# hedgehog licks a lot



## bassle

So my hedgehog licks my fingers a lot and at first, I'd move my fingers away since I know he'll bite at any moment but then he doesn't. He just keeps licking like crazy, like a puppy. All he does after is either smoosh his face on my fingers, lay his head on my fingers and sleep, look at me or just chill there. This happens every time I pick him up, no matter how long I hold him. He's really grumpy so I was just wondering, is this normal? Am I doing something wrong?


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## Lilysmommy

I'm curious, how else does he act that makes you say he's really grumpy? Just wondering because from the behavior you described, he sounds pretty cute!  I think I've read on here before that a few people have had hedgehogs that lick like that - they don't bite, though licking is often a precursor to biting, but just continue to lick. It doesn't sound like a problem, just make sure your hands are clean, and keep an eye out just in case he ever does get it in his mind to bite. If you can describe what seems to be the grumpy behavior to us, maybe we can help with more suggestions for how to help with it.


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## bassle

Hello thanks for replying!

Well, he hisses a lot, like when I greet him at night or just go past his cage and call out his name (he doesn't do this for anyone else nor for any other sound). It takes him a whole minute to calm down when I hold him. When I bring him up to eye level and look at him he narrows his eyes and hisses a bit. Also, he gets really really mad when I move his things around his cage, bath him or rub his forehead. He goes on these one hour hissing rages where he just hisses really fast and continuously when he's mad. He ignores me whenever I come back to check up on him after he's had a rage moment. He jumps from my hand and curls up and doesn't move (he doesn't even hiss, just flat out rejects me).


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## Lilysmommy

He mostly sounds pretty normal to me, to be honest. My girl Lily was as sweet as can be, but when I woke her up (such as moving things in her cage, saying her name and moving her igloo to start waking her up, she got pretty hissy and huffy too. :lol: How old is he? How long have you had him? How often do you get him out? Sometimes it can just take them a longer time to settle in and get used to their new owner. If he's young, he could be going through quilling, which is pretty painful and tends to make them grumpier. Do you put him down when he starts hissing a lot and won't stop?

It helps to kind of try and think of things through their perspective - for instance, he's a very small prey animal, and while he does have his quills for protection, another way that they try to scare away things that they're afraid of is to hiss, because it sounds like a snake. You're very big compared to him, so he's probably intimidated by you. I'm guessing that's why he gets a little hissy when you have him up to your face - your head is bigger than his whole body. He may also be intimidated by direct eye contact (though I'm not sure how much they can perceive that), as a lot of animals only look directly at another when they're challenging them or focused in on them to hunt. Rubbing his forehead, remember that his face is a very big weak spot for him, and he's probably just a little nervous about having it touched. Many hogs are touchy about their sides or bellies being touched as well for that reason. 

Like I said, just try and remember things from his point of view. Hedgehogs can be hard to bond with because they're so different and they take a lot of time and patience. Most of us think it's worth it in the end though! Just keep working with him and go slowly. For some, it helps if you let them stay covered up when you take them out - try letting him explore your lap under a blanket. Go slowly with getting him used to petting. Have him get used to your hand just resting on him first, on his back. Then slowly work your way up to petting and see how he does. He may just be a hedgie that will take longer to come around than others.  And keep in mind that most of the time, hedgehogs won't really show affection like a dog or cat - he probably won't end up coming out of his hidey spot to greet you when you call his name, or come running to you to be picked up. Some hedgehogs may do this, but most of them won't.


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