To register or not...

[Eowyn]

Okay, I've heard it is good to register your hedgehogs, and I'm thinking of registering Molly. I have a few (ok, so maybe a lot of :rolleyes: ) questions about registering hedgehogs with the IHR, and about the IHA, so here goes.
*How many of you hedgie owners registered your hedgehog(s)?
*What are the benefits of registering them?
*On the website for the IHR it says that you can register your hedgehogs for free, but you have to pay to get a certificate. Do you need a certificate?
*What are the benefits of becoming a member of the International Hedgehog Association? (What does the membership fee pay for?)
*Are there other associations I should be aware of? (That I could be a part of?)
Thanks so much in advance for taking the time to answer these questions! :)

[kaiteedyd]

I think it's a good idea to register. I don't think you need a certificate. I've never registered a hedgehog but several of mine came pre-registered. I think the benefit of registering is just to keep tabs on how many pet hedgehog there are out there.

[Ododad]

I am a member of the IHA and all three of my hogs are registered. The "register for free" is only for hogs of unknown linage which includes all of mine. The only benefit that I know of in this case is that everyone who cares to look will know that I have them. It was kinda cool to do though. A certificate for a hedgie with unknown linage is pretty cool to hang on the wall but that's about the only purpose of it. I ordered three of them but they never came. I designed one using Word and I think it looks pretty cool.
As for the benefits of membership, they are pretty much listed on the site.
http://mihog.org/index.phtml This is another group that I found but I am not a member of it.
Hope this helps! :)

[bloane]

I used to be heavily invovled in the IHR. But I had ALL of my information remoed, and will NEVER again support the IHA or IHR. My personal decision, and some of you who have been around long enough to see back when I was supporting the IHA and IHR whole heartedly may be amazed by this, but I can no longer support where the IHA and IHR are going, and no longer feel that my information would be treated with the respect and confidentiality that I feel it should be.
So my personal feelings are- No. I would not register my hedgehogs with the IHR, no matter what they promise me.
Becca

[teela1342]

I used to be heavily invovled in the IHR. But I had ALL of my information remoed, and will NEVER again support the IHA or IHR. My personal decision, and some of you who have been around long enough to see back when I was supporting the IHA and IHR whole heartedly may be amazed by this, but I can no longer support where the IHA and IHR are going, and no longer feel that my information would be treated with the respect and confidentiality that I feel it should be.
So my personal feelings are- No. I would not register my hedgehogs with the IHR, no matter what they promise me.
Becca

I was thinking about registering too. Can you give some more info on why you don't support it? You can email me if you don't want to post on the forum.

[who00knows]

I would also like to know becca.

[glamgal]

I've already registered Juni, but I would like to know as well why you no longer support them...I have a new hedgehog coming on Sunday and I need to decide whether to register him or not :)

[horslvr123]

Ok. dumb question.. If you dont have them registered, how do you keep track of a pedigree?? There are so many hedgehogs out there with the same name, wont it get confusing? I mean.. you can buy a baby from breeder "A" from parents named "Bob and Alice" .. Then go to breeder "B" and get another baby from parents named "Bob and Joan".. Now, if I want to breed them, how do I diferentiate(sp) between the "Bob"s to keep from interbreeding?? For all I know, breeder "A" could have sold their "Bob" to breeder "B". That would mean I have siblings that I didnt know about..

Sorry if that was confusing.. It was confusing trying to write..LOL

[bloane]

Teela, who, and glam- I don't feel comfortable going further into my personal issues on a public forum. Feel free to contact me privately.

Alecia- Any good breeder will keep track of the pedigrees of their animals. I have extensive records on all of my hedgehogs including where they were bred at, any owners before me, color, date of birth, color, all offspring, medical records, and much more. And I have always provided a full pedigree with any of my babies, including where their ancestors were born at, and their colors. If your breeding hedgehogs have no known history other than parents, then that is only on the border line of breeding animals with known history. If they have extensive pedigrees, you will either A.) Be able to tell from further back animals if the two Bobs are related, or B.) it will be far enough back in a line that it isn't a huge stressor. Many of my hedgehogs have 4, 5, 6, and more generations of pedigree. I even have pedigrees here that go back as far as 12 generations. These type of pedigrees are available from many breeders out there, so look for something like this when looking for breeding hedgehogs.
Becca

[horslvr123]

LOL.. Im glad someone deciphered that... Thanks a bunch.. I recently bought a baby from a breeder and read on another board that one of her rescues (that she doesnt breed) had WHS.. This particular rescue had the same name as my babies mother.. Needless to say.. i was one paranoid person until she told me how many hedgehogs with the same name she had.. (Mines parents are healthy.. woohoo) But I will look for a hedgie with an extensive pedigree if I breed..
Its still confusing though.. LOL