# allergic reaction/rash from hedgehog??



## momofhedgehogs1029 (Nov 15, 2012)

I rescued a hedgehog from an abusive situation and he is very agressive.....while trying to work with him he would hiss pop and click.
well i made the mistake of trying to pet him, because my other hedgehogs are very friendly and love to be held but he popped and now my hand is messed.
It started out as puncture holes but now looks likes blisters......i was wondering if anyone had an allergic reaction like this.....i'll be seeing a doctor tomorrow.....but wanted to see if this is common......thank you


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## DasIgelPoggie (Oct 21, 2010)

Yikes! That looks hurty! What was he being kept on, and has he been bathed since coming home? I have had a similar reaction to hedgies being kept on shavings-- when they are bathed regularly and kept on fleece or soft particulate bedding, I have much less of an issue. I still get little red prickles, but not full-out hives. You may, like me, be having a reaction to something on his quills, rather than he himself.


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## RondackHiker (Jan 21, 2013)

Do you have eczema?


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## momofhedgehogs1029 (Nov 15, 2012)

yeah it doesn't feel good at all.....when i got him he was in wood shavings....i never even thought of that causing a reaction because i normally use carefresh! Normally i'm fine with my hedgehogs, i've been poked many times and nothing like this has ever happened so it must be the bedding or something on his quills maybe. I'll send an update after the doctor tomorrow......o and i've never been told i have eczema....


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## Kpjenk21 (Feb 3, 2013)

seeing how you haven't had this bad reaction with the others you've handled i think it's safe to say its a reaction to something on the quills with bedding being the leading culprit! 

Definately update with what the Dr. says! hope it gets better soon!


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## momofhedgehogs1029 (Nov 15, 2012)

thank you for the reply! I will be sure to update you guys tomorrow! kinda nervous....i don't want him to band me from my hedgehogs lol....i'm to addicted  My hedgies are like my children so i'm hoping this was just some crazy reaction that won't happen again. I can handle my original hedgehogs that i had before the rescue because my original hedgies NEVER spike or puff..... but i've had this for 2 weeks and i wasn't able to handle the rescue anymore because he was to agressive and was hurting my hand further so i found him a really super good home, he gets so spoiled so don't worry (it's a friend so i know he is safe and VERY well taken care of  )


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## Erizo (Jul 25, 2012)

The first month or two that I had Sophie, I had some minor reactions pretty frequently. I started washing my hands very thoroughly after handling her. I would get some pretty severe inflammation under 'pinprick' points (quite painful, actually). They felt very swollen, even though there wasn't anything to drain. I wound up lancing them to get at the affected tissue and soaking in hydrogen peroxide. That took care of fixing me up quite nicely, and the whole issue went away after a couple of months.

I haven't had any problems since and think that I've built up an immunity of sorts. I don't make a big deal about washing up any more and have had no problems since those first couple of months. The quills are probably an ideal vector for transmitting bacteria and allowing that bacteria to be sealed under the skin (the pricks being so tiny). It wouldn't surprise me that some people have a lot of problems and have to be very careful on a permanent basis.

Sophie gets three foot and belly baths a week. To keep her occupied she gets her quills brushed, which she likes, and which probably does a lot to help keep them pretty clean also.

My first guess is that you are taking quite a few tiny pricks and having a reaction to a contamination under the skin.


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## RondackHiker (Jan 21, 2013)

I only recently learned that I have atypical eczema. I used to think I just had lots of skin rashes. They looked like allergic reactions, not the scaly eczema.

I had a horrible reaction right after we got Knarla. Like, full body. I was so worried it was her. She might have triggered it a bit, but the week long freak out was due to my eczema. 

I moisturize twice a day and after showers now, and am strict with detergents and such I use for her.

She was REALLY dirty when I got her, so she could have triggered the initial event, but it wasnt really that I was allergic to her.


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## RondackHiker (Jan 21, 2013)

Clean the area well and put some antibacterial cream and anti itch cream. Take some allergy meds.


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## zorropirate (Aug 13, 2010)

I have been a hedgie mom to 3 hedgies over the last few years. 

Daisy, Annie and Chole.

I never had a reaction with Daisy, nor Annie,... but my last rescue Choloe that's another story. 

When she first came home I got a horrible rash, but only where her quills touched me, even through the clothing, so if she was on my stomach I'd take off my shirt to find a massive ammount of red blisters... the ones on my hands used to be like little painful puss filled pimples... arghhh. But the more she's been bathed the less severe the reaction... now almost a year and a half later it's just a mild marking of red dots I'll get and they'll disappear within the hour of touching her. But her quills appear to be pin sharp at the tips, whereas if I look at Annie's my bitty albino's... hers are more rounded... 

Thankfully Chloe is more of an independant hedgie, so at least she's not a cuddler so I don't feel too much of the affects of the rash.


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## JulieAnne (Sep 3, 2012)

If I don't bathe Prim regularly I get little red spots if her quills poke me. She isn't a huffy hedgie but if my dog barks or if she goes in the arm of my shirt and backs out (which she enjoys a lot) I usually end up getting poked some. They aren't NEARLY as bad as yours though. I just make sure to bathe her every week and I'm ok . I hope yours turns out to be "fixable" and you don't have to worry about it anymore!


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## Kam (Nov 7, 2012)

I have quite sensitive skin, I generally give my little hog a bath before I handle her and then give her a wee hedgie massage as the daily routine.
Because even though she may look clean I know from the look of her wheel that she is covered in urine and fecal matter, and those little spines deliver that bacteria into the skin without trying.
So when their trying by huffing and popping I'm not surprised a reaction like the one pictured is possible.
You also have to imaging that if a hedgehog spine pokes you any volatile matter you touch for the next 3-8 hours if going to affect the area as well.

