I feel like an awful mommy :(

So I finally got Sonic some toys! I was so excited to get her running in her wheel.

Well while she was eating and I was setting it up, it fell on top of her [luckily it didn't hurt her] but it scared her to DEATH!

Now she won't go near the wheel [actually poops near it now, which isn't awful because that is where we will put her litter when we get fabric liners] for anything. If you put her on it, she freaks and runs back into her igloo and under her blanket.


Do you think she'll ever go near her wheel?


And I sneezed earlier after she played in her ball [like a hamster ball] while I was holding her and she dropped out of my hands and I feel AWFUL. And she ran into her igloo again once I put her in her cage and if I try to look at her, she puffs at me and won't let me even look at her face. I feel awful.


I feel like an awful hedgehog mommy I know she'll probably forget, since I feed her, but does anyone know if she'll even use her wheel? Siiiiigh

I wouldn't worry about the wheel... it took Jack a few days to go near his and it didn't fall on him.

But you need to be careful about handling your hedgie in the air. Falls (even short ones) can cause very serious damage. Hedgies have very delicate skeletal systems and even short falls like 10 cm off the ground are enough to do serious damage. I would say keep an eye on her over the next week to make sure she didn't suffer any horrible injuries. And try to keep her as close to the floor as possible from now on...

Luckily I was on my knees, not standing up, so it was a short distance fall.
But I will keep an eye on her.

What kind of wheel do you have? I had a Comfort wheel before and it fell on Maserati. She wouldn't even go near it after that. But then I got a bucket wheel for her, which is much more sturdy and safe and she loves it. So, if it's not the best wheel then you might consider another one. Other than that, I would say to keep her environment warm and quiet as possible, and keep her on a very regular handling schedule until she starts coming around again (and preferably after that). Good luck!

catahstrophic said:

Luckily I was on my knees, not standing up, so it was a short distance fall.
But I will keep an eye on her.

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It's only lucky if you're very short If I dropped Spike standing up, it would be almost the same distance as my boyfriend on his knees.

Also, mealies might help bring her around.

Yeah, if you have a comfort wheel, you are going to have to weigh it down somehow because they are known to easily fall. You could also use a zip tie and tie it to your cage if you have a wired cage.

I see that you feel very bad about dropping Sonic so that isn't really a problem as long as you try to be extra careful which I'm sure you will.

catahstrophic said:

And I sneezed earlier after she played in her ball [like a hamster ball] while I was holding her and she dropped out of my hands and I feel AWFUL. (

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I don't want you to feel any worse but the hampster balls are bad for hedgehogs. I wouldn't put her in that anymore.

Why are they bad exactly? She seems to like hers...

The cracks in them can get hedgie nails and toes caught, just like with some wheels. There's also very little ventilation in them. Most people recommend staying away from them because of the lack of ventilation and the fact that the hedgie would be running around through poop and urine with no chance for the smell to really get out of the ball. Sometimes you also can't tell if they're running because they enjoy it or if they're running because they're scared and trying to get away from it.

If they're going to be used at all, it should be for limited amounts of time with close supervision. The best policy is really just to put a wheel in the play area outside the cage (you can even take the one out of the cage for playtime then put it back when the hedgie goes back in the cage if you don't have a second to sit out for playtime), though, if you want the hedgie to be running during play time.