# Miscellaneous questions



## zoologist (Sep 2, 2008)

Bare with me, please. I know i have a ton of Newbie questions, but i'm trying to learn.

1. Cloud never annoits. this is normal? The only time he annoited was with pancake syrup when he was taking his meds. when i tried to give him a different type of pancake syrup he didnt even want to eat it!

2. why do hedgehogs poop in their food/water bowls?

3. do your hedgies stay up constantly all night or do they take breaks? Cloud is only up for about an hour, then sleeps, then he's up again, and this is the routine for the night. is that normal?

4. why do you guys suggest that hedgehogs poop under their wheels?

5. Is it possible to "hedgie proof" a room so i can allow Cloud to roam around in the evening? if not, what do you suggest makes a good play pen?


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## Gnarly (Aug 29, 2008)

*Re: Missilanious question*

Asking questions is the only way you will learn, don't apologize 

1. Some hedgehogs are more prone to anointing than others. There is nothing wrong with your Cloud, just because he doesn't anoint with many things, he's probably totally normal.

2. Hedgehogs will poop/pee in their food/water bowls if they are too close together. Try spacing your bowls farther apart, or moving them to a different area of the cage, and you may stop finding poop in his dishes.

3. Again, this is dependent on the hedgehog. Some of my hedgehogs will stay up all night, others will take breaks. I find they tend to take more breaks in the morning, before they are going to go to sleep. I also have found that babies, and my old man will more often take breaks than mature hedgehogs.

4. I'm not positive what you mean by this question. Is there anyway you could re-word it? I'm sure it makes sense to everyone except for me :lol:

If you are asking "why do we encourage our hedgehogs to poop under their wheels?"
It's because it makes it easiest to clean, if they go under their wheel, as they generally make a bit of a mess from running on their wheels at night.

Or if you are asking "why do you think hedgehogs poop under their wheels most often?"
I would say because the scent of their urine and feces is already there, after it falls off or drips off the wheel while they run. Because the scent is already there, they feel it is the appropriate place to do their business (like dogs). But this is personal speculation.

5. Yes, it certainly is possibly to hedgie proof a room to let Cloud have playtime outside of his cage. Be sure to pick up any choking hazards on the floor (you might want to vacuum first, if you have carpet), block any small spaces a hedgie could try to squeeze into, and you might even want to put down a blanket or sheet, in the area you will be spending the most amount of time.
Even if you hedgie proof the room, I would still strongly suggest returning him to his cage, if you aren't there to supervise. 
There are also commercial playpens available, and using one of these tends to be easier than hedgie proofing the whole room, and many of them even fold up for easy storage. Get a ferret or chinchilla sized playpen, instead of a small-animal sized one, as these are intended for hamsters or gerbils. 
Check out some of these:
http://www.ferretdepot.com/Merchant2/me ... Code=40094
http://www.nextag.com/ferret-playpen/search-html

ETA: Is your hedgehog named after the final fantasy character? Because we have a Sephiroth here (my husband named him) and that would just be too funny!


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## Reaper (Aug 22, 2008)

Is under the wheel the darkest spot in the cage? My hedgie likes to do her business in the dark so I put a cover like a tent over her litterbox. Now she only goes while running or in the dark litterbox.


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## Gnarly (Aug 29, 2008)

That's an excellent point! I never thought of it like that. 

In most situations it's probably the darkest area of the cage, but I have two cages where it is not (the tops of the cages create shadows in the corners, and the way the light hit the wheels, it just works out that way) and those hedgehogs still go under there wheel.


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## zoologist (Sep 2, 2008)

Cloud poops EVERYWHERE in his cage, haha, he doesn't have one specific spot where he does his business. I never thought of darkness being a factor, maybe i will try to fashion a litter box with a lid of sorts and see how that works  thanks y'all

i;m sure i'll have more questions by the end of today.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

If cloud is pretty young and still pretty new to his new home, you may find that given time where he goes to the bathroom starts to become more localized. At least I have found that to be the case with the hedgehogs I've cared for.


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## weddinglady (Oct 10, 2008)

My son and I were just commenting last night how nice it is that Sweet Pea only poops/pees under her wheel. Her setup really has worked for us. We have a very shallow baking pan with folded paper towels on it, her wheel is placed on top of the paper towels and it's not in the dark. We have a little hutch for her and fleece covers over it for her to sleep in, as well as fleece liners on the floor of the cage. 

It's been a learning experience, but it's all come together. 

I think it takes some time to find the best solution for your hedgie. 

Good luck.


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## zoologist (Sep 2, 2008)

Well, we have a tad bit of sucess. I lifted up Cloud's flyer saucer and the majority of his poos were underneath it! however there are still a lot more around the other parts of the cage, but its better then nothing!


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## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

I'm weaning babies right now and had two boys on their own for the first night. They are in a sterlite bin, 13" high and there was a poop hanging on the side of the bin about an inch from the top. So, how the heck did they do that? They don't have a wheel, and only have a hedgie bag and food dishes so they couldn't have climbed. I think this is going to be one of hedgies little mysteries. :lol:


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## zoologist (Sep 2, 2008)

hahaha thats pretty cute, Nancy. 


another question:

At what age/size is a hedgehog considered an adult? Cloud is guessed to be about 6 months to a year old, yet he seems full grown. Is he an adult?


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## bryan (Aug 22, 2008)

Hedgehogs reach full maturity at about 10-11 months.

Bryan


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