No Idea What's Happening To My Boy.. Terrified, Can't Uncurl? Not Hibernating

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kastour

Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2013
Messages
8
Hey guys. I posted this on another website last night and was recommended to come here. I'm gonna repost what I posted there and add a bit.

Hey guys. I'm having a real emergency right now, I've been panicking for a few hours and haven't been able to change the situation much. I really hope you guys can help me out. There are no available vets that handle hedgehogs in a 2 hour drive radius, and googling every symptom and every possible combination of words describing this hasn't helped. I have no idea what's happening, but the closest description to it is hibernation. But some things really aren't right.

I have a male hedgehog. I got him in June 2012, but I rescued him, so I don't have his birth date. However he was a bit smaller when I got him so I assume he was just about done growing. Since then, he's been fine. He's always been shy and touchy, but healthy, and active. Yesterday I saw him walking around his cage, somewhat slower, but nothing alarming.

Four hours ago, I went to go check on him since he's been sleeping behind his igloo for the past few nights, and he (appeared to be) sleeping like he always does, quills back, laying out on his side. I stroked his back to let him wake up before I grabbed him, and of course since he's really shy he went into a ball.

What was immediately alarming was that he was almost twice his regular size, balled up. He was also unable to completely ball up, because he seemed to be swollen. His body was extremely stiff. His fur was showing and his legs were packing in so far into his fur/belly that you could barely see his paws. His face is squished back too, and it looks dry and crusty around his nose and cheeks. There's also a large (almost an inch) sort of square patch of raised skin (which I think may be his penis or some related part) that's really swollen and red. I'm sure it was there before, but much smaller, and a very light pink. It's very swollen and in between that and his back quills (less than a quarter inch space) is a very weird looking red.. sore. It looks like ground beef, but very red.

I packed him up in my shirt and girlfriend's sweater and left him on my bed with her while I looked up everything that could be happening. I thought it may be a stroke, or WHS, or something I'd never heard of called "balloon hedgehog syndrome," but hibernation sounded most fitting.

About a half hour later, I concluded that he was likely hibernating, I kept him in the shirt and sweater, exposed him a little, and had a tiny space heater pointed in his direction. It was said that within an hour he should be active again. Within 10-20 minutes, he started sniffing, and soon after licking his nose, followed by sniffing around the air (although his eyes were still not exposed at all). A bit later (about 45 minutes) he stuck his leg out in the air, and a minute or two later pulled it back in. He did this again a few minutes later, and after that, he went back to his swollen, mushed in state. I gave him time and the space heater overheated after almost 2 hours.

So, almost 4 hours after the start of all this, I've gotten a small box and put a blanket in on the bottom, along with the shirt and sweater as a blanket. I left a small dish of water and a pile of crickets, in case he were to awake without me noticing, he could get some extra nutrition into him. I didn't want to put him in the cage or bring his igloo, shavings, bowls etc in because I wanted to avoid anything in the cage that may have been irritating him (I read of allergies).

He's been in the box for a half hour now, with a blanket over it so it's quite dark. I've heard some quills scraping against the cardboard like he's walking, but I don't want to lift the top blanket to check on him and end up scaring him back into that ball.

What do you guys think I should do? He was my first hedgehog and I'm terrified I've been crying and it's been really frustrating not being able to find anything online..

No updates, the moving sounds stopped after about 10 minutes.

Just checked on him on my way to bed. He moved over to where the pile of crickets is. I can't see if he ate them, but he appears to be stretched out laying asleep, quills are back. I'll update in the morning. I'd still really appreciate any advice or support, even though it's a little settling knowing that he's not stuck in a ball anymore.

I checked on him when I woke up which was about 13 hours later. His little pile of crickets has been torn through, his water is mostly gone, he's pooped, and he may or may not have urinated. I startled him a bit when I lifted the blanket off of the box he's in, so I didn't get to see whether or not he was layed flat out like normal. But as I first touched him, he felt a lot more flexible as he balled up. This gave me confidence, but once he was fully rolled over I saw that he was once again curled into a ball, can't uncurl, and is smushed in like he was last night. I didn't notice if he was stiff or not, but it looks like some of the swelling and redness in his penis/back area has gone down, at least a bit.

I'm really hoping you guys can help, it's so frustrating because it doesn't seem like an immediate emergency anymore because he got out of his ball and was fine last night (assumingly, due to the mess of his box lol) but once he balls up, he can't get out (and is swollen/stiff), but something is still obviosuly wrong. The worst part is that no one online apparently has ever heard of this.
 
I'm not an expert like some and can't explain the crusty stuff. But I do know males can get shavings or debris stuck in their sheath. It may explain the swelling. Not sure how to get him uncurled easily but if so, it would need to be cleaned and disinfected with something like hydrogen peroxide.
 
