A few questions about hedgehogs...

[HeDgEhOgSzzzzzz]

ok I really want a hedgehog, but my parents are divorced and my mom wont get any more pets, and my dad works a lot. So I have to convince my dad to get one. So are hedgehogs messy? What should I feed them? And do they smell?

[horsegal]

You feed them a mix of high quality cat or dog food or hedgie food. They eat baby food and mealworms and other things as snacks. I am going to use Wellness, Chicken Soup, and Premium Edge. You will probably want to use the light versions. They dont have a body odor like ferrets. The mess depends on the bedding you use and if the hedgie you get is litter trained. Shavings(not cedar), Carefresh, and liners are common beddings.

[HedgeMom]

ok I really want a hedgehog, but my parents are divorced and my mom wont get any more pets, and my dad works a lot. So I have to convince my dad to get one. So are hedgehogs messy? What should I feed them? And do they smell?

Perhaps the best thing to do is wait until you find a pet your mother will let you have or until you live on your own and can get what you want. It's not fair to a hedgehog or any pet to get it and then not have the time to spend with it every day.

[HeDgEhOgSzzzzzz]

Thanks!!! My dad said I can get one!!! well... if i clean my room...

[Kerrie]

Do you live with your dad?? If not and he works alot, who will take care of your hedgie?
I am not sure if you are aware of this but they have to have a warm climate. The room they are housed in needs to be between 73- 78 degrees. 73 being low in my opinion. My hedgie's room is at a constant 78 degrees and a small electric heater is used and needed just about 24/7 to maintain that. It also must have about 12 hours of lights on(during the day) and 12 hours off.(at night) If your hedgie get cold and doesn't have enough light it will attept to hibernate. This is not safe and will/can cause your hedgie to get sick, which can lead to death.
Also, to keep your hedgie social, it will need to be handled everyday.
I am not trying to turn you off to getting a hedgie...just very important things to think about.

[HeDgEhOgSzzzzzz]

yeah I know that. I have another question go to http://www.hedgehogvalley.com/pogsavail.html then scroll down until you see smdam2... does it look healthy? If not what one do you think would be the best? I want one thats pretty young.

[Nancy]

Is your dad aware of the cost involved in keeping a hedgehog? They are not cheap animals to maintain. Like Kerrie said, they do require a warm environment and that will add to your electric bill. They eat high quality cat food which is expensive and vet care is expensive.

Make sure he knows all the facts before you get one. So often people rush into hedgehog ownership and when they discover all the care involved they end up giving it up. Not fair to the hedgehog.

[Sarbear]

I think that a lot of reasearch should be done before getting a hedgehog, I know I researched for months and when the time came I still felt that I needed to know more. Just remember that hedgehogs are exotics and need special care along with daily cage cleanings and attention. There are a lot of good research sites along with this one.
Feel free to ask lots of questions and do even more research, (I seem to say that word a lot!)

[Aqua-Net]

I'm not sure exactly what your parent's custody arrangement is, but as another child of divorced parents (two weeks at moms, two weeks at dads), I don't think I could've taken care of an animal like a hedgehog when I lived at home. After graduation, I went to college for two years and broke the rules simply by having hermit crabs! I'm sure it seems to you that a lot of people are simply jumping on you and poo-pooing on your idea, but we're honestly all just really concerned. Perhaps you should think about the worst case scenario and plan for it. What if you end up spending more time with your mother? What if your acedemic or social life gets really, really heavy? What if when you graduate, you move somewhere that you cannot take your little one? My boyfriend adores my hedgies, but isn't comfortable enough to do more than feed them if I'm gone. My one little girl has quite happily gone through most of my rather meager savings. $430 between two vet visits and lets not forget that it is 1+ hour drive both ways just to get to the vet.

I'm not trying to say NO!, rather I'm just trying to point out some of the negatives I've encountered. We're planning on moving this summer and I have to find a place that accepts animals. I just got back from vacation and I was a wreak the entire time worrying about them. Just make sure you think it through because it would completely break your heart to have to give up an animal you have fallen in love with. Best wishes!