voodewlady
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Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/01 15:31
I was reading up on hedgies and an article mentioned that a well adjusted, happy and socialized hedgehog rarely "balls" up when interacting with it's owner. My Pickles is very skitish as I did not get her as a baby. I adopted her from a preschool I worked at and she was always around children and lots of noise. That's why I figure she is that way. Any one have any imput on this subject?
~Erin~
~Lives in the land of OZ~
Ms. Pickles the hedgehog
Mischa Rose the ferret
Sydney Belle the dapple dachshund
My Myspace link:
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dzmeadows
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/01 20:10
Any idea where she came from? Temperament is a combination of numerous things.
1.) Breeding. Yes, the family background of the hedgehog plays a large part in the temperament of the hedgehog. While it is not a 100% guarantee (I have had some fabulous hedgehogs produce raving nutballs, and raving nutballs produce some fabulous hedgehogs) it does give you a great headstart towards a good temperament.
2.) Socialization- Socialization can help build on the foundation that the breeding has provided. Appropriate socialization and handling can improve the temperament of most hedgehogs.
3.) The owner's comfort- People who tend to be nervous, anxious, or uptight tend to have more trouble socializing their hedgehogs. I think we have at least one member here who will admit that her nerves affect her hedgehog's behavior. 
4.) Environment- yep, exactly what you said. Loud, busy, stressful environments tend to make most hedgehogs less happy. Calm and quiet environments seem to be more pleasant to hedgehogs.
Becca
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Andrea
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/02 11:50
 Ahem.......are you referring to moi?
Becca, you would be very happy to know that Spikey and I are doing great. I am picking him up from his hedgie bag without much huffing on his part and I am much more calm and relaxed. In the mornings he is very active and he enjoys exploring all over my lap and on the floor (I have set up an area for him to explore)--and if he is going out of bounds I am able to scoop him up and he is totally ok. He is still very sleepy in the evening and if i do lap time he usually just sniffs a bit, explores a bit and then will curl up in my shirt and will fall asleep.
I probably still have a ways to go but we have made A LOT of progress. And yes, I will own the fact that my nervousness and inexperience probably made Spikey tense/upset. But I love the little guy and would never give up on being a better mommy. Nor would I abandon him for any issue (like Ducky's mommy).
Andrea
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dzmeadows
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/03 12:06
YAY ANDREA!!!!!!!!!!!! Glad things are going well for you and Spikey. 
Yes, it is sad that poor Duckie the Indiscriminate Pooper was not appreciated.... I can't wait to get him here.
Becca
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HappyHedgie8
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/03 15:14
dzmeadows wrote:
YAY ANDREA!!!!!!!!!!!! Glad things are going well for you and Spikey.
Yes, it is sad that poor Duckie the Indiscriminate Pooper was not appreciated.... I can't wait to get him here.
Becca
Wait, what? Lol did I miss something? 
**Mommy of Tweetle the hedgehog!**
~Felicia :] |
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dzmeadows
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/03 17:54
Poor Duckie was returned to his breeder because he was (and I quote), an indescriminate pooper. So he will be coming to live with me. And as soon as I figure out how to spell that word up there, Duckie the (that word) Pooper will be his official name. :-P
Becca
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CThogs
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/03 19:10
indiscriminate
Main Entry: in·dis·crim·i·nate
Pronunciation: ˌin-dis-ˈkrim-nət, -ˈkri-mə-
Function: adjective
Date: circa 1598
1 a: not marked by careful distinction : deficient in discrimination and discernment <indiscriminate reading habits> <indiscriminate mass destruction> b: haphazard, random <indiscriminate application of a law>
2 a: promiscuous, unrestrained <indiscriminate sexual behavior> b: heterogeneous, motley <an indiscriminate collection>
— in·dis·crim·i·nate·ly adverb
— in·dis·crim·i·nate·ness noun
I think Duckie the motley pooper has a nice ring to it
Ann
Connecticut Hedgehogs
We had a great time at Hedgehog Fest 2008!!! |
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HappyHedgie8
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/03 20:47
Oh man, thats too bad for Duckie the *insert word here* pooper. 
Tweetle poops on everything he can find to poop on, but I found a solution so that he doesn't poop on me:
When I take him out of his cage, I put him in the sink so he can do his duty, wash out and sterilize the sink, and then hold him... Problem solved! Lol!
