# Large White Bumps



## swalker112 (Jan 25, 2016)

I got this hedgehog from someone and he has white bumps on him. Like large zits or something. I could not find anything online that looked anything like it, including on this site. I do not know how old he is. He was not handled well and was not fed well. All he eats is cat food. That's all he was ever fed so he will not touch anything else. I try to handle him often and I do bathe him. The bumps do not seem to bother him much. The largest one is squishy and on his side near his quills. The smaller ones are hard. One by his tail and a couple on his upper back end near his quills. None actually under any quills or past the quills. I have not tried to pop them in fear of hurting him. I'll also include a picture of him.


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## shinydistraction (Jul 6, 2014)

I would get those checked out by a vet. They could just be harmless little cysts, but they might not be. If you haven't had him long it's not a bad idea to take him to the vet for a wellness check anyway.

What food is he on specifically? Depending on which food it is, it may not be bad at all. Most of us here feed high quality cat foods to our hedgies and supplement in insects (like mealworms and crickets) as well as fruits and veggies as treats.


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## Gldgood (Jan 24, 2016)

I would recommend taking your hedgehog to the vet right away. This could be the beginning of a life threatening disease.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Vet time. They could be a skin infection of some kind, so it'd be a good idea to go get them checked out.

What kind of cat food is he getting? Good quality cat food is fine, but the protein & fat do need to be appropriate and lower quality cat foods aren't great. How long have you had him?


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## swalker112 (Jan 25, 2016)

The cat food is Purina brand. He eats whatever kind of cat food, but just cat food. Wont touch bugs or veggies. He was kept in a wire cage in a barn. I have him in a tank now with a heat lamp. I decided on a tank to keep the heat in. Along with a hide and some fleece. I did do some more searching on this site now that I am a member and I can see everything and I found a post that had something that looked like this. The update was that the vet said it was an oil build up and the last update was that she squeezed it and it was a zit.


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## swalker112 (Jan 25, 2016)

I have had him for about a year.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Can you give the full name of the food? Most of Purina's foods are pretty awful, some are less bad, but I'm not a fan of the brand in general.

If he's getting a good quality cat food (preferably a mix of two or more), he'll be getting what he needs and it won't hurt him if he refuses to eat anything else. It's just a good idea to offer things so they can get some fresh sources of nutrients and since bugs are a large part of their diet in the wild. 

Tanks do keep heat in well, but they're not a good choice for hedgehogs. They also can have moisture build up at the bottom because they don't have good ventilation, even with no lid or a screen lid. If you want something that will hold heat well, it'd be a better idea to use a modified plastic tote - you can drill or melt holes in the sides for improved ventilation, but they still hold heat better than wire cages.

What temperature is the cage staying at, do you know? Heat lamp is great, and definitely an improvement on how he was being kept! But it's important to know the actual temperature too, and for the lamp to give off heat only, no light.

I'd still take him to the vet, just to make sure of what's going on with him. Situations can sometimes be different, even if it looks similar. And if you haven't had him at the vet yet, it's a good idea to see a vet before you have to take him in for an emergency situation. Hedgehogs should have wellness visits at least once a year, some people do twice a year because they're so small & problems can come up so quickly.


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## swalker112 (Jan 25, 2016)

Purina complete and Purina Gentle is what he has had. Right now he has the Gentle. I just set up the tank so It's not at a "complete" temp yet. it is very good sized though and the heat lamp is only on one side.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Unfortunately that's one of the poorer lines.  Purina's chow line has pretty bad ingredients, and I would really recommend switching to a higher quality brand. There's more information about food & what to look for in one here - http://www.hedgehogcentral.com/foru...3034-beginner-s-guide-hedgehog-nutrition.html and some commonly found brands that have appropriate foods available from them here - http://www.hedgehogcentral.com/forums/12-diet-nutrition/23042-recommended-foods-list.html

Do you know how many gallons the tank is? It'll be okay for short-term, but I would really suggest moving him into a modified tote or another cage with better ventilation in the future. Other enclosures have the added benefit of being a lot easier to move and clean, especially totes.

For heating, you want the entire enclosure to be the same temperature - hedgehogs don't need a warm side & cool side like reptiles do, and it can cause problems. Temperature drops or too-cool temperatures can trigger hibernation attempts, which they can't come out of without help. If they don't get warmed back up (against your body or on a heating pad on low is best), they will die. Even if they get warmed back up, hibernation attempts can cause URIs, which need medication or they can die from pneumonia. There's more information on heating set ups here - http://www.hedgehogcentral.com/forums/113-heating/4048-heating-your-hedgehog-s-cage-simplified.html though I think the links are outdated. I need to fix that when I have a chance!


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