Please help me!!! Very weak lethargic hedgie!!

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kiwikimi99

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Joined
Jul 23, 2014
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My hedgehog Ruby will be 4 years old this coming September. I moved so she has been staying with a friend for the last few months, I visit with her once a week and she seemed fine last Thursday. Today my friend brought her into work with us because she seemed very weak. She didn't want to come out of her ball, very lethargic, cool to the touch. She has a "sweet spot" on her back if you rub and it always seems to get her to uncoil. It seemed to work, but she still didn't want to walk around. I gave her a bath because she seemed to have debris all over her face (I'm assuming from the bedding). Afterward she drank a lot of water, but she has always been a big drinker so that didn't concern me. I also noticed that her eyes seems to be infected. After work I applied some terrimycin, which I looked up in an exotics book at work, and it said it was safe. I also gave her a good bath when I got home so I could really examine her. It seems that all the fur on her belly and face in GONE. And anything left is falling out in clumps.
Also when I try to feed her she doesn't have much of an interest, I tried to give her meal worms because they are her favorite and she would sort of go up to them start to chew and get tired eventually and spit the pieces out and just lean to the side and lay there with labored breathing. I now put her in the cage with just a wee wee pad to get the bedding away from her with some fresh cat food (she loves cat food) and some diluted gatoraid. She is chowing down, very slowly, but she is still eating the cat food. But her skin is so red and angry looking and she is just so weak and wobbly.
Please help! I work in an animal hospital, I am an LVT, but we don't see exotics so no one at work is able to help me.
 
I dont have hedgehogs, but my advice would be to get her to an exotics vet immediately.
 
I'm hoping you were able to find a good vet for her. The ideas that sprang to mind with losing fur in clumps all lead to her needing meds that you'll need to see a vet for.

In the meanwhile, keep up extra-good cleaning in her cage. Put her on fleece if she isn't already to help keep the areas clean and free of debris/dust from things like Carefresh, shavings, and other particulate bedding.
 
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