# Walking?



## avr82793 (Nov 1, 2012)

Okay, so my boyfriend thinks that when we get our hedgehog in about 6 weeks (the liters were born yesterday and today ) that we can take it on walks, with a leash and a harness. I think it's a cute idea but I'm not 100% sure how good of an idea it is. I'd really like someone's opinion before we get him/her. Has anyone ever experimented with taking your hedgie on an actual walk?

Any opinion or help would be great.

Thanks guys


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Their bodies don't really work for harnesses and leashes, and they're so small you can carry them in one hand. Don't bother with the leash and harness, just get a carrying bag. We take our hedgies virtually everywhere with us, it's one of the best methods of socialization. This is the kind I make:


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## avr82793 (Nov 1, 2012)

They don't try to climb out of those bags? They're very cute though.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Nah, they just sleep most of the time. Occasionally if they're in your lap they might try to worm out of it, but the flap helps with that.


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## JulieAnne (Sep 3, 2012)

I take my hedgie almost EVERYWHERE with me. If I'm going somewhere that may not appreciate me bringing one (like, to class, or the bookstore... I try not to take her in restaurants and grocery stores) I put her in my GIANT purse in a glass bowl to keep her from getting crushed. I just put the bowl in the bottom of my purse with a blue surgical towel (I worked at a vets office and they give me their old surgical towels but a hand towel or bath cloth would work too) for some cushioning and insulation from the cold, hard glass bowl. I then take one of those sleep pouches, hers is red in the picture below, and then cover her again with a fleece pink blanket to make sure she stays warm and hidden. Here's a picture of Prim in my purse while I was sitting in class. She just sleeps the whole time we're out.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

We take ours virtually everywhere as well. I've taken them to class with me - my fiance won't take them to work, but he's taken them to 2-hour meetings for work and they get a lot of attention, haha. We've done stores (including grocery stores, it's not like they can tell the difference between a hedgehog carry bag and a purse), movie theaters, restaurants, any sort of errands that need doing, etc.


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## avr82793 (Nov 1, 2012)

Moxie I think I'll be buying a VVH wheel and carry bag before I get my little bundle of quills, but my boyfriend and I still have to decide who is buying what. xD

And it's offical, I need a giant purse again for the sole purpose of bring my hedgie to class. I have a friend who has one, she used to bring hers to school all the time (when we were in high school). And she would bring him in her pocket, or the cage because she was taking a vet class so she got to bring him and it wasn't a big deal.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

avr82793 said:


> Moxie I think I'll be buying a VVH wheel and carry bag before I get my little bundle of quills, but my boyfriend and I still have to decide who is buying what. xD


Thanks! Can't wait for the order!  We have some pre-made carry bags that aren't posted yet, I just keep forgetting to take the photos to post them on Etsy, haha. So excited for you, too!

The times I've brought one to class I've just used a carry bag. My fiance's sister (who owns a hedgie from the same litter as our girl, Anubis) uses a big tote bag that she carries her usual school stuff in, and she has a tupperware container in there (to keep him from getting smushed by her books, etc) with a bag and blanket for him. Neither of us have had to hide the fact that we have them with us. I guess if you know a certain prof is just not a pleasant person, that's something different, but the other students and the profs really enjoy when a hedgie comes to class. They're not a disruptive pet by any means. I assume campus security might take issue with it if they knew, but that's easy to avoid, lol.


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## FaunaQT (Oct 24, 2012)

So... when you guys take your hedgehogs out, what do you do if it has an accident? Do you just carry clorox wipes with you?


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

We just have paper towels on hand. You can bring a travel-size bottle of hand sanitizer, or a packet of hand wipes/baby wipes, or whatever your personal preference is. As long as we have the time, I make a point of giving the hedgie(s) a foot bath so they can do their business and get it out of their system. Usually once they pee in the water they're done for hours (not necessarily true for babies though). It doesn't completely prevent poop, but it reduces the quantity that ends up in the bag. More often if they're going to poop while we have them out with us, it's when we have them out of the bag and in our hands. In the bag, they mostly just sleep. For a baby I'd suggest having an extra sleeping bag or just a small fleece blanket for them, that way if they make a mess of the inside of the bag, you can still carry them in it without them getting dirty from it.


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## JulieAnne (Sep 3, 2012)

I keep a little travel size thing of Kleenex in my purse and I have paper towels in my car too. I also have a travel size thing of hand sanitizer and baby wipes in my purse. Really for "messes" you just need kleenex since their poop is pretty solid.


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

I love outings with hedgehogs, Quigley used to come with me to buy his insects from the pet store and we used to go to the park. I had to take him to class once because we had to leave right after to get to the vet. I asked the prof before hand if it would be ok if I brought him in and she said it was fine. I took him in his hard sided carrier and he just slept in it. Most people didn't even realize I had him. On my campus people were always walking dogs around and stuff so when it was warm we sat in grass and Quigley would wander around a little. I made sure he stayed close though. Or sometimes we'd go to the park and explore but I had to follow him closely if he wandered around. You can only do this when it is warm out and make sure that the place you are going doesn't use pesticides. I personally wouldn't let a hedgehog walk around on the sidewalk or other rough paved surface because I think it would be too hard on their little feet. I would usually just carry Quigley in a blanket until we got to the park. He liked to be carried around outside, he would open right up and stick his nose in the air and sniff like crazy. Luckily he wasn't too squirmy.


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