# How do I make him FAT?



## moothecow (Jun 4, 2011)

I don't mean "can't roll into a ball fat", but fatter than he is right now. And right now, Misha is skinny-teeny. He's even looking a bit ) (, which is not so good. 

He's almost 4 months old, and weighs 230-245g (it fluctuates). 

He'd been eating a bit less because of the heat wave, but his weight didn't change. But, last week he was at my parents' air-conditioned house, and ate a whole lot: 3-4 crickets, 6-7 mealies and 40-60 kibble a night (Blue Buffalo adult, 18% fat). I thought that, FOR SURE he'll come back nice and fatter. Nope. Weighed in at 235g. :? 

So, should I try to make him gain weight? And if so, HOW??? Any advice much appreciated!


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## casxcore (Jul 28, 2011)

Couldn't you feed him a different food with a higher fat content?


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## CanadienHedgie (Feb 4, 2011)

I'd feed more mealworms, and a higher fat food.  

These are the only two I can think of with higher fat, that don't have protein higher then 34%.

Chicken Soup For The Pet Lovers Soul Kitten Formula:
Protein: 34%
Fat: 22%
Fiber: 4%
First 5: Chicken, chicken meal, cracked pearled barley, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), turkey meal

Chicken Soup For The Pet Lovers Soul Adult Formula:
Protein: 30%
Fat: 20%
Fiber: 4%
First 5: Chicken, chicken meal, cracked pearled barley, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), turkey meal

But I've found that feeding plenty of mealworms (12-15), helped one of my guys gain weight, without switching to a higher fat food 

I lied... Here's some more!

Nutrience All Natural Kitten Growth
Protein: 33%
Fat: 20%
Fiber: 4%
First 5: Chicken meal, chicken, brown rice, dehulled barley, chicken fat (naturally preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid)

Nutrience Adult Supreme
Protein: 30%
Fat: 20%
Fiber: 3.5%
First 5: Chicken meal, chicken, brown rice, dehulled barley, oat groats

Nutrience Adult Duck, Fish & Brown Rice
Protein: 30%
Fat: 20%
Fiber: 3.5%
First 5: Duck meal, white fish, brown rice, dehulled barley, oat groats

Nutrience Adult Hairball
Protein: 30%
Fat: 20%
Fiber: 4.5%
First 5: Chicken meal, chicken, brown rice, dehulled barley, oat groats


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## moothecow (Jun 4, 2011)

Thank you for the suggestions! Misha's a picky eater, but I'll try to find the Chicken Soup kitten formula... 22% fat will hopefully make a difference. 

And, I'm glad it's okay to feed more mealworms - I've been reluctant, because I already thought that 6-7 mealworms a night is too much, considering that many hedgehogs get only 4 or so every few days... but hey, is 15 is okay, Mishs sure won't complain :lol: 

Thing is, when he eats more crickets and mealworms, he them eats less kibble that night. Did your do that too, or did your guy eat the same amount of kibble?


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## CanadienHedgie (Feb 4, 2011)

Without as many mealworms he ate 65 kibbles a night, with the mealworms he at around 40. 

Now he only gets about 6 mealworms a day, since he put a good amount of weight on and eats a food with 16% fat, and he's kept a stable weight for 3 months now. He only eats 15 kibbles a night now (by his choice), because I give him (and my other 2) plenty of other things throughout the day/night.

-A mixture of 4 Blue Buffalo foods (1 chicken flavored, 1 turkey flavored, 1 duck flavored, 1 extra fat).
-2 or 3 live crickets (I either rip the legs off and put them in the cage or leave the legs on and put them in the tub).
-10 crickets that are thawed and hidden in the cage for them to "hunt".
-About 4-6 live mealworms, as a treat when they unball.
-3 grasshoppers that are thawed and hidden in the cage for them to "hunt".
-1 Shell-less snail.
-2 frozen then thawed pinkies a week.
-1 Home made wet food ice cube (thawed). A different meat flavor everyday (chicken,turkey, venison, bison, rabbit, goat & duck)

So I'm actually surprised he eats any kibble at all :lol: 

The 22% should help  .


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## Quinn (Apr 24, 2011)

Wow thats quite the diet canadienhedgie! I feel so lazy now lol.


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## hedgiegurl16 (Jul 14, 2011)

try giving him lots of worms because worms have lots of fat in them especially wax worms


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## rivoli256 (Mar 1, 2009)

in addition to all the good info here...2 things:

1) feeding a kibble mix with varying protein levels & fat levels may help...adding fruits & veggies may as well. have you tried wet food or baby food? cooked meats? all of these are things that can add great variety to his diet & get his weight up *IF* that is needed.

2) also know that some hedgies are just small. my first hedgie, Henry will be 3 this year. he weighed 250g forever. for the last year, he has weighed 300g. 

at 4 months, though i did not have a scale then, my guess is he might have weighed 200-225g...at most. he's just small. MissC's fantatisic Snarf was the same - always around 300-325g. 

just as some are large...my hedgie Mac was a good weight at 575-600g, others are small. as long as Misha is healthy & happy...enjoy!


