# Can a hedgehogs be "friend" of a dog?



## Viridis Lupus (Apr 8, 2012)

Hello everyone, i have an almost 9 months old female hedge(this cute thing in my avatar) and now i'll have a dog too. It will be a female Yorkshire Terrier of 4 months old. So.. i want to train both animals to tolerate each other, since they will share rooms and will see each other sometimes. Is it possible to let the girls out in the same room without one being afraid or other being harmed?


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Sometimes you can, it depends completely on the animals and their personalities. For dogs, it also depends a bit on the breed. I think personally, I would be leery of introducing them in your situation. Yorkies and other terriers are bred for hunting small animals, like hedgehogs. They're also really high energy dogs, especially a puppy. In my opinion, I think the most likely scenario is the puppy frightening your hedgehog from its excitement, even if she's not actively trying to hurt her.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

I agree with Lilysmommy - I wouldn't suggest letting them interact unless your hedgehog is being held in your hands. Puppies in particular have a lot of energy and it very well might try to use the hedgehog as a toy. The dog will get used to having the hedgehog around and in the house just by you having it out, carrying it around, smelling it in the area, etc. We have three mini Aussies that coexist with our hedgehogs but never have direct contact. You can introduce them (again, with the hedgehog in your hands) but there's no reason they would need to have any sort of close interaction in order to share the house. When your dog is out of the "puppy" stage and calms down, you might be able to let them share space on the couch or something with you right there. Depends on the personality of the dog at that point, but at least in another year or so when the wild energy of puppyhood is over, your dog will be accustomed enough to having the hedgehog around in the house that it would be less likely to have a strong reaction.

If they're sharing a room, make sure the dog doesn't have access to the cage. Not just that the cage is closed (as in, not a lidless bin), but I'd also suggest keeping it on a table, something out of reach. Even small dogs can do some damage and potentially get into a cage if they're really motivated by a prey drive, and terriers are bred with that prey drive in mind.


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## Christemo (Oct 5, 2011)

It all depends. My oldest and my 10 month old puppy are best friends. They'll run around and play with each other over the living room. Adrian has never shown a bit of aggression to her (or anything, for that matter...) 
When they play, it is supervised.

EDIT: Adrian was 8 weeks old when they were introduced, so that could be a reason why.


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## Viridis Lupus (Apr 8, 2012)

Thanks a lot for the replies.  

The last few days i was searching more about dog's behavior, since i've never had one. I got worried by the fact that Yorkshire Terrier is a breed created to take little preys. But, on the other hand, the breeder says that my dog is very docile, sweet and calm. I'm very happy seeing Adrian's photo. Both pets are very cute. I'll slowly introduce each other and hope that someday they can get well together. Many thanks for the tips.


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

Terriers do tend to be more prey driven but there are always exceptions. You can't know until you get to know your dog. My friend has a Jack Russel Terrier which is a breed that is supposed to be a very high energy, crazy, dog with a high prey drive but this dog was amazing with small animals. My friend was 10 years old when she got the dog as a puppy and still has her (like 13 years later) My friend had many small pets over the years and the dog was around all of them, even a hamster. I looked after the dog for a night once and she was introduced to my hedgehog and even my pet mouse (I have a picture of the mouse sitting in between the dogs paws) This dog was just so excited to be friends with the other animals, she wanted to watch them and clean them and follow them around. We still had to be very careful because the size difference still made interaction a potential danger but she didn't treat the animals like prey. 

I would strongly recommend obedience classes there are things you can learn from other people that you just can't research on your own and I think dog training is one of them. I think most people don't bother with obedience training with small dogs but in your situation I think it would help you feel more confident about keeping the dog in control when it's around your hedgehog so your hedgehog will be safe. Especially since this is your first dog. 

Good Luck! I'm very excited for you I've wanted to have a dog again for years.


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## Viridis Lupus (Apr 8, 2012)

Thanks, hedgielover, i didn't tought about obedience classes, i'll see if i can find in my city. I've been watching a lot episodes from The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Milan.



hedgielover said:


> Good Luck! I'm very excited for you I've wanted to have a dog again for years.


Wow! I hope you have a new dog, if you want help on choosing one furry friend, i happily will help.


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

Viridis Lupus said:


> Thanks, hedgielover, i didn't tought about obedience classes, i'll see if i can find in my city. I've been watching a lot episodes from The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Milan.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks but it's not time for us to have a dog yet. Someday I'll have a dog again. I don't have time to walk it everyday right now.


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## bittabit (Oct 28, 2012)

Yes they can!


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

aw cute picture!


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## Viridis Lupus (Apr 8, 2012)

*hedgielover*, if most people tought like you do, we surely would not see so many abandoned or nervous dogs because the owner doesn't have enough time to take care. Well, if the situation change and you get a little more free time, you could take a look at chow chows and english bulldogs, breeds that require less activity. Good luck for you and thanks for helping me.



bittabit said:


> Yes they can!


Thas very cute!


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