# Need Help With My Hedgehog



## toes123 (Aug 2, 2010)

I adopted a hedgehog from my local humane society and he has 3 and a half legs. He can walk around fine but I have read online that hedgehogs need a wheel and I tried putting one in his cage and he hasn't touched it but I am also worried it could hurt his little club foot if he does run on it a lot.

I don't want him to get obese from not having any exercise so I'm not sure how much to feed him. I'm currently feeding him about one tablespoon of mixed cat food(Blue Buffalo Wilderness weight management, Innova weight management & Wellness Weight Management) and I will add some fruits/veggies and/or mealworms.

So am I feeding him too much/too little? And will him not using his wheel be bad for him?


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

If he's never had a wheel, he might just not know how to use it. With a club foot though, I'm not sure what the best thing to do would be...I wonder if you could put a fleece liner on the wheel somehow, to help protect the club? Of course, that'd make for some very messy laundry! If he doesn't like the wheel, or has trouble using it or anything, you could always just encourage movement in his cage. Giving him as much room as you can, then encouraging him to explore with hidden treats and toys might keep him well-exercised and keep him from getting bored.

As far as food and feeding, most people free-feed hedgies. They won't typically overeat, and the best way to manage weight gain/loss is with what kinds of food and the fat percentages of his food. If he has lower fat food (below 15%), that should help, as would offering fruits/veggies. Veggies especially should help with that. If he doesn't want to try raw/cooked veggies, I've found that Lily is happy to try new veggies in the form of baby food, especially when mixed with a meat baby food. A good low-fat treat (that you can also use for hiding in his cage) are crickets. I buy them live, then freeze them and hide them in Lily's cage. Mealworms are good too, though they have more fat than crickets.

Hope that helps a little bit...And hopefully you'll get some more answers/opinions on the safety of the wheel with his little leg.


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## Pokey (Aug 21, 2011)

First of all you just made me so happy to hear that you adopted a "less fortunate" hedgie! -gets emotional- lolol. He's so lucky to have a caring owner. But I would agree with that lillysmom had to say, if he didn't have a wheel before adoption, chances are he will not use one now, especially with his small hinderance. I would also recommend adding a bit more room for exercise or just take him out of his home more often to get the exercise he might be lacking from a wheel. Food-wise I also agree with lillymom, most won't overeat, but it is a good idea to monitor his weight and how much he's eating. As long as you are thorough with the details he should live a happy healthy lifestyle! Kudos to you again! n_n


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## Sarahg (Feb 18, 2010)

My girl, Stub, has three legs and she runs on her wheel(s) like a maniac!

When she was younger, I used a checkbook box as a step for her to get up and down more easily, but now she doesn't need it.

I agree with Lillysmommy, If he's never had one, he might not know what it is. You can try putting him on the wheel and SLOWLY turning it, so he gets the idea.

One thing to keep in mind is to keep a close eye on his "half leg" as I've found Stub's gets dirty very fast.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Sarahg said:


> My girl, Stub, has three legs and she runs on her wheel(s) like a maniac!
> 
> When she was younger, I used a checkbook box as a step for her to get up and down more easily, but now she doesn't need it.
> 
> ...


I KNEW we had someone on here currently with a three-legged hog and could not remember who. Glad you saw this post!


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## Rikkusenpai (Oct 29, 2014)

I also have a 3 footed hedgie. She used to run all the time but since she lost a foot she is a lot less active. We are going on about 5 months now and I haven't noticed any change in her weight (I free feed her) but I do worry that she gets bored. I wouldn't worry about obesity if you have a good food source/realistic ideas of how much to feed him/her. We like to lay down a bunch of fleece in our room and let her walk on that while we lay on it. We have found that our hedgie finds more joy in burrowing now rather than running. Maybe try making/buying some burrow tunnels to play in for exercise?


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

Please check the date on a thread before posting to it. This thread is almost 4 years old and the original poster hasn't been on this forum for over 3 years.


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