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## moothecow (Jun 4, 2011)

Quinn said:


> Wow thats quite the diet canadienhedgie! I feel so lazy now lol.


Hahahaa, me too. Canadienhedgie, that's super impressive. Also, such a variety of insects! I like the "hunting" thawed crickets idea. I'll try that with some of the ones I have!


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## moothecow (Jun 4, 2011)

rivoli256 said:


> in addition to all the good info here...2 things:
> 
> 1) feeding a kibble mix with varying protein levels & fat levels may help...adding fruits & veggies may as well. have you tried wet food or baby food? cooked meats? all of these are things that can add great variety to his diet & get his weight up *IF* that is needed.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the ideas! Unfortunately, Misha's picky... he's annointed with every fruit, veggie, cooked chicken and baby food I've given him, but hasn't shown any interest in eating them. And I've tried. Repeatedly. But no luck.

You're right, he could be just small...he seems to be wheeling happily and sprawling happily, so I'm probably just being too worried. It's just sometimes I think his sides look a bit sunken in, which is what got me worried. But, he's not losing weight, so probably that's just his size. Thanks for the reassurance


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## rivoli256 (Mar 1, 2009)

Henry is as well. although he does not paint himself with food  he loves something for weeks & the suddenly, his twitchy little nose goes up, his bum turns, & he wants nothing to do with it. :roll: & then months later, guess what? back in favor. i do the same type of thing - si guess i shouldn't complain! :lol: 

keep trying with other foods. he may change his mind. does he annoint with actual chicken/turkey/beef/pork? mine never have...they are too busy stuffing it in those mouths. though i had one that didn't understand anything other than kibble was food. he got over that quickly enough.  

you could always think about adding some flax seed oil, Sunshine Factor, or Booster to his food to add some extra healthy fat to his diet. meant to mention that in my other post. i do that for all of my guys. 

& remember - a little huffy hog is much easier to handle than a big one. i can attest to that! :mrgreen:


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## DexterTheHog (May 22, 2011)

feed him this
http://eater.com/archives/2010/08/10/th ... cheese.php

jk. no one should eat that. EVER. hahaha


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## moothecow (Jun 4, 2011)

rivoli256 said:


> Henry is as well. although he does not paint himself with food  he loves something for weeks & the suddenly, his twitchy little nose goes up, his bum turns, & he wants nothing to do with it. :roll: & then months later, guess what? back in favor. i do the same type of thing - si guess i shouldn't complain! :lol:
> 
> keep trying with other foods. he may change his mind. does he annoint with actual chicken/turkey/beef/pork? mine never have...they are too busy stuffing it in those mouths. though i had one that didn't understand anything other than kibble was food. he got over that quickly enough.
> 
> ...


I tried chicken a couple of times, and he didn't even acknowledge that it was edible. I will try it again, and maybe try some other meats, too! Do you just boil them? What's the best way to cook them?

I have flax seed oil, I'll try to give him some of that! Hah, and yes, him being small is definitely an advantage for times like nail clipping. So, maybe I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.


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## moothecow (Jun 4, 2011)

DexterTheHog said:


> feed him this
> http://eater.com/archives/2010/08/10/th ... cheese.php
> 
> jk. no one should eat that. EVER. hahaha


Bahahaha , yes, I'm sure that would fatten him up nicely. Or else, I just take him here for a nice dinner: http://www.heartattackgrill.com/


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## rivoli256 (Mar 1, 2009)

i have given my quilly ones all sorts of meat. if he is not into chicken, try something else! i have yet to find one that does not go nuts for bacon. i am sure there are people on here who will want me smote for such a suggestion, but a TINY piece may get him curious. hamburger meat, turkey, ham, steak, roast beef, etc. are all things i have watched my guys chow down on....occasionally unintentionally (they can be sneaky when hanging out with a person with a plate of food!  :roll: ). 

one of my T'weeds did not understand that things other than kibble could be food. even really yummy stuff like meat. i just kept offering it to him & one day he realized there was a whole new culinary world out there. he now eats brussel sprouts! :shock: loves them. & broccoli. yellow squash, zucchini, green beans, peas, carrots, you name it. & he loves meat now. 

so it could be a need for exposure...it may take 100 tries, but the 101st may be the lightbulb.

& it really does sound like he is going to be in the elite club of petite but strong-willed hedgies. he has a great company. & 300g flailing is oh-so-much easier to contain than 600-700g doing the same "get. me. out. of. here. right. now. you. evil. quill-less. freak! you are not my mommy! let me gooooooo!" dance. :mrgreen:


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

The roasted waxworms I feed Inky to help him keep on weight (he's about 280 grams at 4 years old) are VERY high in fat and should do wonders for you if you use them. They're 56% fat.

http://www.naturespeck.com/naturespeck- ... xworms.php

I've also added Royal Canin BabyCat 34 to his diet, though, I wouldn't try too hard at first to get his weight up. He might just be a small guy, and too much fat might be more than he really needs.


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