# A n00b owner's worries.



## GrimHedge (Aug 30, 2011)

So I've had my hedgie for 3 days now. First day, he had so much diarrhea and his poop was green and smelled like ****, actual ****. But I read here that I should wait because it was most likely due to stress. His stool has since become brown and while he doesn't seem to be suffering from diarrhea his poop is still squishy and not very well formed. The horrible smell hasn't faded one bit. Should I be worried? How "squishy" is hedgehog stool supposed to be?

I also worry about this other issue. Today when put him on his wheel he started scratching his back with both legs (one at a time but trying to aim for a spot in the middle of his back). He hadn't scratched before. So I took him out of his wheel to check if he had something on his back and there was nothing. He seemed sleepy so I let him rest. But about 2 hours ago he seemed playful so I let him get on the wheel again and he started scratching again. I could tell he was happy on the wheel but he was constantly stopping to scratch himself. When he got off the wheel, he stopped scratching. Is this normal behavior? I know the wheel's clean because I've washed it every time after he's done walking.


----------



## CourtneyFaye (Jul 31, 2011)

What food are you feeding him? And did you suddenly change it?

Can you see you hedgehog's skin to see if it is dry? 
Is there any quills falling out? It could be quilling or mites.


----------



## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

I haven't had hedgies that long either, but how old is your little guy? If he's a baby, then itching MAY be normal, as he may be quilling. And babies have smelly poop, especially if you have changed his food. I could be way off on this, and I'm sure someone with more experience will be along soon to give you some tips. 

But, if you just got the guy, a vet visit is in order anyways because you want to make sure he's healthy. Many health problems, caught early, are way less expensive to treat and recover from if they are caught early. Scheduling a vet visit is a good idea if you haven't been already.

Welcome to HHC, btw!


----------



## Nancy (Aug 22, 2008)

I think I'd take the little one to the vet. While green soft poo is normal from the stress of a new home, diarrhea and the horrid smell is a concern especially that it happened the first day. 

Really rank smelling poop often signals an intestinal infection. Is this a make you gag sort of smell?


----------



## GrimHedge (Aug 30, 2011)

He only scratches on the wheel, there's no scratching at all any other time of the day.

He must be around 3-4 months.

It isn't a smell that triggers your gag reflex, it's just REALLY bad and penetrating. I can leave the house and feel like the smell is inside my nose.


----------



## GrimHedge (Aug 30, 2011)

Oh and about the vet.

I sort of rescued my hedgehog from a bad home. 
I live in Mexico and vets that know about hedgies are especially rare. I know of one, but he's out of town and I'm desperately trying to find one in case there's an emergency. The vet I took him to on day 1 knew squat about hedgehogs so I really don't know where to take him.

That being said, he seems fine, he eats a lot, sleeps a lot but doesn't seem depressed or awfully tired. He gets very jumpy when I try to grab him but after that he's very docile. I also wouldn't call the poop diarrhea anymore, it's just very squishy with no discernible form.
In my opinion, he doesn't drink enough water, but when I try to give him some he's not that interested. I've pinched his belly (with great effort) and he doesn't seem dehydrated, but I still worry.

I've also been keeping him in a rather small cage because getting C&C ones here is very hard. So I had to order one, it arrives today in the afternoon and it's BIG (2nd floor and everything)! I'm hoping that will decrease his nervousness a little bit (or a lot).


----------



## Guest (Sep 1, 2011)

If the poop smells what are you feeding your hedgehog? I am thinking since you mentioned rescue you might not have know what he was eating before you got him so it might have been partly an upset tummy but the food its ingesting could be the reason for smelly poop.


----------



## GrimHedge (Aug 30, 2011)

*WARNING! POOP PICTURES AHEAD!*

These are photos taken not 10 minutes ago, his latest poop. The smell is gone, like completely. YAY!



This pretty much looks like his typical stool



These look a bit more runny but the cage floor had a little water.
IMPORTANT: I do not keep him in that cage, I just put him there while I cleaned his other temporal cage which is bigger. He took the chance to poop to his heart's content.

Thoughts?


----------



## Guest (Sep 1, 2011)

That does not look good to me and IMO needs a vet but what is he being fed?


----------



## susanaproenca (Aug 14, 2010)

His stool doesn't look normal, I think I can see some mucus on it which isn't a good sign. You can take a stool sample to any vet that sees small animals and ask them to run a fecal test, that way you will know if he has a infection or parasite, etc.  

I also agree with Nancy, he might need a vet. Good luck finding one who sees hedgies. Keep us posted!


----------



## GrimHedge (Aug 30, 2011)

HE'S BETTER!

I finally got the materials for his C&C cage and he looks energized by the sudden increase in movement space.

Here's a photo of me and the little guy. (Yes, I know, I'm in pain. I'm still learning to handle him)



Thx for all the advice, guys!I really appreciate it

Now I need him to buy him a bunch of toys so the cage doesn't look so empty.


----------



## Guest (Sep 2, 2011)

Its wonderful you've expanded your hedgies domain however there are many safety concerns:

The coroplast is not very high you hedgehog could try to climb and could escape or just fall all together and possibly cause internal bleeding

The ramp needs to be enclosed hedgehogs vision is not the best and they can easily take a fall and walk right off the edge which can lead to internal bleeding

Since the coroplast isn't high your hedgehog could climb that and fall from an ever greater height.

You'll want to construct a lid with Cage Grids.

The rodent wheel you have is going to be quiet to pain to clean each day as he poops and pees in it at night and those fumes are going to be trapped in the wheel as he runs the entire night for the most part, also if you hedgehog gets to be bigger he may not even fit easily.

Most importantly that poop is no where near normal at all if its been like that then you really need to be more concerned with your hedgehogs well being and health cause there is potentially an internal issue.

I am not saying any of this to be mean or make you feel bad, however there is much that could cause harm to you hedgie and I think you genuinely want to care for the little one


----------



## shaelikestaquitos (Feb 2, 2010)

Hahaha your face his hilarious in this picture :lol:

TWCOGAR gave good advice. Besides the walls being a bit too low, the cage looks great.

I also would not suggest the Wodent Wheel, just because of the amount of poop/pee hedgies leave when they run... it'd be such a pain to clean!


----------



## GrimHedge (Aug 30, 2011)

The wheel is temporal, I'm waiting for the one recommended on this site to arrive and I clean every time he uses it (2-3 times a day). 

I'm getting some plexiglas tomorrow to make the escape impossible.

I had not thought about the ramp though, I'm gonna add walls to it. Thanks for the advice, you may have saved Sam's life.

But I'm not worried about tonight because I'm gonna be coding all night so I'll be keeping an eye on him.


----------

