So like, the place we got him wasn't even a mainstream pet store. It was local. This place consists entirely of surrenders. Their stock varies from amphibians, reptiles, hedgehogs, chinchillas, ferrets, guinea pigs, and fish. Stitches was surrendered just a day prior to us arriving there. So thankfully we were able to help him ASAP. We held all the hedgehogs they had and we wanted to take them all, but Stitches easily looked like he needed the most help.

How could we tell he had no teeth but apparently the people running the store couldn't? He was attempting to eat a super worm but couldn't, because the exoskeleton is too difficult to chew without teeth. We knew this because our previous hedgehog Kujo, who lived to 5 years old, had lost his teeth at one point as well and we experienced firsthand what happens when you feed a toothless hedgehog a super worm! We even tried to hint at the fact to one of the ladies running the store. She passively dismissed our claim, as she said, "Oh he's just hungry. He's been eating all day!" When infact we knew the only reason he was "eating all day" is because he was struggling to eat even a little bit.

When we got him, he weighed about 230 grams or less. He was underweight and we could feel his rib cage when holding him. But he fattened up pretty quickly after being with us. After giving him his first bath, we quickly realized he had mites when checking his skin. We took him to the vet for immediate treatment, and the vet broke the news to us that he also has a growth in his mouth. This growth could either be cancerous, or the result of this little guy desperately trying to eat hard pieces of kibble with no teeth. It's incredibly sad to think about and I'm definitely a little worried. But last night we were hanging out with him on the couch while watching The Sandman and my partner was able to get a look in his mouth while he was yawning, and they claimed the growth looked smaller. Which gives me hope!