# Need some advice. Hedgehog not eating



## Cocoriggs89 (Dec 6, 2015)

Ok so before anyone asks , we just got back from the vet. This is Vannesa's second vet visit in a week. She was a breeding hedgehog but she never had babies. She is about a year old and I adopted her. She had not been eating well at the breeding facility for about a month. Not eating what the others ate, never cleaning out her bowl and that sort of thing. I though that maybe with her being on a bottom cage and not having babies that she was more than likely cold and depressed. I though after adopting her she would get the love and heat and care that she needed and would come out of her funk. That has not happened she will not eat and drink on her own at all! The first visit to the vet they gave me antibiotics and some critical care food to give her by syringe to get her weight up. I got her to 220g and the last two days she has been throwing up, so back to the vet we went. I like this vet and he has many good recommendations. He says that there is nothing wrong with her, that she is healthy and that forcing her to eat is probably what is making her sick. Is there anyone else who has a hedgehog who does not eat a lot and is still healthy? She wont get up ether unless I make her. Her cage is at 75 degrees and we have a light on a timer from 8am to 8pm. She wont eat treats or anything else. Twice since I have had her she ran on her wheel but that is it. I just don't know what else to do. The vets tests say she is healthy as a horse! Any advice???


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Sorry, I mostly have a bunch of questions, to clarify & get some more info! But hopefully the answers will help us to figure out what's going on with Vannesa.

What food are you giving her? Is the food you're offering the same as what the breeder was giving? Is she eating any at all on her own right now, or not eating anything other than what you syringe to her? Have you tried offering any wet food or soaking her kibble at all? 

Has the vet looked at her teeth & mouth? What tests have they done? What antibiotics are you giving her? Is she still on them?

When she vomits, is it just stomach bile or is she throwing up the food you're syringing to her? Are you positive she's hydrated enough? You can check by pinching her skin together between her shoulders. If it sticks longer than a second, she's dehydrated. 

I would try boosting the cage temp a couple degrees right now. They can be more prone to getting too cold when they're already not feeling well & not eating.


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## Cocoriggs89 (Dec 6, 2015)

I have a few different foods in her home to see if she would eat anything. At the breeders she was on Spikes Ultra. So she has 5 different bowls some Spikes dry, some Spikes crushed up and some Spikes with water in it. Then she has a treat mix as well (not sure what is in that exactly but it is approved cat foods and treats from the breeder all mixed together) then she has a water bottle and a water bowl. 
I have not seen her eat anything and I take pictures of her food at night and then look at it in the morning and non of it has moved not even one piece of kibble. The food is changed and water bowl is cleaned every night.
The vet looked at her mouth and said it looked normal and healthy and she was on Sulfatrim for an antibiotic. She is not taking it anymore she completed that Rx.
I know she is dehydrated and she wont drink water on her own. I don't think she is drinking water. I fill it up all the way at night and in the morning it does not look like any is missing accept for what might have evaporated from her ceramic heat admirer. 

She does seem a little cold. Not freezing but not as warm as I would think she should be sitting snuggled in a flece sack. I will wrap her cage in a blanket and keep it closer to 85. What is the temp to not go over??


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

She shouldn't be cool at the temperature her cage is at, so that's raising a red flag for me. It could be due to not having food/water in her, so the body is trying to conserve energy. It could also be due to something else going on that the vet hasn't caught yet. 

Honestly, I'm a bit iffy that the vet thinks force feeding is making her sick. Hedgehogs cannot go more than a day or two without food or they really will get sick. So force feeding is sometimes necessary. In this situation, it's definitely necessary. What kinds of tests has he done that he's saying she's definitely healthy? 

If she's dehydrated, it's very important to get fluids into her. Make sure you're syringing extra water whenever you syringe feed her. You can use plain unflavored Pedialyte as well - I'm currently using that for a hedgehog that was severely dehydrated this weekend. You may also need to take her back to the vet for some subcutaneous (sub-q) fluids, fluids injected under the skin. That absorbs faster and is much more effective at quickly rehydrating them than giving them fluids orally. I would continue to syringe feed her at least 2-3 times a day right now until she's behaving more normally & doesn't feel cool-ish anymore. 

Regarding the food, how old is it? Could it be getting stale? Some hedgies are very sensitive to that and will stop eating once the food starts to get stale, so that could be a possible reason that she stopped eating completely.


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## Cocoriggs89 (Dec 6, 2015)

I dont know what tests he did. My boyfriend was the one who took her in and he is not a very good relaier of information lol. I have left her alone all day today and not messed with her at all. If she does not eat tonight I'm going back to force feeding. I don't think the food is stale but I have another bag so I willow not and see what happens.


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## Cocoriggs89 (Dec 6, 2015)

So I was not going to feed her at all tonight but as I was laying down getting ready for bed I could not go to sleep knowing she might be hungry or thirsty. So I got up and force fed her  and made her drink the pedialite. I feel so bad about it. She hated the whole thing but she did not throw any of it up. I wonder if maybe the antibiotics were not sitting well with her. Any way she did not seam to hold a grudge against me. She seamed just as sweet. I just hate forcing her to do anything.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Yeah, force feeding is tough on everyone involved most of the time.  I feel your pain, trust me! And the vomiting definitely could have been from the antibiotics, some are pretty hard on the stomach.


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