Questions

[doodledude84]

Well, I have a few questions about some things. The first one is about nail trimming; i can't ever seem to get Jube to hold still long enough for me to trim. Is there any way for me to make it less stressful on her? Also, I read somewhere that if you include rocks in there cage(washed and disinfected of course) that if you get them to climb on them it may help keep there nails filed down, is that true? Also I live in the Bryan/College Station area of Texas and was wondering if anyone knew of a good vet in this area. Thanks for the help!!!

[hemi_mygirl]

You can let Jube run around in a warm bath, to help soften her nails. Then, gently grab a foot (since they won't usually ball up in water) and clip a little bit off at a time. be careful you don't "quick" her, and cut too much off. The part you can clip off will be white, while the quick will be pink or flesh colored. You may only get a couple toes done, but just keep trying.

From personal experience, I found that playing with my hedgehog's feet while she was relaxed and on my lap really helped with the nail clipping. She hates having her nails trimmed in the water, so I pop her in there to soften them up, and then take her out and lay her on her back. She'll give me a paw (yes, I've somewhat trained her to do that) and I'll clip it. Then, she'll give me another one.

I tried rocks in her cage, but I found they didn't help with filing the nails down. She was more intent to try to bite the rocks (even after being washed and disinfected).

As for vets, just phone around. Make sure to mention that you have an exotic animal and make sure they know what a hedgehog is. A couple places around here think a hedgehog is a miniature porcupine. LOL.