# how much should she weigh?



## Kristie (Jan 4, 2011)

i have a 8 month old girl. i've been weighing her weekly, and she's been right around 356g. is that about the right weight? is there any charts on here that i can find that list the approximate weights of ages and what not?


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## pearlthehedgie (Feb 15, 2011)

!! I'm eager for a reply also from someone with more experience than me. Our girl is only 2 1/2 months old and she weighs almost that much!! She can roll in a ball easily though so I don't think she's overweight. Are you concerned yours is too small? What do you feed her?


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

There's not really a age-to-weight ratio or anything like that, because the size range of our hedgies is so large. Some can be over 600 grams and be healthy, some can be at 250 grams and be healthy. You have to look at the body shape of your particular hedgehog to judge whether they're overweight or underweight. 

Looking at them from above, underweight body form would have the sides caved in, looking something like ) (. Some hedgehogs have what's called a runner shape which is basically | |. They usually need higher fat foods to stay at a healthy weight/body shape. Then there's the regular teardrop hedgie shape which is ( ), with the butt being rounded and tapering down to their pointed nose. An overweight hedgehog would be much wider across the middle, shaped more like a ball. Other signs of being overweight include a hump on the shoulders, unable to roll into a tight ball, fat deposits under their front legs, and a double chin.

If you're really not sure, you could always take several pictures of your hedgehog and post them for second opinions.


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## pearlthehedgie (Feb 15, 2011)

Thanks!


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## fracturedcircle (May 31, 2010)

Lilysmommy said:


> Looking at them from above, underweight body form would have the sides caved in, looking something like ) (. Some hedgehogs have what's called a runner shape which is basically | |. They usually need higher fat foods to stay at a healthy weight/body shape. Then there's the regular teardrop hedgie shape which is ( ), with the butt being rounded and tapering down to their pointed nose.


LOVE your description!


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## PJM (May 7, 2010)

My Cholla is about 11 months old & I have to really work at it to keep him around 300 grams. He's built like my Dad! Guess it skips a generation. ( My Dad also likes to huff.) :lol: 
I give Cholla extra mealworms & a couple waxworms. He eats his kibble, but just runs like a madman on his wheel.
Body shape & health are more important than weight (just like in us humans-all shapes & sizes)


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## fracturedcircle (May 31, 2010)

i just want to say that i personally don't know of any studies done on the correlation between weight and health in aph... and by studies i mean analyses of sugar in the blood, analyses of liver and kidneys. however, bloodwork does tend to turn out bad in long-eared and wild hedgies who are overweight, so i personally happen to have somewhat bleak views on overweight animals.

just my opinion.


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## RalphsMum (Oct 14, 2010)

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand then there's Ralph...
I swear, besides the teeny babies, he has to be the smallest guy on here, he's 8 months old and weighs 170g on a good day...BUT he is shaped like a lil tear drop (I will get around to doing that photo of him next to a $5 bill and post it...at some point....so you can see how teeny he is.)
I was hoping to post the "Hooray - Ralph has finally hit 200g" post one day but i am starting to wonder if it will ever happen!
I think he was maybe the runt of the litter cos he is tiny and not matter what we do, he will not gain weight - shuuuuush don't anyone tell him, I don't want him to get a complex....
Besides him being small, he seems happy enough, does what he's supposed to do as a hedgie(mostly), is active, alert and his body seems to be functioning like it should.
(I wish I could lose weight like that though!!!)

So i guess there is no hard and fast rule about weight to age - it really depends on the hedgie and their shape does seem to be a good indicator of if they are in a healthy weight range for them.


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## MissC (Nov 15, 2010)

fracturedcircle said:


> Lilysmommy said:
> 
> 
> > Looking at them from above, underweight body form would have the sides caved in, looking something like ) (. Some hedgehogs have what's called a runner shape which is basically | |. They usually need higher fat foods to stay at a healthy weight/body shape. Then there's the regular teardrop hedgie shape which is ( ), with the butt being rounded and tapering down to their pointed nose.
> ...


I was just scrolling down to say exactly that when I saw FC's kudos!

Very well said and terrific description, Lilysmommy!!


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

MissC said:


> fracturedcircle said:
> 
> 
> > LOVE your description!
> ...


Heh, thanks guys!  I can't take all the credit, I'm pretty sure I've seen weights/shapes described this way by a couple other people on the forums, which is where I picked it up. It really does help to get a mental picture of the body shape though.


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## RedHeadPixie (Jan 25, 2009)

RalphsMum said:


> aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand then there's Ralph...
> I swear, besides the teeny babies, he has to be the smallest guy on here, he's 8 months old and weighs 170g on a good day...BUT he is shaped like a lil tear drop (I will get around to doing that photo of him next to a $5 bill and post it...at some point....so you can see how teeny he is.)
> I was hoping to post the "Hooray - Ralph has finally hit 200g" post one day but i am starting to wonder if it will ever happen!
> I think he was maybe the runt of the litter cos he is tiny and not matter what we do, he will not gain weight - shuuuuush don't anyone tell him, I don't want him to get a complex....
> ...


Our four year old boy is 204 grams. We're pretty sure he was a runt too though, as he's immune system is not as awesome as it could be. But he eats as much, if not more, than our girl, and is very active, so we don't worry about it.

Because he was our first hedgie, I thought all hedgies were that small - boy was I surprised when we took in a 5 year old, "normal" sized rescue!


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