# Kind of new hedgehog owner, need help.



## BradOFarrell (Mar 30, 2009)

I had hedgehogs when I was a kid, and having done research now, I feel really bad knowing I was doing everything wrong. We had them in tiny cages with pine litter, no wheel, two hedgehogs sharing a cage sometimes, and they'd always try to escape. I just got a hedgehog, named Max, and I'm trying to do things as best as I can. Here's a picture of his care, which a mess right now:










Also, you can see tons of videos of him on YouTube, here: 




I hate that wheel, I bought the smaller version of the same brand at first, but the axle stuck out in the middle and it made it impossible for him to run on it, or even get in it. So we got a bigger wheel, which is now too big to close the cage (but he never tries to escape) but it sucks too; the axel keeps unscrewing and we'll wake up in the morning and find the wheel has completely fallen over. I've been browsing the forum and I _just_ ordered a Cake Walk Supreme wheel (though I accidentally put the wrong shipping address, I sent an email to customer support, I hope it's corrected!).

Anyway, what else can I do? I notice a lot of pictures of cages here had cloth instead of bedding, and wire cages instead of glass. I use the gray Carefresh bedding, we tried the white version once and it stunk really bad as he 'used it', so we just use gray now. I don't know if a wire cage would be a good idea for Max, his transport cage is wire and he always tries to stick his nose through the wires and cuts up his face, so we replaced it with a plastic critter carrier case.

Also, litter training him has been difficult. For a while he was pooping in the litter, and we were putting the white bedding in there (since we still have a whole bag of it) but he HATES it, he'll tear all the white bedding out and throw it all over the place and flip the litter tray over. But if the grey bedding is in there he'll just ignore it. Interestingly, he'll still poop in the trey sometimes, even when there's no bedding in it, and even on top of it after he flipped it over. I don't think he has a problem with pooping in a trey, he just hates that bedding in there. Is there a better bedding we could use for litter?

Also, will he ever be so well litter trained that he won't poop all over the place? Most of those pictures of cages I saw here looked pretty clean, I don't think I'd put a cloth down unless he was really well litter trained.

Another problem I have is his hiding place. That little doghouse-looking house in the first video is from when he was a baby (a few months ago) and he outgrew it, and it started falling apart, so I threw it away. He was really upset for a while, and we've tried various other solutions but can't find anything good. Right now he's using a cardbord box that my camera came in, which feels like the perfect size, it's like a little garage and he has room to spread out and relax, he seems to like it. But it's light and it flips over a lot, and I think I'm going to have to throw it away when it gets too dirty. Is there a better long-term solution for a hiding place?

Also, the other things he has in his cage right now, are plastic balls with jingle bells in them (my cat didn't like them, but Max does), a plaster 'log' for a fish's tank (he uses it as an alternate hiding place sometimes), a rotating supply of toilet paper tubes (I cut a slit down them for safety), fruit-flavored blocks for hamsters and gerbils (he plays with them and nibbles on them), water dish and food dish (we got him 'special hedgehog formula' food but he hates it, he likes regular cat food the best) and treated pet store pinecones.

Any suggestions on things I can get him?


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## hedgieluver (Feb 18, 2009)

Litter problem: when u see poop, place it in the litter pan, and see if he gets the idea of it, and with a liner it lasts longer, if u spot clean it, and if ur hedgie is litter trained, so it doesnt get messy, and C&C cages,( Cubes& cloroplast, ) is the grid storage cubes,(which u can get at walmart, kmart ect) as the main cage, with about 6-8 in (i believe) of sign board the bottom and going up the of the cube to prevent escapes, and u can change it if u want, add more cubes, change shape, levels, Ect, and aquariums arent good, because they are for displaying fish, tall and narrow,and dont provide adequate space for a hedgie + supplies, as for hiding place, igloos, the size for guinnie pigs, are a good size, which nancy makes covers for , also, u could get or make a hedgie bag, (which nancy also makes, along with hats, and sooo many other amazing items!!!  ) or as a substitute of a tp roll, u could get a 4 in wide, +, - ,or (( shaped pvc pipe ( hardware store), and not too many hide outs will last too long, it all depends on the hedgie, u could use a tissue box, paper bowls, the ones that get destroyed easily, can probably be re placed easily lol!!!!!


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

For bedding, most people use fleece liners. These can be as simple as a single piece of fleece cut to the size of the cage, or two pieces of corduroy sewn together with a piece of fleece between them. Liners are less likely to cause respiratory problems for people and hedgies, and are usually cleaner.
That cage you have him in is still too small. Aquariums aren't considered one of the better cage choices for hedgehogs anyway. They don't provide enough ventilation and ones that are big enough for a hedgehog weigh a lot and cost a lot. Plus, when you get the CWS, I don't think it'll fit very well in that aquarium, at least not without taking up lots of room. Better choices are C&C cages or sterilite containers. You can see lots of examples of cages if you go to the housing forum and click on the cage examples thread at the top. If he tries to escape from wire cages, you might do well with two sterilite containers connected with a PVC tube, I'm pretty sure there's at least one example of one of those in the thread. A set up like that will be relatively cheap, and will be safe and more roomy for him.
For male hedgies, you have to be careful with using any kind of cat litter. Pieces of clay could get caught in their penile sheath and cause an infection. I think with males, either pine pellets (make sure it's kiln-dried) or something else...I can't remember what. You just have to be careful with litter that could be small enough to get caught in his parts. With litter training, just move any poops you see into the litter pan immediately, and he might catch on. When you go to change the litter in the pan, don't take all of the dirty litter out, or make sure you transfer a couple poops into the new litter to encourage him to keep going there. Some hedgies never litter train, though. And almost all still poop on their wheel, so you're most likely not going to see a completely clean wheel ever.
Hiding spaces are usually either large sized igloos, or you can get a pigloo, which is what I have. It's a oval shaped, plastic container that has a top and bottom part that snap together. It's solid plastic, so it's nice and dark inside. I cut up fleece strips and put them in the pigloo for Lily to cuddle up in.
Be careful with the cat balls. Hedgie jaws can get caught in the spaces if they try to bite it. Solid balls are safer for them.
Yes, most special hedgehog foods aren't good for them at all. Check out the cat food list that Reaper put in the nutrition forum. It's considered best to have a mix of two or more of those foods for them. Also, check out the hedgehog food list. If the food you have is on the bottom half of the list, throw it out immediately. If it's on the top half of the list, you can keep it in his mix if you want, but you still need a couple of good cat foods.


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