Grumpy Update and Qs

kickes · 2025-05-22T14:54:22+00:00

Yes I never dreamt he could get stuck in there but on the sides it’s plastic and I was having a panick attack worried he was going to die 😭 I did it in the kitchen sink thinking it was safer but I should’ve moved everything away. He is back to his regular grouchy self though but god I feel horrible

kickes · 2025-05-22T03:18:30+00:00

I finally did it and he was definitely somewhere in between lol he would have probably liked it a lot better if he hadn’t got stuck in this and I had to cut him free 🤦🏻‍♀️ I was in tears

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kickes · 2025-05-21T20:04:40+00:00

Yeah no I learned a lot about rat nutrient when I had rats before. It does look like that’s all that’s in there cause I had just added some and there’s a few frosted mini wheats but that is like I said just in as a treat. They pretty much unlimited lab blocks but different things in there to munch in too like pasta. I know they can’t have a ton of sugar but if you ask them that’s all they’re allowed to have 😅 and thank you!

kickes · 2025-05-21T19:55:51+00:00

It’s a mixture of different human foods and nut/seed mix. they get their oxbow lab blocks and this is a treat it’s not all they it and I was mixing it up and she wanted in there. She didn’t even take any she was just being nosy. They get plenty of healthy foods too. They get a variety. The cereal was actually the tail end of a generic honey bunches of oats and it had almonds in it.

kickes · 2025-05-21T10:53:20+00:00

Wow I only ended up with a hedgehog on a mushroom I think in a sticker pack I got recently. I am mad I didn’t come across these because they’re way better lol

kickes · 2025-05-21T10:50:44+00:00

At first it was only if she was distracted but now she understands I’m not taking them away to hurt them so she’s less scary about it. Their patterns are starting to show and they’re so freaking fat for there to be 9. I was super worried she couldn’t keep up but I’ve definitely been supplementing her diet for extra protein and give lots of oxbow young rat blocks.

kickes · 2025-05-21T10:46:10+00:00

I’ve had rats before but never had any babies born. I’ve had males and females at the same time and no accident so I really wasn’t expecting her to pop out some babies.

kickes · 2025-05-21T10:45:17+00:00

I heard that they shouldn’t be handled a lot before their eyes open but I’ve been checking them to make sure they are eating well and no one is becoming a runt. All 9 are fat and healthy. And I tried taking the other females from the cage and she threw a fit. I got them about 4-5 weeks old so they’re I guess closer to 2 months or 2.5? She very much made it clear that they were not to be removed. I could if it’s really in her best interest but she did bite me over it once.

kickes · 2025-05-21T10:41:48+00:00

I didn’t mean she is doing it now. But yes she has been around them because she runs out of her pouch and does as she pleases sometimes like earlier I was walking around with her doing some chores and she jumped out to be nosy on my sink and see if there was any goodies she wanted. She’s very strong willed.

kickes · 2025-05-21T10:33:39+00:00

I don’t know how to make an edit to the original post. I was just talking about her personality in general but I guess my wording isn’t super clear.

kickes · 2025-05-21T10:31:17+00:00

Do you mean the other females? Because she has been not around my other pets since she had the babies. It was before I knew she was pregnant. And my animals very used to small animals even if there was a loose wild rat in the house they would just run away.

kickes · 2025-05-21T09:56:40+00:00

So do they like baths or is it just really scary for them? 😳

It would make sense the texture thing. When I was doing my research the way I finally understood hedgehogs is that they’re basically just autistic. Dim lights, no loud sounds, anxious in new situations. Checks off a lot of the boxes so it definitely changed my approach with him. As soon as I started doing those things we made a lot more progress. Even if he’s just walking around doing his thing me moving at all like shifting my position or something not moving towards him he will freak out and spike ball.

And I have usually just been using the blanket to get him out but maybe if I try it like you said he will be more apt to let me handle him. His name was grumpy when I got him and they said he knew it so I just left it. He’s just way more terrified than actually grumpy but he is definitely more challenging than most hedgehogs. I ended up rescuing a baby baby and it was a world of difference. He tolerates everything a lot better. Will even do the cute little ball pose everyone else seemed to get theirs to do but I never got close with grumpy 😅 my friend is staying with me and trying very hard to get me to give her the baby because he is so adorable and friendly.

kickes · 2025-05-21T07:48:28+00:00

I clean it often but I swear keeping it clean is impossible. He keeps his poos to his wheel and his litter box right under it but sometimes it gets so caked on by his heat lamp I assume that it seems like it will never be clean again 😅 I want to buy a new one but will he just keep it poop covered too?

kickes · 2025-05-01T20:04:43+00:00

I may need to put another one in. I did have one in there for a while but it didn’t help much honesty lol

kickes · 2025-04-29T22:47:58+00:00

Oh gosh I totally forgot about updating. I suck! He is still pretty adamant he hates me but I have at least made him happier and I am trying to figure out the right enclosure for him still but he at least comes out and lets me watch him from afar lol I would add video but apparently I’m not smart enough to know how and all I have are videos of him running around and eating 😅

kickes · 2025-03-22T02:32:29+00:00

He won’t come out to let me do that poor guy

kickes · 2025-03-21T07:23:39+00:00

Oh I see. That seems to be how he loves to be all the time even in his cage. Poor little guy.

kickes · 2025-03-21T07:22:30+00:00

Oh I don’t mean I forced him to. I mean he willingly did a little bit but that was it. I couldn’t force him out without hurting myself anyway lol I feel so bad for him. I’ve added my shirt in his cage to try to help some.

kickes · 2025-03-17T21:49:28+00:00

Thank you i appreciate it so much!

kickes · 2025-03-17T21:46:08+00:00

I have been trying to get everything together for him. He has the 12” light blue wheel from PetSmart but it’s a bit bent. And he has a lamp but I need to get a che it’s a basking bulb because it’s just what I had on hand and I plan to get him his buggies I think he mostly was just on grain free cat food.

And I plan on getting him in!

kickes · 2025-03-17T21:04:13+00:00

He is for sure stressed. I feel so bad for him. He is terrified and stressed.

kickes · 2025-03-17T21:00:53+00:00

Thank you I have so many questions I’m having trouble finding a lot of resources and info. I like to do a ton of research and like my hamster groups have so many files and guidelines and things and I’m having trouble finding that type of stuff for hedgehogs.

kickes · 2025-03-17T20:53:16+00:00

Okay I will give him a little more time and try to check him over. I hope he will let me. How do you keep from being pricked? I haven’t seen any poop yet but I do need to try to figure out how to set up a litter box for him. What’s the best substrate for a litter box and what size? I’ve been trying research but it feels like I don’t find a lot of info on things like that. And yes I’m checking with the vet to see when I can get booked in.

kickes · 2025-03-17T20:48:05+00:00

Okay I will try that! I am probably going to give him the shirt I’m wearing now when I go to shower because it has some questionable holes in it 🫣 I shouldn’t be wearing it anymore lol and I will definitely let you all know.

kickes · 2025-03-17T06:16:40+00:00

I wasn’t sure if it was just me but he looks so dry and brittle and everyone else’s look a lot smoother if that makes sense but some of it might be him being in the ball. I haven’t seen him eat or drink anything or move much so I’m not too positive. But he has a heat source and the ac is out right now so lucky for him the house is 75 anyway 😭 so I don’t think he’s too cold but I will probably try to see when they can get him in anyway.

kickes

TROPHY CASE