Oh boy, that does sound scary. My guess based on what you're describing is either he has something stuck in his penile sheath like Encantadora suggested, he may have a urinary tract infection and was trying to get at the problem from the outside in, or he may have become overenthusiastic with pleasuring himself. But I can't be certain...

It seems the main thing here is to be able to get him some place where a trained professional can get a good look at what's going on and, possibly, get some meds to your little boy - antibiotics, pain meds... perhaps even subcu fluids if he's getting dehydrated.

No available vets in the area -- okay, here's how I would address that:
(a) Find a vet who, though not terribly versed in hedgehog care, is willing to consult a vet who knows their stuff. Collect some names/numbers of out-of-area vets who would be willing to entertain a call from your vet. You can get numbers of the vet list here, at HHC, or go through Universities with veterinary clinics. For example, I happen to know that Michigan State University (http://cvm.msu.edu/hospital/services/emergency-critical-care-medicine-eccm) has seen hedgies - there should be someone willing to talk with your vet by phone.
(b) call a good vet who is outside that 2-hour radius, and start driving.

Based on your description, I don't think I'd try any home remedies... this sounds like a pretty big, bad situation. I'm so sorry it's happening :(
 
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Here are some photos. I know you shouldn't give a bath to a sick hog, but he looks really dirty. Is it at all an option?

I'm going to try to get him to a vet on Thursday. Until then I just really want to figure out what's wrong so I can treat him appropriately.

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I can certainly see what you mean in terms of the redness toward the tail area and the crusties in his visor quills.

You may be able to give him a "sponge bath" - just put enough water in a shallow pan so that, when you put a washcloth in there, the washcloth is fully wet. No higher than that. Or forget the shallow pan, and just get a warm washcloth and blot... carefully.

Also, I noted a thread or a hair in the pics... check over his body for threads and hair. It could be possible that he has a thread/hair wrapped around a part of his body like a toe, his penis, etc -- you know, anything a thread could wrap around -- and has become an issue. I noticed it in the 3rd pic from the top... near his rear feet/tail area.

I would really, really, really get this little fella to a vet. It's so hard to tell what's going on... there are so many possibilities. Things that are going through my head include mites, a skin infection (could be bacterial, fungal, or viral), complicated dry skin, an internal infection like a URI or UTI - upper respiratory or urinary tract, injury, etc...

Make sure he's eating and drinking. Keep a watch on his weight. Syringe feed him water and food as necessary (oral syringe, of course). You could try some regular strength neosporin or polysporin on the irritated areas toward his tail to try and keep any infection at bay. Do NOT use extra-strength or pain-relieving varieties.

But the fact that it seems like there are problems all over - the crusties in his visor quills, the raw tail area, and I'm seeing a reddened spot amongst his hiney quills suggests to me that there's something systemic going on... Something that really needs a vet's attention. Barring a blizzard/unsafe road conditions that forces you to stay put, I would make every effort to get this little one some help now.
 
Thank you so much hufflepuff. I'll try out that bath idea, and one of the sporins. I'll have it all photographed so I can update. Tomorrow is a holiday here, I'm going to visit a few of the vets I've taken my cats and dogs to to see what I can do.

It seems less urgent now, because he's been able to uncurl, and is pooping and drinking and eating whenever he wants. But it's obviously a really big problem still. I'll update sometime tomorrow with the bath and maybe sporin.
 
Also, I bought some 3% hydrogen peroxide today while I was out, as I remembered the mention of it in this thread. Do you suggest I use that? If so, how?
 
I'd stay away from the hydrogen peroxide for now. While it kills the "bad stuff," it will also harm the healthy tissue. I'd just aim to get the area clean with water... no soap. Perhaps put on bit of poly/neosporin, and get him to the vet. At worst, your regular cat vet can consult with others about med dosages if they're not sure.
 
So I tried to give him a little wash down, but it wasn't happening. He was too smushed in to properly wash off the bad spots, and when he uncurled he bolted out of the pan. I did, however, put some polysporin on him. The first photo shows him after uncurling, then his current curled up state. The last one shows, in red, the areas I applied polysporin to. I'm going to a few vets tomorrow to see if they have payment plans and decide on where I'm gonna go.

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I was just in the shower, and earlier this morning we moved him from his sick box back to his cage. We switched the cages from shavings to sheets, and I disinfected everything, including the cage. I forgot to mention that last night, he got out of his sick box (assuming through the small, 1" window he had) and walked over to our bed (5 feet away) and got in between my girlfriend and I. Not sure what to think of that.