I'm a big fan of hydrogen peoxide and pollysporin for my wounds.


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## Erizo (Jul 25, 2012)

> Because even though she may look clean I know from the look of her wheel that she is covered in urine and fecal matter, and those little spines deliver that bacteria into the skin without trying.


Very well put. Wish I'd added exactly this line to my post.


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## momofhedgehogs1029 (Nov 15, 2012)

hey everyone thanks for your thoughts & help! I went to my doctor today and he told me that the hedgehog had a fungal infection and i got an infection from the hedgehogs quills. He said it is very contagious and can spread to my other hedgehogs & other people so i have to wear gloves to handle them until my hand gets better......he gave me medicine/cream to help the infection.....


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## Erizo (Jul 25, 2012)

Serious stuff. Sounds like you're in for a self-imposed quarantine and major cleanings of cages and gear.
........................................................

It may not have made a difference for your specific situation, but this might be a good time and place to note that I wonder if many (most?) hedgehogs don't get bathed enough. One sees so much about how they don't really need baths all that much - that they just the occasional foot bath - that they easily get dry skin so don't bath them too much . . . . . On top of that, hedgehogs that don't get baths with some regularity are often resistant to them, so it is easier for owners to not give enough baths (with reasons/excuses not to do so quite easy to find) . . . . . 

My feeling is that a cleaner hedgie is a higher priority than the possibility of a dry skin problem (which can dealt with and factored in if such trouble does arise). Sophie was not a fan of the water at first, but has accepted the routine quite nicely. They only reason that she doesn't get 'full' baths more often, with her Aveeno body wash and everything, is that I've read so, so much about not giving baths too often. The longer I have her, the more I continue to move the balance toward more baths rather than less.


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## momofhedgehogs1029 (Nov 15, 2012)

yes i give my hedgehogs bathes quite often, they seem to enjoy them. I'm going to do some serious cleaning like you suggested, to make sure this doesn't spread to my other hedgies.
The only thing that is going to be a problem is my hedgehogs are super sweet and are used to being handled with bare hands, and they don't like the gloves.....O and i was wondering should i take them to the vet? I'm going to call the vet and see if their is a medication they should take, because i'm currently on medication for this......but i'm not sure if it's spread to the other hedgies or not??


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## JulieAnne (Sep 3, 2012)

What kind of gloves are you using? Maybe if you got some work gives it something thick then you could sleep with them before you use them? Just a thought


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## JulieAnne (Sep 3, 2012)

And by the way, can i be nosy and ask what kind of fungus? I suspect I have ringworm (I'm putting off going to the doctor) and wonder if I could have gotten it from Prim. 

Would also be interested to hear what your vet says about your hedgie regarding the fungus.


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## momofhedgehogs1029 (Nov 15, 2012)

o yes the fungus is ringworm and now it's even worse than the original pictures because i waited 2 or 3 weeks before seeing a doctor :shock: i now have about 20 blisters on my hand and it's very painful  right now i'm on both oral & topical medication. My dermitologist said it could take 3 weeks for it to even heal......and he told me it's VERY contagious to not only your hedgehog but other people too! O and mine did come from my hedgehog!


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## RondackHiker (Jan 21, 2013)

Oh no! Ringworm is rough. I'm sorry you're dealing with it.

To the other poster asking about it... You can get it from other people, the soil, and pets as well. Some places tend to be more likely to have it (say, a dirty gym). My brother wrestled in high school. Wrestling teams are like ring worm breeding grounds.

They'd scrub the mats down and tell everyone to shower and clean gear daily, but they usually had 1-2 cases a season, likely picked up from tournaments. I dated a few wrestlers, and my friends and I were always a little reluctant to grab our boyfriend's hands during ringworm outbreaks. Lol

This really is incredibly contagious. You need to treat the hedgie with ringworm and clean any area she touched. If you put her in a play pen, and then later put another hedgehog or pet there, I'd assume the other pet has it. Nasty fungus. Bleh.


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## JulieAnne (Sep 3, 2012)

I don't want to "take over" your thread but since we're already talking about it I thought I would show y'all what mine looks like. I hope you don't mind!










That's what mine looks like. I've had it for at least a week. When it started out I thought it was a spider bite. It hasn't spread or anything and I have thoroughly checked my dogs, cat and Prim to see if they have ringworm but don't see it in any of them. I guess I will be off the the doctor tomorrow to see what it is *sigh*. If it is ringworm then I have NO CLUE where I got it! I am taking extra care to not touch it. I'm keeping it covered so it doesn't come into contact with anything/anyone and spread to another person or a critter. If y'all have any ideas I would appreciate them.

Sorry if I'm hijacking your thread. I can make my own if you want lol.


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## momofhedgehogs1029 (Nov 15, 2012)

o no your not "taking over" i want you to get opinions as well. Mine started out more like blisters, my doctor took a skin sample and found it was ringworm. I would go to the doctor asap because i would hate for you to go through the pain i'm having now! not to be nosey but let us know what the doctor says!


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## alexvdl (Dec 19, 2012)

I had ringworm (no clue where I got it, at the time I didn't have pets) on my inner thigh. It looked very similar, just a quarter sized ring. The medic recommended I used anti-fungals (in particular Lotrimin) and after about a week it cleared right up.


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## JulieAnne (Sep 3, 2012)

That's what I'm using lol. I'm debating on skipping the doctor since I was able to find this stuff.


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