House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/16 17:02Hi. In September I plan to get a Hedgehog, been preparing for one for ages and I am counting down the months until Pickles moves into the family unit. I've started window shopping around for Breeders and have a potential winner.
However, I find there is a lot of talk about Caged hedgies but I've been looking forward to a House Hedgehog, one that runs free in our living room. She can come out from behind the sofa when she wants and join us for snuggles etc. Well, you get the picture.
Got to say now, we don't have small children or any children for that matter. Just me and my girlfriend so she wont get squished or frightened at Christmas.
Her bedding and house will be the same, water and food in a cage. All that malarky, but how naughty would she get? Do I need to hedge-proof the DVD player? Put everything on stilts? I'll do it, just what do I need to expect?
Also, would an outside enclosure to stretch her legs on grass and have a bit of a scurry around be out of the question? She'd live indoors but I'd like her to have that much more freedom too.
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Litter train your hedgehog, otherwise you will have poop and pee everywhere
Hedgehogs can squeeze into really small areas so you will have to make sure there are no spaces in walls/ floors etc where they could get in and you could not get them out.
Do regular baby proofing so there is nothing dangerous to the hedgie that they can get into.
Also, would an outside enclosure to stretch her legs on grass and have a bit of a scurry around be out of the question? She'd live indoors but I'd like her to have that much more freedom too.
If you bring your hedgehog outside you want to supervise constantly-if he escapes, he can run fast. Watch out for pesticdes on grass or wild insects-you don't want either to be eaten. Also make sure temperature is warm enough for your hedgehog.Ann Connecticut Hedgehogs
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HamorHollow
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/17 09:13I would highly recommend a cage. Most hedgehogs will poop as they walk, where ever they happen to be. Some are good at picking a particular spot, but I tell people not to get their hopes too high on that.
Supervised outside time is fine, but I would recommend that it be at least 75 degrees outside and that the hedgehog only be outside for short periods. African pygmy hedgehogs really aren't made to live in our climate.
-KKelly Sosik-Hamor Hamor Hollow Hedgehogs - a New Hampshire breeder, serving Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and any where else hedgehogs are legal. | Do you want to buy a baby Hedgehog? Please fill out out questionnaire. | Hedgehog World - A Community for African Pygmy Hedgehog Owners and Breeders
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MrTeapot
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/17 10:15Thanks for the article. It clarified some points I was thinking about, such as wires and the like.
Some of the points like multiple food, water and litter places were what I was planning. As well as some hide away boxes and secret tunnels to give it somewhere else to explore than just behind the TV (thats if we ever get one).
I think I have to mention that I live in the UK. 75 degrees is a very nice day for us, but we're probably about 60 degrees with 70 as like the max. But saying that, the hedgehog I'm looking for wouldn't be an african pyigmi - Pickles will be a european hedgehog, just like the ones in the garden.
I'd like to meet my hedgehog before I take her home. What traits do you think I should look out for? How would I know if I am chosing a grumpy sod?
Ta again for the help.
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LORI611
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/17 13:10Wow, do people keep the European Hedgehogs for pets??LORI, SOUTHINGTON, CT Mom of: Chloe(dog), Mr.Toad(frog) and Hazel the hedgie!!
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MrTeapot
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/17 13:39I'd not really heard of African pygmis till I came on here, I thought it was an American thing.
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jade
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/17 13:59mr teapot. I too am from the UK, As far as i am aware you are not allowed to keep regular european hedgehogs as pets. I know taking them out of the wild is illegal. As for keeping them as pets i have never heard of this. Are you sure that it is legal.Jade England
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thistle
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/17 14:50It is illegal to keep a European hedgehog as a pet, they are a protected species. If you are caught then you will be prosecuted.
Some people may have them in their walled garden and put food out for them. But they are not their pets!
African pygmy hedgehogs are getting more and more popular here in the u.k. If you want to have a pet hedgehog then it would need to be one of these.Barbara with Hector & Harriet Hog Glasgow, Scotland
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MrTeapot
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/17 16:15Ah, well maybe I have them a little confused. Maybe I was looking at brown african pygmies I wasn't thinking of just getting them from the garden, but going through a breeder, I just wanted to assure you all of that.
I've read a few more of the articles on the website now.
Btw, Jade, where are you in the UK? I'm not having much luck finding a breeder I can get to. I'm in South Buckinghamshire.
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Hedgehogmadhatter
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/17 17:21Are you sure you want a free range hedgehog? If Harley was allowed out he would spend most of the day jammed up under my counters.
"Kitchen cabinets also often have gaps in them that can be tempting to a hedgehog, and are very hard to remove a hedgehog from once they are discovered."
I've also found they really appreciate having a space of their own. I think they tend to view the cage as their home. The other concern is stepping on a sleep hedgehog, like in your garden when they burrow up under a pile of leaves, here it would be a pile of laundry. Not to mention if you have a rocking chair...
~Sara“The fox has many tricks, and the hedgehog only one, but that is the best of all”
Archilochus (Greek lyric poet and soldier, 675-635bc)
There's no love like HEDGEHOG love!
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thistle
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/18 14:43There is a U.K based APH forum which has recently just started. There are quite a few breeders on this, including Faith, who runs the U.K hedgehog registry, she might be able to advise you on finding a breeder nearby.
