# New hedgie eating very little..



## VeggieChan (Feb 18, 2013)

My new hedgehog, Eugene, is 6 months old. My mom bought him Pretty Pets Hedgehog Food even though I asked her not to... The first day, I gave him that, and he ate it all over night. I refilled his bowl, and then added some Purina cat food as well. He ate maybe four-six kibbles throughout all day and night. I tried to give him mealworms, he wouldn't touch them, I gave him veggies, wouldn't touch them. I tried leaving him alone, and although I occasionally heard him chewing, I would later check and there wouldn't be much food gone at all. I know he's probaly scared, but his poo seems to be normal colored, and it's not runny or anything. I just emptied his bowl and refilled it with fresh food. 

Should I be worried about his undereating? I'm not sure what food he was eating before, so Idk what I could change his kibble too. Is this something that just needs time, or do I need to do something/buy something else?


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Is there any way you can call the previous owner and find out what he was eating? That would be the best thing to do. If you can't do that, you definitely need to get some different food. Purina isn't a good brand of cat food, and Pretty Pets hedgehog food is one of the worst ones there is. It has no nutrition in it. I would take a look at the cat food list posted in this forum and find a high quality food to get him and see if he eats better with that. Some brands that are pretty popular with people on here, and usually easy to find are Blue Buffalo, Innova, Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul, Solid Gold, and Natural Balance.


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## VeggieChan (Feb 18, 2013)

I just bought Purina Cat Chow Naturals. It seemed to be the best thing they had at the store. Right now he has a little bit of everything mixed in his cage. A mealworm, Pretty Pets hedge food, Meow Mix Canned Catfood, and Purina Deli-Cat. I also have a little bit of cauliflower. He's been sleeping all day, so he hasn't eaten.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

You should really try getting a better food - none of those have good ingredients, especially Pretty Pets and Deli Cat. What stores do you have available to you? Do you have any pet stores near you? If you have a Tractor Supply Co nearby, they also carry some decent/good foods.

Semi-related, what temperature is his cage at?


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## AlexONeil (Nov 14, 2012)

Do you know how much he weighed when you got him? Try weighing him everyday, it will help you find out if he's eating enough to keep him healthy. We got in a rescue who went on a food strike, and we weighed him (well, still do) everyday. You can also weigh his food. Our rescue eats about 6 grams a night, and Houdini eats about 8 grams a night. 

If you weigh him and his food daily and keep a log, it may turn out that he's actually just fine. I second what Lilysmommy said, try getting better food for him. Hedgehogs tend to prefer it.


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## VeggieChan (Feb 18, 2013)

After looking at the ingredients in Deli-Cat, I decided to just feed it to our cats that hang around the barn. I watched him eat a two pieces of the new cat food, which is good. As for the stores nearby... the store that I got Eugene from didn't sell cat food at all, only hedgehog food, so I assume that's what he was fed before. We have WalMart and a few other chain stores. There is a Tractor Supply, and a few other little animal/farm based stores, so next time my dad goes there I may have to go with him.

The temperature in the living room of our house is always set to 72 degrees, and my room (Where he is kept) Is normally warmer. I hate the cold almost as much as hedgies do.. heh. 

I'm not sure if this is strange or not, but at first he was eating fine but refusing to drink. Now he's drinking but not eating as much...


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Definitely visit the TSC - if I remember right, they carry Chicken Soup and Taste of the Wild, both good brands. You definitely want to be carefully watching his food and how much he eats - if he's still not eating well tomorrow night, I'd suggest getting the things needed for syringe-feeding, just in case. Hedgehogs don't do well if they go for extended periods of time with little or no eating. For syringe-feeding you'll need 1- or 3-ml needle-less syringes (I prefer 1-ml, and you can get them either from the vet or in the diabetics supplies section of a pharmacy or that section of a store), and either baby food, Hills A/D, or you can just crush up the cat food very fine and mix with water.

Do you have a thermometer for his cage? You want to know the temperature of the cage, not the room. It can vary a lot based on location, and in case he attempts hibernation, you want to know what the actual temperature is so you have that information. I'd suggest getting the temperature up a bit - try it around 75 and see if he's eating/drinking more and more active. He might be a bit too cool.


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## VeggieChan (Feb 18, 2013)

I have a syringe on hand just in case, but I'm really hoping I'll wake up in the morning and a good portion of his food will be gone. He has both a water bottle and a dish, because I don't know which he prefers, but he's payed no mind to the bottle which I'm sure is a good thing. I'll try to raise the temperature. I'm not sure exactly what the signs are for cold, but he seems to do nothing but sleep during the day, or at least sometimes it looks like he's just pretending to be asleep. I'll hear him scratch around and then fall right back asleep. This is my first hedgehog so I'm not sure exactly what normal sleeping patterns are, but he sure is a party animal at night.  He also likes to bury himself while he's asleep.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Sleeping during the day is normal - most hedgehogs will sleep all day long, and most will sleep for a good part of the night as well. Babies especially sleep a lot. Do you have a wheel for him to run on at night? Do you know what kind of wheel it is?

Also, I'd highly, highly recommend you check this out - http://www.westcoasthedgehogs.com/files ... index.html It's a hedgehog care book written by one of our moderators, LizardGirl, and it contains a lot of great information. It's fantastic for new owners (and old owners!), and it's free to download. I'd suggest downloading it and reading it through as soon as you can. You may find a lot of new information in there that can help you out with your new guy, and it's great to keep on hand for reference.


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## VeggieChan (Feb 18, 2013)

I know that wire wheels aren't good for hedgehogs, but that's all I have been able to find in the three stores I've looked, so as for right now he doesn't have a wheel. I want to get him one as soon as possible. 

I'll definitely read through the booklet thingy. I had been looking up things on the internet and stalking the forums for months before I got Eugene, but there's still a lot I don't know.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Keep in mind that as you're looking through stores, the only safe store-bought wheels are Comfort Wheels and Flying Saucers. Silent Spinners aren't safe, though they have a solid bottom - they also have a crack down the middle that can tear off toenails, and a few people have had their wheels fall apart on them easily. Silent Spinners are multicolored - a white back, and then a colored front. Comfort Wheels are solid colored with ridges on the surface, and Flying Saucers are kind of sideways wheels - they're pretty distinctive.

Alternatively, bucket wheels are pretty popular for their safety, durability, and ease of cleaning them. There's a few people that make and sell bucket wheels, if you check out the For Sale forum. I would definitely recommend a bucket wheel over anything else. Make sure you get him a wheel soon - hedgehogs will sometimes climb cage walls if they don't have a wheel, and it's extremely important for their health and happiness.


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## VeggieChan (Feb 18, 2013)

I'll keep this in mind. Food wise, I can hear him chewing right now, but I don't want to walk up to him to see what he's eating because he's been shy. He's up and about playing with his rattles and toilet paper rolls. Maybe he was just going through a little rehoming stress.


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