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where to buy, cage size and bedding

21 14:50:15

Question
Hello I want to get one or two hedgehogs this fall and it seems all the breeders are either backed out for sales(long wait lists) or not breeding at this time. So I may have to buy my hedgehog from a well run chain petstore. I was in there playing with the hedgehogs last week and they were all friendly, tame, easy to pick up and looked healthy... #1 Is there a problem buying a hedgehog from a petstore?    

Which one should I pick? The one I really liked(which may be sold now lol) was a cinnamon but was hissing when I tryed to pick it up... should I just take a salt/pepper/grey because its friendlier?  

I have a 29 gallon fish tank with the floor space of 24X16 inches and about 20 inches tall would this be ok as a cage either just for a while or on a permanant basis?


And lastly I love all the small animals but settled on hedgehogs for a good reason I am allergic to the hay/straw/shavings that go along with guinea pigs and bunnies, My question is can a hedgehog be kept on something other then dusty shavings? Thank you for your time.

Answer
The biggest problem with buying from a pet store is that you have no idea of the animal's background or breeding, and may not have any after sale support available.  If you feel comfortable with the animal and the pet store, then I totally understand you buying an animal there.  Please be very sure that the animals were not kept with both sexes together!  Surprise litters don't often end well, and are often in females young enough that it can make them more vulnerable to future health issues.  Which one should you take?  Personality, personality, personality!  Pick one you can enjoy playing with over one who has a pretty color!  Pretty hedgehogs are great, but if it is an unfriendly animal who won't enjoy playing with you, you would do better to save your money and get a pretty cactus.  Yes, some hedgehogs do come around in time to tolerate handling, but very few that are hissing popping balls of grump ever end up fun, outgoing pets.  It could also be hiding a health issue that could be severe.

A 29 gallon tank isn't big enough for a permanent cage for one girl (I consider bare minimum to be 2'x2') and would be confining enough to potentially lead to fights with two in there.  As a temporary cage for one animal I suppose it is acceptable, but what you really want is a larger size cage that has a flat bottom (no wire) and plenty of room to run.  Not many hedgehogs use the ledges in some cages, but one level is okay as long as you don't put food or water on it.  More than that could be dangerous for the hedgehog as they have very poor vision and will often walk straight off an edge.  

Bedding?  You can be very flexible on that.  Carefresh is made from recycled paper and may solve your problem.  There are also some people who keep their animals on cage liners made of fabric which they wash regularly.  Its a little more work on the part of the owner, but should eliminate the problem of dusty bedding of any kind.  If you have any other questions please don't hesitate to ask!

Laura Tong
PogStar Hedgehogs and
HedgehogWorld.com