# sudden extreme personality change



## zunmo (May 16, 2014)

A little more than a week ago my hedgie Linus, who has always been a cuddly sleepy guy, suddenly had a total personality change and became very anxious and hyperactive. I'm at my wits end and getting a little nervous. 

When I take him out and try to cuddle like usual, he'll climb off the bed or couch and run all over my apartment like he's on fire, just dipping halfway into one room before he decides he needs to run somewhere else. He doesn't try particularly hard to burrow anywhere, either. Then he dashes for his cage in the next room and tries desperately to claw his way back in. When I pick him up and put him inside, he can't seem to find the entrance to his hutch, just now he ran into the side like three times! I also noticed that he peed in his bed the other night, which is very very strange.

I wouldn't be so worried except that the whole time he's doing this his expression is one of terror. I turned the heat up this week and it's done nothing to fix the problem; he has a heat lamp, and when it's super cold I turn a heating pad on just in case (I know, I know, I shouldn't use it, I just get worried. it's not under his bed.). I really don't know what this could be, any help would be appreciated, but I really don't think this is a fluke. It's been going on for such a long time.


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## twobytwopets (Feb 2, 2014)

Any time a major personality change happens a vet visit is recommended. 
That being said, let's go over some basics. 
How old is Linus, and how long have you owned him?
How are you heating his cage? Specifically what equipment are you using? How about lighting? No this doesn't sound hibernation to me but improper husbandry can cause issues. 
What if anything changed in the past month? Move, new smells, new family pet, change in diet, change in schedule? Anything like that can tip these guys off.
Does he run on a wheel? If he has pent up energy he has to release it somehow.
Is he better if you section off an area for him to play in? If the area is too big and open he may panic because then he is vulnerable. This is his mentality with being a prey animal.


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## zunmo (May 16, 2014)

Hey! Thanks for this-

I have had Linus for two years and I would estimate he was a bit more than two months when I got him. I do worry because I didn't get him from a reputable breeder and so I've started to get stressed about various issues that could come from that.

I am heating his cage with one heat lamp, but it doesn't have a ceramic bulb- I ordered some online but they never came so I'm planning on hunting some down this weekend. There haven't been any real changes in the past month except the temperature dropping, but like I said I've turned the heat on and am keeping it around 68-70 degrees and he has a heat lamp. I moved into this place in August and he's seemed very happy since it's the quietest place we've lived. 

The past few days he has been a lot calmer; I think it's a combination of me keeping him in my bed and the heat having been turned off since it got very warm. My working theory is that there's a smell he doesn't like coming from the heating ducts- it's a new system and I noticed a smell at first. So I think maybe it's a combination of that and not liking being out of my bedroom with all my dirty clothes and smells. But still, when I put him on the floor he runs for his cage instead of burrowing under something like he always has in the past. 

I am going to take him to the vet when I go to my parents at thanksgiving since his vet is out there. I'm feeling a little less panicked at the moment.


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## twobytwopets (Feb 2, 2014)

Ok, we have clues now. When did you start using the heat lamp? He has light on him 24/7 his rhythms are all messed up. He needs to be in the dark at night. That is something you have control over. 
Smell from heat vents, maybe a cause and there is less you can do with that but it's most likely the lighting situation. 
Finding a vet, depending on how close you live to your parents, you need to find a vet that can see your hedgehog. If your vet near your parents is accessible to you in an emergency then you should be fine. If it's longer of a drive than is feasible in an emergency situation then it's time to start finding a vet that can fill this void.


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