, good luck on taming that little girl! i hope she calms down soon


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## mona (May 26, 2014)

Thanks! I've had her for just over a month and it's been tough. I'm trying the shirt thing and hope for the best. Unfortunately her aggression seems to be getting worse (if that's even possible) she's even starting to attack her wheel and dome . Do you think she could be sick? There is no way I could even get a vet to look at her, we'd have to pin her under a blanket and put her out :'( . Like I said tho , I'll try the shirt and try to stay hopeful. Any more ideas are always welcome and thank you so much


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## mona (May 26, 2014)

Since she bit me that good one I use a blanket to handle her more then I used to, it doesn't hurt as much when she bite through a blanket. I never thought to try my hoodie pocket before tho. So I take her out for a few hours every night around the same time trying to make a routine, but like I said before when she's out she puffs sometimes for hours even when I rest her on my lap. I want to spend more time with her but I don't want her to have a heart attack either. Is it OK for her to puff, click and hiss for hours? Is a few hours a night to much? Should I back off or be more persistent? Anyhow I will also try you suggestion and set her on the bed, maybe if I put her down and go to the other end she'll eventually walk around with out trying to attack me (she's lucky she's so cute). And yes I wash and change everything every night except for her bedding in her dome. She never makes a mess in there. I pile up care fresh paper mulch and push a dip down in the top middle with a fleece over it so it can be moved, fluffed and cradles her with out getting bits of paper in her quills. Then I put another fleece arched on top so she can snuggle between them then the dome on top of that and a fleece on top of that so it's nice and dark for her. It's cute some times if I turn the light on during the day to do something, she'll pop her head out hiss and pull the fleece down to cover her door. Anywho thanks and I'll keep listening for more ideas and suggestions, and I'll keep you posted on how it goes. Thanks again!


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