# HELP! My hedgie has been throwing up lately



## cassieh767 (Jan 7, 2015)

Hello everyone. I am new to to the forum but not new to hedgehogs. I am apologizing in advance for the length of my post. I am posting over concern for my 3 yr old female APH named Buckley. On Thursday of last week I noticed that there was dried vomit in her cage. I cleaned the vomit and took her out of the cage like i do every evening and she seemed fine. She was active and acted like her normal self. When I put her in her cage she went straight to her food and ate. Within a couple of minutes she vomited again. I scheduled a vet apt ASAP and was able to get her in Friday afternoon. I should note that she ate more food that night, drank water, and wheeled. Also she had normal urine and poop. There was no evidence of vomit the next day.

At the vet I described what had happened. The vet felt of her body to make sure everything felt normal. He was also able to take a fecal sample. He also took an x ray to rule out the possibility of a growth or obstruction. Everything seemed perfectly normal and I was sent home and told to monitor her. He also gave me a syringe and instructions to use in case there was loss of appetite. He also wanted me to get a photo of the vomit if it happened again. I will also note that the vet is specialized in exotics and is familiar with hedgies.

That night Buckley ate and drank with no evidence of vomit. The night after though the vomiting reoccurred. This has happened for the past few nights. Sometimes she vomits and sometimes she doesnt. She is still eating, drinking, and acting normally. The vomiting almost always happens very soon after eating. I should also note that there has been no changes made to her diet either. The vet can find no obvious reason as to why she keeps getting sick, and I am at my wits end. It's so upsetting to know there is something wrong with her and I have no idea of how to help her. The first instinct is to go to the vet which a have done. I feel pretty helpless with the whole situation. I am hoping someone here may have had a similar experience and be able to lend some advice!


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

What kind of food is she getting? What shape is it? What does the vomit look like, is it mostly bile, or digested food, or barely-digested food? With the food you have, how old is the bag? Have you tried getting a new bag to see if maybe there's something going on with the one you have? Or if it's a new bag, maybe there's something up with it?

Try to write down as many notes as you can each evening. Note down the weather, temperature in cage, her behavior, anything you do with her or don't do with her (if you skip something for your normal routine), etc. Maybe something will give you a clue or make some pattern show up that could link to what might be causing her problems.


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## cassieh767 (Jan 7, 2015)

The food idea was the first thing the vet suggested. It's a mix of hedgehog food recommended by the vet, as well as some Hills Science diet cat food. We mix in some wet cat food and mealies for treats sometimes. She was halfway through her bags of dry food when the sick started. We replaced them with new bags to rule out the possibility of old food. The problem persisted. We also have a second hedgie who has been eating the same diet without any of Buckley's issues. I am stumped :/

We are limiting her to a mix of hedgehog food mixed with wet food to have some control over the variables.


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