# Doesn't like me anymore :(



## kenzurs (Jul 12, 2011)

Spyro is normally a very calm hedgehog. It never took me a long time to pick him up. I've had him for five months and never had a problem out of him until lately this week, you might have saw my posts about him going into hibernation, and he has mites, etc etc. 
He has a new cage now, and I'm trying to switch his food. He used to eat Vita Exotics and I'm trying to get him onto cat food.
He has a heating lamp, but it has a red light and at first it didn't seem like it bothered him.
But ever since Monday, everytime I pick him up he doesn't want anything to do with me. I know he's wandering around sometimes because when I took him out to clean his cage he tried to get out of the box I put him in I do.
Are any of these things affecting how he's acting towards me?


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## LarryT (May 12, 2009)

Lots of changes in a short peroid will make anybody uneasy, hopefully he will be back to his old self in a few days.


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## sweetergrrrl (May 5, 2009)

I'm with Larry. Just give him a little time and try to get back onto a normal routine. This will help tons.


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## shawnwk1 (Jul 8, 2011)

did you get rid of the mites before switching him to a new cage? if not the mites just traveled with him and are now probably infesting the new cage so you will have to bleach out the new cage and toys, wash all that can be washed, clean the floor and walls around the cage, etc. as soon as you treat him. 

it definitely sounds like he's been through a lot lately. totally agree with the above about giving him some time. just keep taking him out nightly even if its just to let him lay on your lap while he is grumpy and hopefully it's "just a phase" (man i hated when my parents said that lol) 

some hedgies can be pretty temperamental in general (i'd say something, but all the women on here would gang up on me lol). jeremiah goes through mood swings like.......well lol. one day he can be perfectly fine and the next he won't come out of a tight ball and just sits there huffing and popping. i think the changes in the weather/time of year might have something to do with it too.


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## Immortalia (Jan 24, 2009)

From your other thread, you said he got a SHOT for mites..... Was it ivermectin? Did you notice the behaviour change after the shot? Ivermectin is very easy to overdose, and many times hedgies tend to really tense up, making the shot more painful than it should have been. IMO I would not allow another shot as many hedgies have died from it.


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## kenzurs (Jul 12, 2011)

About the new cage - don't worry, every single day I clean out the cage, disinfect the whole cage and put him back in. I also disinfect the travel thing I put him in when I'm cleaning the cage everyday. 
And he still has mites, he has two more shots.
As for the overdosing thing, I am not sure. I just know he got a shot for the mites.
I assume it's not, because my vet seemed to know a lot about the situation and would definitely not do that, I will ask him about it next appointment before he does anything.
I don't think it's necessarily the shot because he was acting like this two days before the shot. And I don't know about pain really because he was put to sleep for it (he was FREAKING OUT at the vet's office) and didn't seem be in any pain when he woke up.
Thanks for all your help. I feel much better about the situation.


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## Immortalia (Jan 24, 2009)

Personally, I'd look up ivermectin and hedgehogs, and then decide on what you want to do. Many vets still insist on giving ivermectin shots and many hedgehogs have died from it. If you do a search for it here, you will find the horror stories of it.


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## kenzurs (Jul 12, 2011)

Yeah I have before, it sounds awful.  I wouldn't want that to happen to Spyro. Is there anything else they give to hedgehogs with mites? I want to make sure it's ivermectin before I actually cancel it. If it is, how else could I get rid of the mites? He only got the shot Wednesday and the obviously can't be gone.


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## shawnwk1 (Jul 8, 2011)

revolution is a safe alternative and is hard to accidentally overdose (you will have to give 2 or 3 treatments a few weeks apart, different vets say different about the actual amount to be given so ask. you will have to get it from a vet or online, but most will still require a vet prescription. probably easiest and quickest just to get it from the vet. i'd do your research and actually print out some of the horror stories to hand to the vet to prove the dangers of it, some vets honestly just don't know yet and need to be informed so if you have proof......


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## kenzurs (Jul 12, 2011)

Okay that is a great idea, I will definitely talk to him about it when I go back on wednesday. Thank you. How much does revolution cost, by chance?
And also, is there a chance that the vet is using something else other than ivermectin?


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## shawnwk1 (Jul 8, 2011)

there's always a chance it's something else, but in general if it's a shot for mites that's what it is with hedgies. 

revolution cost is really going to vary with different vets and different locations. it's not overly expensive though because you can buy it individually at the vet instead of having to buy a whole box or whatever like online.


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## kenzurs (Jul 12, 2011)

Okay thank you so much for your help. I will definitely bring all of this up next time I see the vet.


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