Uh Oh!!!!

[illinidairychic]

so I'm bathing all my weanlings today because they are absolute pigs and I notice that the female hoglet I just got from rockford has a very firm belly and her nipples are starting to protrude. The breeder told me they were 7 weeks old, so I don't know if they are or not, she didn't give me a birth date at all. I have a group of 7 week olds and they are all smaller then her. Is there anything I can do for her?? I'm seperating her and her mom tonight and just treating them both as preg. I really hope Vixen doesn't die from this....I just got them!!

[kaiteedyd]

Seven weeks is very young but there's nothing you can do about it now. Just hope for the best. Good luck :)

[Jessicy]

Poor little thing..... Some people are so stupid! I hope for the best for her, I'm sure she is in good hands now! Best of luck!

[illinidairychic]

I think she's older then 7 weeks since she is bigger then my 4 7wk olds and she is from a litter of 6 so you might expect her to be smaller then them but not bigger. It just frustrates me...I don't want her to have complications from this.

[Love4Hedgies]

Oh gosh how awful. I hope everything works out okay. Keep us posted. :)

[paris26]

Sarah~
When I brought Annabelle home at 9 weeks, she was awfully suspicious in her midsection too. Plus she was sicker than a dog. I had her spayed at 11 weeks old and she was indeed pregnant. There was no way on earth that she would have had a successful pregnant due to her state of health at that time. It was a higher risk surgery but I would rather have one healthy animal then 4 or 5 really sick ones that might not make it

[illinidairychic]

I've asked a few breeders and they said the surgery is really hard on them at this age. She seems healthy otherwise so I'm not sure what to do. I'm weighing out two evils here, on one hand she might have a hard time delivering and on the other she might have a hard time recovering from a surgery at her age. I'm still asking around and I will be to Moline this weekend possibly. I will talk to my vet back home who I trust a lot more then the ones down here. But if things go down hill you can bet your bum I'll be at the emergency clinic ASAP.

[platnymbit]

I'm sorry to hear about poor Vixen, hopefully everything will turn out fine..Keep up updated.

[MsTickldPink]

Just keep a close eye on her and give her extra attention and treats....if she's that much bigger than your 7 week olds, you're probably right and she is older...if it's really important to you to know the correct age you can probably take her to the vet and have her properly aged...and than you'll really know the risks of the pregnancy...on the other hand if she's still perfectly healthy I'd just keep an eye on her and be ready to intervene if necessary...good luck to both you and vixen!!

[paris26]

Jif she's that much bigger than your 7 week olds, you're probably right and she is older...if it's really important to you to know the correct age you can probably take her to the vet and have her properly aged...

Actually that's not very accurate and can be misleading.There is no "average" sized hedgie and so comparing a 7 week old that you know the birthdate on to one that seems to be the size of one can be misleading. I have a male hedgie that is almost a year old. He weighs 300 grams and had maintained that for the last few months. I also have 2 albino sisters that are 8 months old. They are both physically larger and longer than he is and have a good 50 grams on them. So based on what you said, Maddy and Juliet should be older than Oliver because they weigh more and are larger. Nutrition, litter size and size of the parents play a huge part in the health of the hoglets.
Also, their is no accurate way to "age" a hedgehog because of the various body shapes, weights, diet, etc. At best you could say you have a hoglet, an adult or a senior