Yesterday I brought home a new hedgehog. It was a spur of the moment decision. I was at a fair and there was a mobile zoo exhibit there. They didn't seem very knowledgeable about any of their animals, and of course I noticed this poor little hedgie in a tiny cage with wood shavings and low quality cat food in the cage, no water at all in 87 degree weather.
I asked one of the employees about the hedgehog and he told me it was a boy and was almost two years old. I asked if he could get him out so I could see him and he said no. I mentioned my concerns about him not having water and asked what kind of food he was getting. He didn't know and didn't care.
My fiance drug me away from the exhibit so that I wouldn't go off on the guy. I was definitely not happy with the state of things.
A while later I came back (of course!) and another man was there. I asked if he could get the hedgehog out so I could see him and he did. He said she was a girl, and only a year old, and sure enough when he flipped her over she was in fact a girl.
I noticed she looked like she had very dry skin and discharge coming from her ears, and some spines missing from her back by the base of her tail. I asked if she had been checked for mites, he said she had never been to a vet. :banghead:
They had a sign up that said some animals may be up for adoption, so after much pleading from my fiance and good friend to leave it alone and not get involved, I promply ignored their advice and adopted the poor little girl.
I know this probably just frees up space for them to get another one, but I did at least address my concerns with their care and suggest some better alternatives for housing and food, and that they should definitely have all their animals checked out by a vet regularly.
So now I have another little ball of quills. She is very friendly and sweet, obviously she is very used to people. She is a major explorer! Very curious.
She is quarantined from the rest of our pets for now, and I'm going to take her to the vet to see what the skin problem and ear discharge is. For now I gave her an oatmeal bath because she was extremely itchy.
We are naming her Garnet, and I hope to provide her a much better quality of life than she had there.
I asked one of the employees about the hedgehog and he told me it was a boy and was almost two years old. I asked if he could get him out so I could see him and he said no. I mentioned my concerns about him not having water and asked what kind of food he was getting. He didn't know and didn't care.
My fiance drug me away from the exhibit so that I wouldn't go off on the guy. I was definitely not happy with the state of things.
A while later I came back (of course!) and another man was there. I asked if he could get the hedgehog out so I could see him and he did. He said she was a girl, and only a year old, and sure enough when he flipped her over she was in fact a girl.
I noticed she looked like she had very dry skin and discharge coming from her ears, and some spines missing from her back by the base of her tail. I asked if she had been checked for mites, he said she had never been to a vet. :banghead:
They had a sign up that said some animals may be up for adoption, so after much pleading from my fiance and good friend to leave it alone and not get involved, I promply ignored their advice and adopted the poor little girl.
I know this probably just frees up space for them to get another one, but I did at least address my concerns with their care and suggest some better alternatives for housing and food, and that they should definitely have all their animals checked out by a vet regularly.
So now I have another little ball of quills. She is very friendly and sweet, obviously she is very used to people. She is a major explorer! Very curious.
She is quarantined from the rest of our pets for now, and I'm going to take her to the vet to see what the skin problem and ear discharge is. For now I gave her an oatmeal bath because she was extremely itchy.
We are naming her Garnet, and I hope to provide her a much better quality of life than she had there.