Looking a bit thin...?

[limbrooke83]

Hi everyone - I've been feeding my hedgehog, Buddy, the 8-in-1 hedgehog food for over a month. At first he looked like he'd maybe gained a little weight (meaning he looked healthy in a teardrop-shaped way after getting him from a pet store), but now it looks like he's thinning out again. He's not stressed, and his attitude is wonderful towards people, new objects, etc. He eats maybe 2 tsp (out of the approx. 2 1/2 tsp I give him) of food each night plus a mealworm, and leaves a little food in the bowl every day, so I know he's eating all he wants.

My question is this: Is it normal for a hedgie's weight to fluctuate? Buddy's not really a "runner," although he does run every night on his wheel. He's actually a bit of a cuddler and sleeps quite a bit as well. If he's looking a little too thin, is there a cat food that's a little higher in fat that I could mix with his 8-in-1 each night (assuming he'd eat it)? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

[mmartinez1987]

I would take him off the 8-in-1 right away and switch him to a high quality cat food. It is completely UNHEALTHY.

Hedgies shouldnt flucuate like that. Also do you have a scale? What is he weighing before and now?

[Cimredopyh]

Weight fluctuation is not normal, and is often a sign of illness or a problem with the diet.

The only marginally acceptable 'hedgehog' food to be fed to our African hedgies is Spikes Delight, and to be honest i wouldnt choose that either. Every other hedgehog food available is junk...yes junk. It would be like you eating potato chips 3 meals a day, 5 days a week. Possibly worse than that, as some of them even contain raisins, which are toxic to hedgehogs.

Even then a high quality, preferably holistic (not unhealthy junk like friskies or whiskas) cat kibble with less than 15% fat and not much more than 30% protein is by far the best nutriton you can give.

For pregnant hedgehogs, Babies, or hedgehogs that need a little extra fat, a kitten kibble can be added to their regular kibble ( a popular choice is Royal Canin 34 Babycat )

Browse the food and nutrition section for some excellent suggestions. Some of the favourites are Chicken Soup For The Cat Lovers Soul Lite, And Solid Gold Katz n Flocken.

[limbrooke83]

Wow, thanks! I had another hedgie a long time ago (whose weight did NOT fluctuate). He was on a brand of cat food, but I can't remember which one. Before getting Buddy, I did some research on which types of food are okay, and specifically checked into various websites' opinions on the 8-in-1. What I had read said it was a good food. Apparently those sites were wrong! I will check out the nutrition section and pick up some cat food tonight. To avoid big-time diarrhea (we're traveling with him this weekend!), I'll probably slowly switch him over to the new food by adding a higher percentage each night. Thanks!

[limbrooke83]

I went to the store tonight (well, three of them before I found what I was looking for...) and bought the only two foods I could find that were on the recommended foods list. So from now on Buddy will be eating a mixture of Solid Gold and Pure Canin Light. Hopefully this is a good mixture for him. I weighed him tonight, and he's currently at 9.4 oz (he's about 5 months old). We'll see where he goes from here. Thanks, everyone, for the advice!

[Philogirl]

If you check out hedgehogworld.com, there's a good article about what ingredients to look for and which to avoid in cat foods. I'm sure there's other resources on this site as well, but I've had difficulty finding some of the recommended brands in my area, but have found comparable ones based on what ingredients are good. Something to think about in the future when you're browsing through a pet store.