As I said, I was in the shower and through the day he hasn't been out of his igloo. But my girlfriend told me that while I was away, he came out and was walking around. She said he was "scratching the entire time" (10-20 minutes) and that, although he was scratching his entire body, his back area was "pitch red" and she could see that from across the room. She also mentioned that he came to the front of the cage and stuck his nose in the air (he would do this when he wanted to come out) The more this goes on, the more confused I become. Just thought I'd mention all of this as well in case it changes any feedback.
 
Good call on changing the shavings to fabric.

There are probably 100 possible causes of his problem, and shavings could be one of them -- either that he's allergic to shavings, they irritate his skin, or that they're harboring something bad (mites, fungus, etc...). Fleece works the best as fabric... no little threads to get a toe caught on, wrap around body parts, etc...

I would guess he crawled in between you because he was chilly. And a chilly hedgie can quickly become a sick hedgie or (if it goes on too long) a dead hedgie. Smart boy if that was the reason. Tell us a bit about how you maintain the temp in his cage.

Glad you'll be taking him to the vet! Sounds like a trained eye will be your best bet. Poor little fella.
 
He's in a custom chicken wired (well ventilated) cage three or four feet off the floor. Our bed is across the room and we use a small fan pointed away from his cage to keep it away as much as possible. In the summer the cage is moved in the opposite corner of the air conditioner, and they're given extra blankets. The closer side of the cage is covered so any cold air that does make it over there doesn't so much get through.

I just got back from the vet. He has mites, she showed me them. They're a non contagious to other animals/humans type, and can only be transferred to other hogs through close contact. She gave me three topical doses for every three weeks. She said if mites are the only problem, he should show improvement in a week or two.
 
Mites -- that was one thing I was considering, but since you hadn't mentioned quill loss, it didn't seem like it would explain everything. Glad you have the meds to help with that!

The other thing that could be going on that either introduced the mites in the first place and/or may continue to contribute to making the situation worse is the shavings. I was talking to a long-time hedgie rescuer yesterday who reviewed your pics and story. Her thought was that the shavings may have been a main culprit in his misadventure - particularly if he was on cedar, or on non-kiln dried pine. She noted that she has seen images like the ones you posted before and they were resin burns from cedar or pine. She stated, that, in those cases, the hedgehog swelled up, got really crusty and had some severe burns from it. Though the fact that your little fella's feet appear just fine didn't completely fit with the picture. Guess that's not terribly unlike how he seems to be holding onto his quills just fine doesn't entirely fit with mites, yet they're there.

Perhaps it's a bit of both? My thought would be to get rid of the shavings - perhaps something "bad" was mixed up in this latest batch - whether it was mites already in the shavings, wood with resin, or whatnot. Or perhaps he's developed a sensitivity to the shavings over time. Keep him on the fabric/fleece that he's on instead.

You may need to bump his temp a bit while he's going through all of this. Little guy already climbed in bed with you. Hedgies in distress often need that raised a smidge to help ward off hibernation attempts. Do you have a way to bump the temp a bit and ensure that it doesn't vary more than about 5 degrees over the course of the day & night? Sounds like you're heating/cooling the whole room - essentially having you live at hedgie temps?

I'm realizing that I keep writing stuff like "your little guy" and "him" -- what's his name?
 
Wow, I never thought that shavings could be so easily tainted. Or that they could develop a sensitivity. I guess this will be a good learning experience for all involved - hopefully it is just mites. The vet said if it's not just mites, it's likely a problem with an organ, and she'd need to sedate him to do blood work, etc. because he won't unroll for anyone (she spent at least 10 minutes trying!)

While his feet aren't burnt, and neither is his skin, I noticed yesterday some really bad looking green mucus sort of buildup around his feet and other rolls of skin where he was bunched up. So he's really taking a beating, but that was all there when he was examined, and she did say that everything can be explained with mites. I sure hope so. I'm to bathe him every other day and bleach all of my hedgehog related accessories and tools.

I gave him extra blankets and have been keeping the heat up and the fan off as much as possible. His cage is almost in a deadzone when it comes to drafts, so I'm sure the temperature is comfortable for him. Should he slow down at all I can whip out the space heater. I cool the whole room in the summer, but in the winter it's very warm besides a small 6" fan while I sleep. I take great caution with any cooling device.

I got my boy in June 2012. During the week I bought him, the community that referred me to this site was having a big fiasco over someone who had found a very damaged, sickly stray kitten. He had been nursing this nearly dead kitten for four days, and the community had settled on naming him Rasputin. The day I received the hog, the kitten died. I named him Rasputin in his honor.
 
Get well Rasputin!!

I hope the mite treatment and keeping him nice and clean works wonders.

I hope he likes his new bedding. I'd toss the shavings -- just in case that's where the mites came from.
 
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