I hope nobody minds if I put a link to this forum here-
Good luck! Barbara with Hector & Harriet Hog Glasgow, Scotland
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jade
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/18 18:43Mr teapot. I am in northampton, however i am currently not a breeder but may well be in the next few months. I am almost certain that the hedgehogs you are looking at are pygmy's.
I would recommend caging them, you can a have a cage as big as you like and the sell pet play pens in 'pets at home' so you can let him have free time to run around.
They are not like house rabbits, they need their own space and can sometimes not want any attention at all.
Is there any particular reason you wan the hedgie to be free roaming.
My two are caged and i get them out for a couple of hours each evening for supervised play time.
I think that it would be overwhelming for a small hedgie to have so much room and freedoma ll of the time. i know when i let allie out she looks for somewhere small and dark to curl up and hide.
I have never been a fan of caging my pets, but unfortunately that's how it goes. I guess I felt that a small livingroom would be the perfect 'cage' for a hedgie.
My girlfriend is getting less and less interested in a free-roaming hedgehog too. I guess I'll have to wait and see what her personality is like and whether she would even want to wander around so much space.
Thanks for the link, I'd already emailed Faith but I'll have a look on that forum too.
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It might take a while for you to hear back from Faith, I think she said something about going on holiday.Barbara with Hector & Harriet Hog Glasgow, Scotland
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Hedgehogmadhatter
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/19 22:19I can see why you wouldn't want to "cage" your pets. Harley has more of a house than a cage. He has his own toys (I mean he KNOWS they are his) and TONS of space. There are so many options for building your pet's home, you can make it more of a home than a cage. Plus he gets LOTS of time outside of it too. If he spent all day in a tiny space, he'd be unhappy.
~Sara
Ok I'll just come out and say it. Harley is spoiled rotten. He came from a great breeder to my house where he gets anything a prickly body could EVER want. Today he spent half an hour out with me on the patio. He rolled around and spent ten minutes proudly carrying around a leaf. “The fox has many tricks, and the hedgehog only one, but that is the best of all”
Archilochus (Greek lyric poet and soldier, 675-635bc)
There's no love like HEDGEHOG love!
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jick
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/20 00:15Over xmas time I decided it would be fun to let Ham roam free in the big bathroom at the house we were at. Of course when xmas morning rolled around I went to check on him and almost died when I realized he was missing. It took about another hour of searching before I realized that he crawled up underneath the bathroom cabinetry through a tiny gap that I hadn't seen. I was terrified that he might fall through another hole within (like a hole for the plumbing). Long story short.... we got him out... AFTER we dismantled the cabinetry. I had to wait until a carpenter friend could come so it took almost all day which of course made my xmas almost totally unenjoyable and panic stricken! Check out Ham's Blog !
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Hedgehogmadhatter
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/20 21:02jick wrote: Over xmas time I decided it would be fun to let Ham roam free in the big bathroom at the house we were at. Of course when xmas morning rolled around I went to check on him and almost died when I realized he was missing. It took about another hour of searching before I realized that he crawled up underneath the bathroom cabinetry through a tiny gap that I hadn't seen. I was terrified that he might fall through another hole within (like a hole for the plumbing). Long story short.... we got him out... AFTER we dismantled the cabinetry. I had to wait until a carpenter friend could come so it took almost all day which of course made my xmas almost totally unenjoyable and panic stricken!
I remember seeing that in your opps I mean HAM'S blog. I laughed because it reminded of the time my boyfriend lost Isabel under a bookshelf. I'd only had her a few weeks and told him if he got her out to make sure she STAYED AWAY from the bookshelf. He had her out 10 minutes before VIOLA! She was under the bookshelf. Of course he had to go to band practice and left her there. She came out EIGHT hours later! ugh. Hedgehogs can be sooo stubborn.
~Sara“The fox has many tricks, and the hedgehog only one, but that is the best of all”
Archilochus (Greek lyric poet and soldier, 675-635bc)
There's no love like HEDGEHOG love!
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MrTeapot
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/21 16:08Note to self: triple check all the small spaces in the living-room.
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zorra578
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/03/31 10:15I'm not sure about the guidelines for this, or if it's legal or you need a permit or not, but I do know that some people take in wild hedgehogs for the winter that are under the right weight to survive hibernation, then release them when the weather gets warmer. I think this is encouraged to help the species as long as you don't keep them past the release time. You should contact a local wildlife rescue about this since I live in the US and know less about the UK's wild animal laws and such.Jessica Des Plaines, IL
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vicioushippie
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Re:House Hedgehog. - 2008/04/02 22:36We can fully understand wanting to not cage your hedgie! As long as you are certain there are no places he/she could get lost in and you provide him/her with some kind of space of their own, it is totally possible. Our hedgehog, Ms. Rinn is fully litterbox trained. She basically lives on our bed during the day and at night we would put her in her house so she can run on her wheel, etc. However, we don't think a cage is necessary, but they do need some sort of space that is their own (a place where a wheel, food and water dishes, toys and a sleeping/cubby hole could be kept). We choose a cage because we have two children and when we got Ms. Rinn our house was not really hedgehog proof. However, since we have moved and before Ms. Rinn got sick (long story), we often gave her full run of our room. Well good luck, hope you find your hedgehog soon! Beth, Rick and Ms. Rinn Pinnrose Puff-n-Stuff
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It clarified some points I was thinking about, such as wires and the like. 