**Mommy of Tweetle the hedgehog!**
~Felicia :] |
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omelette
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/04 00:04
dzmeadows wrote:
Duckie the (that word) Pooper will be his official name. :-P
Becca
ROTFL!! oh but poor Duckie. Omelette is not very particular about where she poops. But I love her too much to care. I usually try to take her out after she's done her business and left it on the wall for me.  (Maybe it's the hedgie version of wall art. )
Lisa
My Heart Belongs to:
Teddy, Sugar, Sapphie, Fudge, Archie, Chuckie - The Yorkies
Wendy (Siamese Mix), Echo (Tabby) - Cats
Omelette - Hedgehog
Basil - Guinea Pig
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Andrea
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/04 17:02
I know....my heart just went out to Duckie the Pooper when Stasi told me about it. I got Spikey from Stasi and in one of our many phone consults (about Spikey) she mentioned the stress she was under in trying to get the hedgie back. The owner was not being very coorporative and also was returning the hedgie due to pooping. Duckie was born a few months before Spikey and I think has the same coloring as Spikey. It just made me really sad (for Duckie) but also glad that, despite my issues, I LOVE my little guy and just want to be the best mommy possible.
Andrea
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voodewlady
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/04 17:09
Everyone has sort of got of topic here. My original question is how well socialized are all your hedgies?
~Erin~
~Lives in the land of OZ~
Ms. Pickles the hedgehog
Mischa Rose the ferret
Sydney Belle the dapple dachshund
My Myspace link:
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=120500732
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Julie Pierce
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/05 06:09
My herd runs the gammet from never balls up to needing coaxing to calm down and unball. They all have been socialized since they were babies by their breeder and then myself. I attribute their differences to temperment and personality. Each hedgehog is unique.
Julie Pierce
Pierce's Pogs
http://www.piercespogs.com |
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CThogs
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/05 07:33
Everyone has sort of got of topic here.
Off Topic? Us?
I was reading up on hedgies and an article mentioned that a well adjusted, happy and socialized hedgehog rarely "balls" up when interacting with it's owner. My Pickles is very skitish as I did not get her as a baby. I adopted her from a preschool I worked at and she was always around children and lots of noise. That's why I figure she is that way. Any one have any imput on this subject?
I think it is unrealistic to say that a hedgehog will rarely ball up. No matter how friendly and socialized they are, some will still startle when they hear a loud or unfamiliar noise or have a shadow overhead, etc. It is a defense mechanism that they have no control over. Even the hedgehogs that run out to greet me and are extremely friendly will ball up if the conditions are right.
Ann
Connecticut Hedgehogs
We had a great time at Hedgehog Fest 2008!!! |
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CandJ327
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/05 11:12
Our Ava is very well socialized in my opinion but she still balls up. When we take the igloo off of her to take her out or if she's already out if we go to pick her up, she will ball initially but if you leave your hand there for a minute and she can smell us she unballs (usually keeps her visor quills up though until she's out of the cage).
But she still is a diva of a huffle butt. Nightly we cuddle on the couch and she sleeps on my lap under a blanket. She streches out (and has started to purr sometimes) but if Carlo tries to steal her or the cat tries to usurp her position she becomes one angry ball of spikes but always settles right back down once she gets her way. When we clip her nails she'll bawl up and make a gammet of huffle noises but once she realizes we aren't going to give up she just sits there with her legs hanging out and lets us finish.
I LOVE that she is a huffly diva. For us it's part of her humour and charm! She clearly knows who we are, she loves to cuddle (it's hard to hold on to her at night when I'm putting her blanket on my lap because she's already making a mad dash to root around in it), when she's in what Carlo calls "explore mode" and is fully awake and really active she won't ball up for anything but you can't hold on to her because she's running around like crazy, BUT, when she throws a huffle fit at the cat or over having her nails clipped or because we're taking the tub of mealies away, IT'S LOL FUNNY
Ava's mom!
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CandJ327
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/05 11:15
And back to off topic... POOR DUCKIE! (love his name BTW, is he named after Duckie in Pretty in Pink?)
Ava is only discriminate in pooping in her own home. In the world at large she'll poop on anything and everything she gets a chance to but doesn't poop as much out of her cage now that she is older. What a silly and crazy reason to get rid of a hedgehog 
GOOD LUCK TO DUCKIE! Has he found a forever home yet that loves his poople butt?
