# How well do hedgehogs deal with being moved to new environments?



## Atelerix (May 7, 2016)

Hey everybody,

I'm looking at a career change and have seen some jobs that may entail some travel. Nothing like a consultant, but it could still be up to eight weeks a year, probably in small one- or two-week chunks. 

If I were to travel more than a few days, I'd like to have my hedgie stay somewhere where he can be seen each evening and played with. Right now, for short (couple days) trips I just ask my girlfriend to swing by and clean his wheel, change his water and food. I think for an extended period it'd be better for him to be somewhere with a routine similar to when I'm home.

How stressful is it for their habitat to be changed a few times in the course of a month or two? I would be keeping the cage and everything, just moving from say my apartment to my parent's house and vise versa.


----------



## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

It depends on the hedgehog, honestly. Some deal well with it, some get very stressed. In general, I wouldn't expect it to be excessively stressful for most hedgehogs, especially with the same cage. It can help to make sure the bedding has been in the cage for a day or two prior to the environment change, so things still smell more like him. If he's going to the same location each time, such as your parent's house, he'll likely become more familiar with it after a couple visits & the stress of the switch should lessen as well.

I just brought both of my girls to my dad's house for the first time, which included a 12 hour drive. I'd consider them to be dealing with it quite well - they both have been eating normally & wheeling each night, and poop hasn't been very different. The main change is that they're both huffier and a little more defensive, since things smell weird and it's a little different.


----------



## Atelerix (May 7, 2016)

That's what I was hoping to hear. Oats seems like a pretty simple 'hog. Keep the food and water coming and he's content, although I have noticed he can be a bit moody the first night I'm back from a short trip. I would definitely have him socialize with my family well before any travel, more for their benefit than his (so they know how to handle him). Thank you for the input.


----------

