# How to deal with the loss of a hedgehog? :-(



## Lovemyhedgie (Jan 13, 2010)

A week ago today my little Higgins didn't wake up from his nap. How do you deal with the death of your little Hedgie?


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## Hedgiepets (Aug 21, 2008)

I am sorry for your loss. Everyone deals with it in their own way.


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## strawberryfields (Oct 3, 2009)

Rocko is my first hedgehog, so I haven't dealt with the loss of a hedgie yet. I dread the day when it happens, and hope that it will be years in the future.

Losing a pet is always hard.. I lost my first dog, Lady, a little over a year ago. She was eight years old and died of lymphoma. Everyone deals differently with losing pets, and my way was to cry like there was no tomorrow. I put pictures of her all over my room and refused to sweep her hair off the floor. (She was a Sheltie and her hair was always getting on everything!) One day I just sort of came to peace with it. After a few weeks of feeling angry and confused, it occurred to me that she is now happy and healthy. I think we are both waiting for the day when we see eachother again.  
I've lost a few other pets too. Two hamsters, a mouse, and a beta fish that I was surprisingly attached to. Hedgedaddy's cat also died recently, and I had become close to her. 

It's never easy. In my opinion, it is just as hard as losing a human loved one. You should deal with it whatever way brings you peace. If it comforts you to look at pictures of Higgins, then do so - but if it makes you feel worse, than leave the pictures alone for a while until you are ready to see them again. If you want to write stories or poems about him, do that. Sometimes just crying helps, or talking about it. Other times it just feels best to keep it inside. Whatever brings you comfort, go ahead and do it. And remember that Higgins loved you very much, and wants you to be happy. <3


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## brtngrl (Sep 15, 2011)

i lost my little tiggywinkle last night while under the care of the emergency vet service. she just went to sleep and never woke up. i can only pray she wasn't in pain and that she finds happiness on the other side. i have never cried as much as i have since. i couldn't sleep last night as every time i did i saw her laying in the warming cage looking at me as if to say "why". losing a pet, especially a year old hedgie is gut wrenching. if anyone can offer some advice on how to get through, it would be greatly appreciated.


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## Quinn (Apr 24, 2011)

I'm so sorry for your loss. The only thing that really helps is time. I lost my dog Annie in April she was 16 years old (so I had her for the majority of my life, I'm 23). And sometimes I still get really upset when I think of her. For awhile I was saying I never wanted a dog again so I didnt have to go through that pain but now after 5 months I'm thinking I want to get another. Its tough and after 5 months I'm just starting to feel better about it and come to terms with it. 
Let yourself mourn and as time passes you will start to feel less sad. You will never forget about tiggywinkle but it will get easier. Again I'm sorry and take care of yourself.


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## Rainy (Jul 27, 2011)

I'm so sorry for your loss.  It is so difficult losing someone you love so much. 

The post prior to yours gave some good advice and some suggestions to try. Everyone grieves in their own way and it's important to find yours. There is not mourning period. It takes as much time as it takes. Don't believe people when they say you should get over it. You need to remember how much Tiggywinkle loved you and the good times you spent together. 

Hang in there, we are all here for you. <3

HUGS.


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## Quinn (Apr 24, 2011)

I totally agree with the above statement about don't listen to people who say "oh get over it, it was just a pet". I don't know how many times I heard that after my dog's passing and I honestly wanted to punch them in the face. Stay far away from those who say that! and take as long as you need.


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## SquiggyTheHedgie (Jul 26, 2011)

Best thing to remember is that your hedgie loved you, and you gave it the best home with a loving family. Think of all the happy memories you have, and cherish the time you had together. Let yourself grieve.


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## sweetergrrrl (May 5, 2009)

Ahh geeze ya'll made me cry. i miss Brillo now. I know he is in a better place, but he only passed in June. I have him in a shady spot in the back yard. I go talk to him sometimes...I think that helps. I don't know if I will ever fully get over it but my new baby is helping. I still catch myself calling him Brillo though... -_-;


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## Hoshi (Sep 8, 2011)

It may seem a bit silly, but having a little memorial service might help. If you have other friends and family who knew your pet or at least understand and are sympathetic to your attachment, see if you can get them together somewhere either at your house/backyard or somewhere outdoors-y and talk about what made him/her special and the joy they brought to your life.

Try to remember that they are no longer in any pain or discomfort, and they'll be eating mealies to their heart's content and running on giant wheels made of clouds for all eternity.


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## Daleo (Jun 1, 2011)

I had a cat named Whiskers. We had her since I was six months old. She would even meow at me when it was time to go to bed. She would lay down with me until I fell asleep and then go play around the house.  I was 12, and my parents got divorced. Well, I moved to SC with my mom and had to leave her with my dad in PA, because we were moving into my grandad's house which he would never allow an animal in his house. She died about 2 months later. It broke my heart. I felt so bad that I wasn't there to help her pass, and I didn't feel like I got to say goodbye. A little later, I was still upset but I decided it was time to say goodbye to her. I had a little talk with her, and now I can feel her around me sometimes.

It is never easy to say goodbye to any of our animals, but they are still there looking after you from the other side.


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## Pooki3 (Jun 10, 2011)

as an Emablmer I believe in the healing power of ritual..Every creature deserves last rites and the process of performing those rights is the most cathartic thing to the human soul. Don't let anyone tell you its silly or a waste of time forget everyone but your little hedgie and take a very long moment to say good bye. I hope you feel better soon, remember no matter where you're loved ones are in your belief system they will always be alive in your memories.


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## Alastrina (Sep 18, 2009)

My first hedgie passed away a month ago today, and I had been wrapped around his little paw for two years. When I discovered he had passed on, I talked to him, and I still do sometimes. It gives me peace to think that he is in a better place now and is free of the illness that plagued the last weeks of his life. Since he was a pet store hedgie, I also find comfort in the fact I was able to give him a better life for the time he was with me.

I still cannot really look at his pictures without getting misty-eyed, nor talk about him. I think I found the most comfort in taking his body and making sure he was snug in his favorite snuggle bag before he was laid to rest and then watched while he was given the send-off he deserved. I take things one day at a time, and remind myself that his adoptive brothers (my hedgies Mac & Dougie) still need me, and that there are other animals that still need my help that I don't even know about yet, and that Charley would want me to love them and help them if I could.

Other than that, I take the time I need to cry, and do my best to remember the good times.


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