pictures of my pincushion.

[damzookeeper]

LOL. Here is our newest addition from Dani33. I'll try to get pics of the other guys later but I got some with this big guy tonight. What a sweetie he is. :)

Here is the pin cushion hanging out on the sofa, looking for a good place to hide. lol
http://www.reptilerascals.com/hh2004-08-29%20013.jpg

Eating his mealies.
http://www.reptilerascals.com/hh2004-08-29%20017.jpg

close up of the cutie.
http://www.reptilerascals.com/hh2004-08-29%20014.jpg

and here he is with his new mommy. :)
I had hedgies a few years back and I miss them dearly, glad to have another in my life again. :)
http://www.reptilerascals.com/hh2004-08-29%20015.jpg

[CDN-Cresties]

Very cool hedge, congrats and best of luck!

[Linds]

LOL cute little bugger, congrats on finding your way back in to hedgies :cool:

I have quite limited experience with them, we had them in the store for a few months, and my cousin used to have them. Hers used to spit on me, lick it up, then spit on itself :confused: My cousin said that it liked the way I smelled and wanted to put my smell on it??? Is there truth to that or... ???

[treegirl]

wow very nice.....have fun with your new friends

[damzookeeper]

Originally posted by Linds
LOL cute little bugger, congrats on finding your way back in to hedgies :cool:

I have quite limited experience with them, we had them in the store for a few months, and my cousin used to have them. Hers used to spit on me, lick it up, then spit on itself :confused: My cousin said that it liked the way I smelled and wanted to put my smell on it??? Is there truth to that or... ???

lol. I forgot about their self anointing. From what I have read no one is quite sure why they do this. This was many years ago. I'll have to check into it again, maybe they have figured it out by now. ;)
But these are some possible reasons... when coming across a new object (usually food) they will do this not sure if they absorb nutrients through the skin. It may be to attract the oposite sex ( now that would be funny if that were the case with you. lol) or it may be they are doinf it to protect themselvs from what they see as a preditor. It is also thought that they may do this because it moistens their skin.
So any of the above could be possible. I never got anointed by adults but my babies did it a couple times.

[Pookie]

Oh wow, i totally forgot all about hedgies! My neighbor use to have one and i thought they were the cuties little things! Now i totally want one! I think my boyfriend would kill me if i brought home another animal since we just picked up fire belly toads over the weekend. :)

[MartinW]

He's so cute Deb!!! How long do they live for? Are they hard to take care of? Are they spikey or do they just look like that?

P.S. hope the leos are doing/breeding well.

Martin

[Dani33]

I'm so happy to know that he went to such a wonderful home! The pics are great. Keep me updated on the little(BIG) guy :)

[Artemis]

Awwww... great! Now another animal Id love to try my hand at! He looks precious! Congrats, and great pics!

Artemis

[dia]

Such strange little creatures!
Cuteness!

[damzookeeper]

Originally posted by MartinW
He's so cute Deb!!! How long do they live for? Are they hard to take care of? Are they spikey or do they just look like that?

P.S. hope the leos are doing/breeding well.

Martin

Hey Martin, how's it going? Leos are doing great! I want to get some update pics soon and I'll have to email you one of Caesar, man is he a big boy now, you wouldn't believe he was the same little baby you sold me. lol The girls were having a bit of a hard time near the end of the season but are now putting the beef back on, than god! They had me scared for a bit, but it was their first year an rather stressfull on them.
As for hedgies. I have read they can live up to 10 years in captivity but when I had mine a few years back My oldest lived to be a little over 4 and I heard that was about the life span back then. She died of kidney failure and her teeth were actually starting to fall out as well. Vet said it was old age. If the people were telling the truth when I got her she was only around 4, if not then she could have been older.
Hedgies are awesome pets and really easy to take care of. They can even be litter trained in their cage and out. Cat litter, not the clumping kind and one with little dust. Aspen bedding a hide, a blankie (not neccessary but my hedgies loved it , just an old face cloth or soemthing with your sent on it. It helps them get to know your sent faster.) A water dish and food dish. A few mealies and some low fat or weight control Iams cat food or hedgie hog food. They can also have lots of different treats too. 1/4 tsp. of cottage cheese should also be mixed in with wet cat food a couple times a week and the dry food helps keep their teeth clean and gums free of disease. (like cats) Some hedgies also like crickets, never had silkies or butters around to try so I'm not sure about them, but they will also take fruits and vegies, and nuts and berries. Also cooked hamberger or chicken was a frav. of my last hedgies.
They are cleaner than rats and I love my rats. lol.

Yes, they are picky. Their quills will not come out unless they are sick or pulled out which could hurt them. They are not picky like a porcupine though. They are a bit picky but easy enough to get used of. I think it's funny when they pop in your hands. They actually make a popping noise when scared and bounce in your hand trying to pick you. It's just a defence and doesn't hurt if you know how to handle them. I had a male that was very wild. He bit, popped, you name it. lol, but I still held him. His name was Tinker but we called him Stinker most of the time. :) Still miss that little hog!

But I"m happy to have this little boy. My daughter (9) wants to name him Snowball. What do you all think. I dont' usually change their names when I get them from someone else but his name is Piper and I already have a Piper in the house, could get confusing. lol.

Thanks again everyone for all the comments. We are really happy with him. And thanks so much Danielle for parting with him. :)

[marisa]

Wow SUPER cute! I have always wanted one for myself but I have been apprehensive because I hear that some are "aggresive"

What does their bite feel like?????

Marisa

[damzookeeper]

Originally posted by marisa


What does their bite feel like?????

Marisa

It hurts!! lol. But hedgehogs rarely bite. I'd rather handle a hedgie than a hamster any day! You also learn to know your hedgehog just like you would your snake or lizard, and you will learn how to sence if he is going to bite and moving them around on your hands often stops this reaction. Usually they will only bite if they smell something that they think is food. They have poor eyesight. Or they will sometimes bite when they are extremely scared. But I have only gotten bit by my male once and after this I learned to watch his nose and I could tell if he was contemplating biting and just move him around and he was fine, he still popped but did not bite. My female however was super tame and loved to come out and play. My daughter was 2 when we first got our girl and she was so great even she could handle her.
Hope the picture works. It's from a geocities site. My daughter, at 2, curly locks and all. :) She is holding our beloved female Bella. R.I.P
http://geocities.com/hedgieinfo2000/Bella_Cynthiahug.JPG

[MartinW]

Snowball's a wicked name! It suits him well!

Martin