x-posted!

[caleighgreen]

How do i make my hedgehog love me? Ive had him for over a year, and he still stabs me and snorts and huffs and puffs, i try handling him so much, i use gloves and leave him on my lap but he refuses to be nice, just stays in a ball and wont move. I don't wanna have to use gloves! I wanna hold him and love him without him eating me! Oh, and does

Comments

[bawloo]

Some hedgehogs just don't enjoy human interaction. It's a scenario that you have to be ready for with any pet. I have one boy, Dante, that I never expect to uncurl on my lap. Instead of stressing him and trying to handle him every day, I've spoken with his previous owner, and come to the conclusion that he's better off in a playpen than on my lap. He loves to uncurl and explore once I'm not handling him, so even though I don't get the pleasure of being able to hold him, I can still watch him, and he can have fun comfortably.

Using gloves isn't a good idea at all; he'll never have your bare fingers near him, and therefore, never get used to your smell. That's why using fleece blankies are recommended instead, so that you can pick them up, but also have your bare hands available.

I have an albino as well, and I don't see why they're any different than standards or darker variations. You can see the waste more clearly, but that doesn't mean they should have to suffer constant baths, or that standards need to be washed less just because you can't see it. :) Hedgehogs shouldn't be bathed any more than once a month; their skin gets very irritated, which would only add to your hedgie's bad mood. If you absolutely have to, take a damp washcloth with warm water, and dab at the dirty quills (remembering to keep him warm and away from any drafts or cool air afterwards).

If he poops on his wheel, just place some paper towels or extra cloths underneath the lip of the wheel. Throw away/wash them daily, and wash the wheel daily. It'll likely reduce a lot of the waste you see on the cage and on him.

[mcsassypants]

Seconded.

I'm the proud owner of an extremely grumpy hedgehog. He turns two this month, I've had him since he was about six months old and he still huffs and puffs any time I pick him up. The closest I've been to having an ungrumpy hedgehog is when I feed him treats, after about the third one he'll unroll a bit and stretch out his back legs, but rolls right back up and huffs and puffs the moment I move or even breathe funny.

Does that make him a bad pet? No, it's just his personality. He's happier running around and exploring things once everyone else is asleep than he is sitting in my lap.