# Norma's weight



## panda (May 23, 2011)

Hi all, its been a while but things have been really good here...
Other than i am slightly concerned with Norma's weight, she seems plump, but does not get the "sweat stains" and is able to curl into a ball just fine.
She snacks on her cat food often even during the day which i call her midnight snacks :lol: I weighed her today.. she is 582 grams :? I have read in some places an average number but other places say to look more at their appearance and ignore numbers... so i dont really know that her weight contributes to this.

She is on the following mixture.. Innova Low Fat Adult, Blue Buffalo Basics, Purina One Beyond Chicken and Whole Oat Meal 

I am wondering if maybe i should only have the food available during night time and maybe have a small amount of crickets during the day instead of the cat food since crickets are low in fat?
For a few months now I have stopped the meal worms thinking that may have contributed but it has not seemed to make a difference.
Maybe she is fine and I am just overly worried?
Thanks ahead for any help, opinions or suggestions.

I'll also add that i do not feet her Any 'junk' & I handle her everyday and have her out of her enclosure as long and as frequently as possible, she also has a large enclosure as well, enough space to exercise. She is well cared for, but maybe just enjoys the cat food a bit too much


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## HedgieGirl519 (Oct 21, 2011)

Maybe the Purina One Beyond is too high in fat for her? I believe it is 14%.


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## Guest (Jun 17, 2012)

Some are just bigger signs of her being over wieght would be having excess fat rolls around the legs, and if you look at her when she's moving from the top she hour look like This |. | overweight hedgehog will look like (. )


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## hanhan27 (May 12, 2011)

Panda - just want to say that I've missed you & Norma! I hope you figure out her weight & diet.


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## panda (May 23, 2011)

Thanks hanhan :]

hedgiegirl... Unfortunately I have a huge tub of the cat foods mixed together so picking out one type of kibble might be a bit difficult & impractical.. :? Shes been on this mixture since I got her over a year ago and for a long time it was working well, maybe its just too delicious that she cant stop snacking on it :lol: 
Wondering if anyone has thoughts on simply just cutting back on access to the kibble?..... switching from crickets to kibble at different times?..... maybe kibble one day, crickets next, or like i mentioned before crickets in the day and kibble at night... she does a Lot of midday snacking, and every time i take her out of her enclosure and put her back she runs to the food dish. My guess is she is just over eating a bit. Maybe give her less kibble?
I hate the idea of not allowing her full access to food but she apparently isnt just eating when hungry anymore :roll: & im not really sure how to go about getting her to lose the weight... maybe mix in some more Innova Low Fat Adult?

By the guidelines i've read about & including lilyhogs  , I definitely dont think she is obese, just slightly overweight... so thats the plus side


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## panda (May 23, 2011)

I'd like to also add that usually when I give Norma crickets she would still have access to the kibble.. hence why Im wondering about maybe cycling the two rather than having both available simultaneously.


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## bmaditz (Jun 11, 2012)

I would recommend giving her only a tablespoon of food a day, and that includes crickets. Also you could try hiding her food around her cage. She'll have to move around to get the food which would be forcing her to exercise. You'll find that the healthier she gets the more she'll move around.  Be patient with the process. Just be sure to remember where you hide the food to be sure she's eating it all.


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## panda (May 23, 2011)

I'm definitely going to have to lessen the amount of kibble, like i said though her activity level is very high. 
I guess I'm just going to have to go through trial and error. 
Thanks for the input everyone.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Personally, rather than limiting her kibble, I'd try offering more options that might help fill her up. Frozen crickets would work well, and sometimes veggies can help fill them up, so they eat less kibble. If she won't eat fresh veggies, you could always give baby food a try, or just puree whole fresh veggies, if you want. I've always seen/heard it said that limiting food intake is the last resort to help a hedgehog lose weight, and if she's not to the point of obesity yet, I wouldn't want to go that extreme just yet.


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## panda (May 23, 2011)

lilysmommy THANK YOU  
I hate the idea of not having food available for her when she wants it, in the last comment i meant more as in limit kibble for more crickets.. only feeding her a tablespoon seems a bit too extreme, shes always been a good eater even when i first brought her home.. i cant stand the thought of her sitting with a rumbly tummy. I'm glad you shared with me as I was hoping someone had more specific ideas so thank you so much.. I really dont think she is towards obesity, but just a bit chubbier than she should be... & I forgot to mention that I have tried other foods with her to no avail, mostly fruits and a few veggies, but she loves her crickets and i know they are low in fat so i'll just start giving her more of those to fill her up. maybe every other day switch or something. I havent tried the baby food with her but I'll look into it if the crickets dont help.
Also, whenever I give her crickets they are always in a dig and/or hidden about her enclosure, never just in a dish like the kibble. She loves them but I have always done them more as treats once a week, give or take.. I'll just try more frequently with them & hope for the best. Thanks again to everyone for input. Its set my mind at ease.. I think I knew what I needed to do but needed some other opinions to make me feel more sure. Thanks!!


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

No problem, glad I was helpful! The only other note I wanted to make about the crickets is, watch her poop as you start to increase the number of crickets. If I'm remembering right, a couple people have mentioned that the exoskeletons could possible cause a bit of constipation, if they get a lot of them at once and they're not used to it. I would think she'd be fine, but just something to keep an eye out for. When I was hiding them for Lily, I was giving her (I think...my memory's starting to get hazy here) 4-6 crickets a night, hidden around her cage. She did fine with that number, but I imagine that it'd vary a bit between hedgies.

And another note about the baby food - if she's not inclined to try a straight veggie baby food, another thing you could try is adding a bit of meat baby food or maybe a little canned cat food (probably try them first on their own and see if they even catch her interest) to the veggie baby food and mix it all up. The smell/taste of the meat might entice her to eat it all, even if it's more veggies than meat. That was how I got Lily to try new foods - she'd eat any kind of baby food if I mixed it with chicken or turkey baby food. Canned cat food was even better! Even a small amount would give the baby food the smell/taste, I think, so personally I'd think the benefits might outweigh the protein/fat from the meat. Just another idea to consider! Good luck and I hope you guys find something that works!


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## panda (May 23, 2011)

Thanks!!
I plan on trying to rotate from crickets & the kibble every other day & see how it goes after a few weeks... I'm definitely going to try the baby food too when I can. She hasnt had issues with the crickets yet... I freeze mine so it makes them a bit mushier when they thaw.. but I have always kept an eye out but I think she should be okay... Thanks again so much for all the tips!


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