Ava's mom!
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Andrea
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/05 11:45
I think Duckie the pooper will be living with Becca and that will be his new home.
Sorry for going off topic.....but in Becca's reply, she referred to me. I am the one who was initially very nervous and thought my hedgie did not like me. And that was impacting my hedgie's behavior and it was becoming a vicious circle. With coaching from Stasi, and then Becca and Kelly at the hedgefest and everybody on this board, Spikey and I have made tremendous progress.
In terms of huffiness, mid day when I check on Spikey and offer him a few kibbles via peeking in his hedgie bag, he still huffs, even though I know he knows it is me. And now he sometimes huffs and kindof lunges at the kibbles. But then when I pick him up, he is relaxed and, depending on if he is tired, will either be in snuggle/hunker down mode or total exploration mode.
He still startles a lot, despite me being pretty consistent in our schedule and environment, and then will do the forehead quills. This can be due to any sudden movement, the phone ringing, me shifting. It is a reflex, from what I am beginning to understand, and it does not mean he is upset or angry. Heck, early on, Spikey would be digging in his carefresh (I have his whole cage lined with it) and he would be doing this with gusto, and then sometimes carefresh would fall back on his face and he would huff at it! Silly hedgehog.
Since this is my first hedgie and he is still really young, it is hard for me to know if his huffiness falls within the norm. I think it does. Stasi, Becca and Kelly all examined him (at my request, due to my concerns early on) and they all said his temperment was great. I actually agree with Candj327; Spikey's little huffing episodes are actually quite charming and interesting, especially when he is just sitting and then all of the sudden there is a noise and there goes the forehead quills down over his face.
Again, sorry for going astray........
Andrea
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Stasi
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/05 14:02
CandJ327 wrote:
And back to off topic... POOR DUCKIE! (love his name BTW, is he named after Duckie in Pretty in Pink?)
Ava is only discriminate in pooping in her own home. In the world at large she'll poop on anything and everything she gets a chance to but doesn't poop as much out of her cage now that she is older. What a silly and crazy reason to get rid of a hedgehog
GOOD LUCK TO DUCKIE! Has he found a forever home yet that loves his poople butt?
Ok, I'll keep this on topic but also answer the Duckie questions.
I also think saying a well adjusted hedgehog rarely balls up is unrealistic. As Ann said, it's a strong instinctive reaction they have no control over.
As for Duckie. the woman returning him had not clued me in as to what the difficulty was, other than to state maybe a hedgehog wasn't a good match for the family. I was concerned, and wanted to get him out of a not-the-best situation as soon as possible (in all fairness, I would hope that they were still taking care of him, but paranoia kindof took hold).
We met, she handed him back, and described the problem..."I have never seen an animal that was such an indiscriminate pooper since we had a duck!"
I opened my mouth to argue the point, but decided that after all this, I really didn't want to try to work with her and help her understand that
a) Duckie was still a baby animal, and, well, babies don't have control.
b) there are routines you can get into that will limit the amount of accidents.
c) I'm ALWAYS available if you have a problem and need help! (she never asked)
Since I had communicated all of those things the 6 weeks before when she got him, , I figured keeping my mouth shut, getting him in the car and safely back at home would be the best answer.
Becca became very attached, and he will be finding his way to her in MO later this spring.
Stasi
Terrapin Hedgehogs
Joppa, MD
www.terrapinhedgehogs.com
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voodewlady
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/05 17:35
Thanks for those that replied on this. I do love the forehead quills part you mentioned. I always say it looks like Ms. Pickles is head banging when she does it. LOL. 
~Erin~
~Lives in the land of OZ~
Ms. Pickles the hedgehog
Mischa Rose the ferret
Sydney Belle the dapple dachshund
My Myspace link:
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=120500732
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Hedgehogmadhatter
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Re:Friendly hedgies - 2008/04/28 00:35
It sounds like Duckie will be much happier with his new situation. Thank goodness!
As for hedgehog socialization and getting your hedgehog to become friendlier, sometimes the best tools are
1. a schedule! hedgehogs LOVE schedules.
2. Hide your nerves (which was mentioned before, they can tell when you are nervous)
and the MOST important.. 3. NEVER GIVE UP. Hedgehogs take time to get used to you and come out of their shells.
~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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