hello. i just got my first hedgie

[shadowolf]

his name is harley. he is an albino male. I got him from a breeder in my area. he is mainly tame. he does grunt and hiss when woken up. is that normal? I know they are nocternal. I have been feeding him comercial hedgie food, crickets and live mealworms. he seems to like them. my main question is how can i get flies away from his cage? there are alot of house flied around his cage and stuff. i just got him like two days ago and he hasnt pooped much. but flied just love it... it is really annoying. HELP! :confused:

[Super Chin]

Normal to grunt. If you start waking him up at the same time each day, chances are he will get the point and stop being grumpy when you do.

[Q-Bert's Mom]

I've found that fly strips do a pretty good job. And someone on this site just recently recommended to me a solution for small fruit flies: put a small jar of apple cider vinegar with tin foil on top with small holes poked in it (large enough for flies to go in) near the trouble area. The flies go in and can't get back out. It has worked so well in my kitchen! Give it a try if you're bothered by little fruit flies. I was very impressed.

[HedgieSpirit]

Yes, huffing, or grunting is normal but will most likely subside as hedgie gets used to you and your schedule.

BTW, Congrats on Harley and welcome to CnQ! I can't wait to see pictures and hear about your new hedgie :)

[taco]

ya welcome and congrats. for the fly question i would go with q-burt's mom's suggestion with that container thing, ive heard that honey will also work but not 100% sure.

[dulcymom]

my main question is how can i get flies away from his cage? there are alot of house flied around his cage and stuff. i just got him like two days ago and he hasnt pooped much. but flied just love it... it is really annoying. HELP! :confused:
Congratulations! Are you cleaning the poop out (and the exercise wheel) every day? I clean Dulcinea's cage first thing every morning and put the poopy wheel outside for daily washing. We haven't had any fly problems yet. After 3 weeks she got used to the interruption and greets me briefly when I move her. Also - be sure the food is sealed up to keep flies off of it. Good Luck! Becky

[Love4Hedgies]

Congrats on Harley!!! The grunting is normal like everyone else said. One suggestion I have is switching him over from hedgie food to a high quality cat food. :)