# question??? white foamy stuff



## turwin (Feb 21, 2016)

I have read all the posts and believe Pepper is just annointing herself but this is girst time Ive seen it. I put a shirt that I wore all day into her cage plus a sock that I have worn for months (I made it into a glove style to wear inside my night splints for my wrists). As soon as she noticed them she started biting the sock-so I took it out afraid she would choke on fuzy. While I did so I saw white foamy stuff on her quills so I sat and watched. She would nibble and tug at shirt then twist and lick her back/side. She did this for bit then burrowed herself into the shirt. Will this help with her getting tamer around me? Is this annointing? Should I put the sock back in? Also she was born Jan 1 2016 and doesnt play alot at night, might use her wheel for 10 mins every few nights but mostly sleeps, wakes, eats, bathroom then back to sleep. Thanks for any info. I think she is just the best and did alot of reading before I even got her so just want to ensure Im doing right thing. Its suprising how quickly you fall in love with their qurkey ways and adorable face.


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## JaredM (Apr 11, 2015)

Yes, that is annointing! I might be a little concerned about the sock fuzzies getting caught on ther toes/nails, though. Maybe only have the sock when she's supervised, but if you also have a shirt in there, you don't really need the sock too. The shirt should help a lot, especially if she's sleeping in it.

Remember that she's just a baby, so she's mostly going to sleep, eat, and poop for the next few months.


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## turwin (Feb 21, 2016)

Thank you. So its helpful then good. Also about light schd. I just have my curtains open in my room. I have south facing and west facing windows then when sun goes down I turn on a lamp and its on till around 11 or 12 at night. Is this enough or do I have to turn lamp on all day?


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## JaredM (Apr 11, 2015)

If it's _very_ bright year round and your hedgie doesn't get up, you're probably okay, but I highly recommend getting a timer. They're not very expensive and you never have to worry about turning it on/off. I have a power strip with a timer built in for half of the plugs and two LED lights for mine. It works great! You can get a single plug one for $5-$10 though.


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## turwin (Feb 21, 2016)

This is area at 6pm


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## JaredM (Apr 11, 2015)

That looks very dark.

Something like this will work for you:





This is what I use:
Amazon.com: Zilla 24/7 Digital Timer Power Center: Pet Supplies

One of those and an led bar will work great.


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## JaredM (Apr 11, 2015)

This is my cage at 6pm and one of my light bars when it's off.


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## shinydistraction (Jul 6, 2014)

Off topic, but I would change out that wheel. You have a Silent Spinner and those have been known to cause injury to hedgehogs. Their nails and toes can get caught in the little holes that are there to let urine out. Hedgehogs have broken toes and legs by getting caught in them.


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## turwin (Feb 21, 2016)

Wow. I feel terrible now. I thought I had everything ok for her. I didnt know about the wheel. From my research it was a good wheel. Any suggestions? 
Pepper uses it at night with no issues thou shes not overly active. She would rather sleep all the time but she is only 8 weeks old. And is very very grouchy. I am hoping that she stops quilling soon and goes back to way she was when I first picked her up.
Anything else about the cage I have wrong. Was thinking of going up to one of those build urself c&c cage set ups to give her more room.


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## shinydistraction (Jul 6, 2014)

Don't feel terrible. It's something that gets missed a lot and frankly silent spinners are widely available. Now you know, so you can fix it.

If you need a store bought option, the comfort wheel is the only one I would go with. Those tend to be just as easily available as the silent spinner and it's safe. Otherwise, Carolina Storm wheels are very popular. You can by one from LarryT or build one yourself.

Aside from being a bit on the small side, the cage looks fine. C&C's are pretty awesome. Lots of space for what you're going to pay for it. The one thing to keep in mind is that they are harder to heat since they're so open.


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## turwin (Feb 21, 2016)

I dont have heater just the normal house heat. The breeder told me I didnt need heater or light. But then again she recommeded the wheel.


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## shinydistraction (Jul 6, 2014)

Lol, yep, sounds like the breeder is a bit out of touch with standards of care.

You definitely need a heat and light source. For light, a simple lamp is plenty. Many use a timer on it so they don't have to remember to turn it off and on at the same time every day. The purpose is to simply create a solid day/night cycle so they don't hibernate when days start getting shorter.

For heat, there's tons of options. You can use the house heat, _*however, *_hedgehogs need a higher temperature than most people are comfortable living at. I actually keep my house warm enough for my hedgehog (i get cold easy, i'm every bit the desert creature hedgehogs are!), but I still use a heat source.

The two most popular and reliable options for heat will be a ceramic heat emitter (CHE for short) or a space heater. Either option will require a thermostat to control the temperature to keep it steady and you'll need a thermometer for the cage so you know what the actual temperature is.

To keep it simple, a CHE will heat only the cage, have a larger upfront cost but a lower long term cost to keep operating.

Space heaters will heat the entire room that it's in, generally have a lower upfront cost (although that just depends on how fancy of a heater you want), but tend to have a higher long term cost to keep running.

Either solution is fine, you just need to decide what works best for you. As a side note, heating pads are not appropriate. I mention it because it comes up a lot.


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## turwin (Feb 21, 2016)

Thank you for the info. I did like 2 mths of research and asked the breeder tons of questions while waiting for Pepper to be ready to be weaned to come home. Breeder been at it for over 3 yrs. Says she doesnt do heat or lights. Guess Im off to store tomorrow to find a better light, timer and heat source. Knew about light but thought the light I had was ok. Same with heat. But again going with what breeder had. Maybe this is why she sleeps alot. 
Ill be looking into the Larry T wheel option.


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## JaredM (Apr 11, 2015)

If you want to learn more, this book is fantastic and well regarded on the forum http://www.westcoasthedgehogs.com/files/hedgehogbook/download.html

C&Cs are awesome and I highly recommend one, but they are as said harder to heat. Mine in the picture is a 4x2, which is a little under 5ft. x 2.5ft. I have 2 150W CHEs heating it and my room temp. needs to be kept around 70 in the winter for them to keep the cage warm enough. They can only boost about 5-10 degress over the room.


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## shinydistraction (Jul 6, 2014)

The problem is that anyone with two hedgehogs can be a breeder. They don't have to know a thing about them, they can just breed them. And they do. Many get into it thinking they can make money. They then discover the only way to make money is to be very unethical about it. So they are either unethical, or get out of it. After bringing lots of new animals into the world of course. Others get into it for superficial reasons and do little to no research. Unfortunately, a USDA license means very little when it comes to actual knowledge. 

The best thing you can do is research your breeders and only purchase from knowledgeable, ethical breeders. And encourage others to do the same.


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## turwin (Feb 21, 2016)

Jared-- i printed that off today and read it. Its awsome for info.

Saving up to get c&c and a wheel from Larry but have to finish college first. Last days is in 2 weeks March 11th

Thank you to you both for the info. 

Tomorrow Im going to get therometer, heater and some kinda light and some mealworms to treat Pepper. I feel like a bad hedgie momma so maybe treats will perk her up.


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