It looks like you've gotten most of the information you need but I'll give you my experience with my (roommate's) hedgehog.

The first one she had, she was absolutely in love with. It was very friendly and playful. I can't give you too much info on it because it died before we moved in together. It died at 2 years old from bladder cancer... The surgery was quite costly and it had to be put down.

Her second hedgehog she bought just before we moved in together, and she still has it so I can tell you a bit more. This hedgehog was not nearly as nice as the first one. It was very temperamental, it didn't like to be touched. It was described as "huffy" by the vet,... if you came near it, it would sort of jolt a few times so if you were too close you would get quilled. It rarely came out from being in a little ball, even after a couple hours out of the cage. It would eat the bottom of our furniture and took a good chunk out of the couch, and then she'd anoint it all over herself (basically the chew it up and spit it out on themselves, sort of like a foam.. it's supposed to make them more attractive to their mates.. or something like that), then it would have to be bathed. It had to be bathed at least once a week (my roommate bathed it once a week and it smelled disgusting by the end) with a toothbrush to pick all of the food and poop out of their quills.... took at least 15-20 minutes most of the time.
My roommate didn't take great care of the cage cleaning because her and the hedgehog didn't get a long, but the cage was gross within the week between cleaning. You could smell it as soon as you walked in the house. It has to be picked up carefully, most people wear leather gloves, though I've heard it's better to not wear gloves; you can also pick it up in a small towel or an old t-shirt.

They do tend to smell if you don't wash their cage often because they don't use a litter box or a certain corner. You have to clean then thoroughly, and they need a fairly big cage to be active in. My roommate didn't provide a wheel and it had a pretty small cage and was rarely let out, but I've been told they should have a large cage and a wheel and lots of time out to be active. They're certainly not cuddly.. they're just a looking at pet.

Its difficult to find a vet, so make sure you can find a vet in your area that handles exotics. They need to actually have had experience with hedgehogs. I had a bit of trouble with my ferret for this; only 2 vets in my city will take ferrets and they only do it because no one else will do it.. So her vet is in another town almost 2 hours away and even then they have pretty limited experience.. it'll be the same for hedgehogs so make sure your not going to have to travel a huge distance for a vet.

Same goes for food and supplies locally. If you shop online often it should be no problem, but there is not really a wide variety of hedgehog products available at most pet stores, and certainly not at a place like walmart. If you have a petsmart or pet valu or something like that, you should be able to get food pretty easily, but if you live in a smaller town you might not be able to get it without traveling, so ordering from the internet is usually a good solution. Again, I ran into this with my ferret. Pet valu and petsmart carry SOME products, but really only the basics, they don't even carry cages, and very small selection of good quality food and treats. They only carried ONE type of toy and I had to look for cat toys that would be safe. Your going to run in to the exact same thing with hedgehogs.

I would do some serious research before I committed to a hedgehog. My personal opinion is that I wouldn't get one, because I prefer an animal that will be a bit more cuddly and playful and show some affection. That ended up being a ferret for me, but I've heard guinea pigs have similar temperament. They're playful, affectionate, smart, fuzzy, and clean (use a litter box) and require very few baths, but lots of time and attention. I know the question was about hedgehogs but I can't resist mentioning my ferret. She really is the only pet that felt right for me... I didn't even consider a cat or a dog or hamster or anything normal like that. But hedgehogs are a good pet for some people!

Overall the first hedgehog my roommate had was the perfect pet (as she said) but the second one was pretty mediocre. Just luck I guess, so you may want to look at buying one off a place like kijiji from someone that is moving or can't look after theirs anymore. Then most of the hard work of the baby stage is done and they can tell you a bit about it's temperament. I find most people are pretty honest on there and if it bites, they usually will just come right out and say it.

The dog shouldn't be a problem. The hedgehog spends a lot of time in a cage anyways, and it has a pretty good natural defense system so it would get pricked if it tried anything and likely the dog would just avoid it. The cat and hedgehog had no problem here. The cat would watch the hedgehog for ages but if it got too near the hedgehog would just jerk itself and the cat would get a prick (nothing serious) and that was pretty much the end of it. Unless you have a vicious fearless dog that would attack through the spikes, you have nothing to worry about. And the hedgehog itself it pretty harmless..> The most it can give out is a little prick that likely won't even break skin or MAYBE a bite. I wouldn't worry though.

Good luck with your decision!
Source(s):
experience

Asker's Rating:

Permalink | Report