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baby hedgehog


doris day

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I found a baby hedgehog outside my house this evening. It is really quite small but seems very energetic.  Should I give it something to eat - if so what?  Or just let it find it's own food.  Will my cats bother it? 

I know lots of stuff's been posted on the site about hedgehogs but I just couldn't find a short answer

Thanks

Doris

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You could give it some cat food (the wet variety) - scrambled egg, goat's milk (NOT cow's milk, and not bread.). Also provide it with water to drink. If it is very small, and motherless, it is in trouble.

Your cats should not, normally, bother it.

There are some very useful hedgehog forums, especially the UK one.

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That does not sound so tiny.  Can you catch it, and weigh it?

From memory (having rescued 2 little ones last year) weight is what you should go by. The smallest one I'd tried to rescue was about 80g. After at least 6 weeks of feeding and caring, during which they just grew and grew (and ate and ate and ate, especially scrambled eggs), they both reached the magic number of 400g, then at 600g they were huge and were put back into the wild, somewhere where they would not encounter cars or dogs. By then I was also giving them cut up worms (bought frm the fishing tackle shop!) and porridge and other things. They cost me a fortune in goat's milk, which they adored, and I had to cut it down with water more and more so they would end up drinking water. Goat's milk was very good when they were very small though.

Good luck dorisday. The hedgehog link above is the one I used at the time, it is such an incredibly informative site, some of the people who use it are completely dedicated hedgehog lovers.

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Thanks for that 5element.  I'm worried about it now.  I left out some cat buscuits last night but it could have been my cats that eat them - or something else.  I'll go out at dusk tonight to see if is starts shuffling about.  I'm sure I could catch it if I see it - tho it moves pretty fast!  Do you think then that it's better to keep it somewhere "inside" and feed it once I've weighed it etc... and feed it those things it likes until it's bigger - then leave it "free" and put food out?  Hope that makes sense.

Thanks again

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If it is under 400g then I would certainly think about bringing it into soemwhere warm and being prepared to look after and feed it all winter - without hibernation.  Something like a rabbit run or guinea pig run kept somewhere where the temperatures will be above 10 degrees at night with suitable bedding - dry leaves or even textiles.

All the advice given above so far is good, but a few points to add - all gained from our German vet who is a hedgehog fanatic..

1.  Don't feed with fish based cat food

2.  Keep it away from your cats - they won't both it much, but his little friends will certainly bother the cats.  Despite fleas being generally host specific, hedgehog fleas will happily live on cats and dogs.

3.  Don't try and treat his fleas - the normal flea treatments for cats and dogs will kill a hedgehog.

4.  If you can find them, supplement the food with slugs and smallish worms, and don't be surprised if he does not eat them - but just keep offering.

 

Bon Chance

 

 

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