# Hedgehog that doesn't like bugs??



## nphedgehogs (Apr 29, 2009)

It has been a little over a week since we got our first hedgie, an 8 month old female. Her previous owner stated she likes grapes and chicken. Well, we did not want to continue with the grapes, so we started trying other fruits with no luck. No luck with the chicken either. We then decided to try some insects, mealworms and crickets. She turned her nose up at both. Is it possible for a hedgehog not to like insects if they have never had them? Lastly her previous owner had her on Science Diet cat food. We tried sticking a few pieces of the recommended cat food into her bowl, again with no luck. Are we doing something wrong?


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## AAdict (May 2, 2009)

just keep trying - hedgies seem to be quite naturally suspicious - maybe an instinct thing to stop them from eating poisonous foods? so it may take them a little while to realise that insects are edible and they are yummy also - she may be abit slow on the intake first of but in time maybe she will come to like them - is it possible to mix them with a food she will take so she realises it is nice to eat?


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Some hedgehogs are just very picky. With the insects, sometimes it helps if you cut them in half so they get a better whiff of the scent and it may entice her to try them. She may not realize they're food, or she just may not be interested in trying them. Sometimes it may take repeated exposures of the food to convince them that it's worth trying. You just have to keep working at it, and sometimes it may all come to nothing anyway.

With the cat food, you'll want to get her off Science Diet, it's not a really good one. To switch her on to a good one (from Reaper's list in the food/nutrition section, if you haven't already looked), just put in a small amount, say 40 kibble of SD to 10 kibble of new food, and keep that ratio for a couple of days. Then move it up to 30:20, then 20:30, and so on until you have only new food. You may want to count the kibble while you're switching her, so you'll know if she's trying any of the new food, and make sure she's still eating something. If she refuses to try any of the new food, she may just not like it. In that case, you'll have to find a different one to switch her too. Different hedgies have different tastes, so it's mostly trial and error. One food that lots of hedgehogs seem to really like, though, is Natural Balance Green Pea and Duck. And it's also a good idea to buy food from (if you have one near) Petco, because they have a policy that you can return opened bags of cat food within a month if you have the receipt and you'll get your money back. That makes it nice when you're trying to figure out which foods your hedgehog likes.


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## rivoli256 (Mar 1, 2009)

my guy hates bugs. all sorts. live, dead, freeze dried...you name it, i've tried it, he hates it. even snuffling around on the ground outside - i have seen him ignore a nice bug & eat a leaf instead :roll: :lol: & this is a formerly wild hedgie. so in theory, he would have had the opportunity to eat bugs. i truly believe he has always given them the "talk to the paw"...i got him when he was very young...still should have been with momma & my guess is he survived off of fallen dates on the ground, as he has a penchant for fruit. he certainly prefers human food over anything else. & bugs are not on the menu.


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## magenh (Jun 14, 2009)

I got my first little guy, Mac, to eat exactly 2 mealworms ever. I tried live, freeze dried, various sizes and he wouldn't touch any of them. If I put them in his food bowl he would root them out. He was extremely picky. He liked his cat food and not much else.


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## silvercat (Oct 24, 2008)

Sylvie loves her mealworms but has no interest in any other bugs. She's sniffed at them & then turned away. I gave her a silk worm once that she chewed half of it & then spit it back out for me to clean up. :?


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