Behavior problems, desperate for help or advice!

[SpineyPigFaceLover]

I seperated my little boy from his mom on Thursday when he turned six weeks old. If I've done my research right, that was the correct time to separate him?

Well, It's day two of separation. He was already pretty scared and grouchy before I separated him and in the past two days it has now escalated to biting. This is the first aggressive action I've ever experienced with a hedgehog (my other two are not like this). I have been trying to be patient with him, just holding my hand in the cage, letting him smell me, exposing him to consistent sounds so that he becomes less agitated. I picked him up and was letting him crawl around on me and he nipped at my hands a few times and almost bit my crotch!

I am very concerned. I now know that I cannot give him away since he is aggressive and I want to work with him, but I've been working with him since the day I was able to pick him up and it's gotten worse and worse. I don't know if I separated him gradually enough. Maybe he has terrible separation anxiety? Please help. I'm at a loss as to what to do.

 

[LovinHedgies]

Maybe just try holding him on your lap while he is in a snuggle sac and let him come out on his own?? If he is scared it would probably help to back off a bit and let him choose to come out and see you.
Is he quilling? Has he had a warm oatmeal bath yet? That might help if he is uncomfortable because of the quilling process. My male got grouchy after I bought him from the breeder and I found that warm baths help a lot.
I'm sorry your little guy is being so grouchy
Hopefully Nancy will post soon!!

 

[Kalandra]

If he is quilling, his biting may be from that. I have had one at 7 weeks start biting because the quilling was painful. He stopped once the quilling was almost done. I just kept my fingers and skin away from his mouth.

How is he biting? Is it nips or is he aggressively latching on and not letting go? Is he licking then biting?

 

[charlie]

I don't know a lot about really young hedgies but quilling can definitely have its effect. If he is quilling, you may want to avoid touching his back as well. Although you want him to remain familiar with being held, you don't want him to associate it to pain. Hedgies will bite when frustrated or in pain, offer him something to tug on (shirt or fleecy towel). If he chews at it aggressively, it is likely frustration or pain, not a reaction to you per say. Patience is the key, hopefully he will come around.

 

[Melissa]

My first thought was quilling too. Definitely try a warm oatmeal bath.

I was also thinking since you have separated him his new home is unfamiliar and Im wondering if he is scared but then also finding new smells and tastes that he hasnt had before and is anointing. All my boys before anointing would bite.

 

[Nancy]

Is he quilling? Normally the 5-6 week quilling doesn't affect them as much as the 12 week one but it can have an effect.

When you think about it, babies are leaving mom and having a quilling all at the same time. It is traumatic for them.

I'd hold him in a hedgie bag and spend quiet time with him. Don't keep your hand in his cage. The cage is new to him and he is trying to become secure with it. Hedgehogs can be very territorial about their cages and often are huffy and quilly when we go to get them out of the cage. Leaving your hand in there just reinforces the territorial behaviour. Take him out and spend time with him outside the cage.

As soon as you get him up, give him some of his kibble. Usually babies (adults too) are hungry when they first get up and being hungry can lead to biting or nipping.

Sometimes they have to potty and some will not go on their people. Giving him the opportunity to poop might help the biting.

Biting usually has a reason and we have to figure out the reason.

 

[SpineyPigFaceLover]

Thank you so much everyone for your responses. I haven't yet tried to take him out of his cage but when I hear him get up I'm going to try to give him an oatmeal bath after I feed him.

Some things to note:
-Again, he is 6 weeks old and he has now been separated for 3 days from his mother and sister.
-He is indeed quilling. I'm sure much of his grumpiness is due to this.
-He was grumpy, shy, and scared before he started quilling, even though I tried to handle him every day.
-It is 75-77 degrees in the house, he gets ample amount of sunlight and I only take him out in the evenings, so I think all is good there. When I take him out, I put him in a playpen with a wheel, an igloo, his fleece bed, food, water, and play toys. He's never run on the wheel and only come out to eat if I'm not in the room. Otherwise, like in the cage, he stays in his igloo. I usually keep lights low.
-He's very sensitive to sound, even when I speak softly or if music or tv is on, even on low. I've been trying to expose him to low sound to get him used to it.
-Last night, I put a tshirt in his cage so my scent was with him.

When he bit my fingers it was clearly aggressive. He did not lick before he bit, so I know he didn't think I was food. He clearly wanted me to get away from him. Shortly after I picked him up while he was sitting in his fleece bed and I set him on the couch with me and let him crawl around. I didn't touch him or pet him. He crawled up on my lap and walked towards me. I saw his quills go up suddenly and his face lunging forward, I picked him up and put him back in his cage before he could bite my crotch! haha. I know I shouldn't have given into his desires, but it was really scary!

 

[Melissa]

Crotch, underarms and socks seem to be a favorite in my house. No matter WHO holds my boys if any of them are close to these areas they go for it. Not a lick-lick bite but a chomp and pull. Try giving him a sock or some other lightly scented fabric to redirect the biting. Giving in and putting him away when he bites will only teach him to bite you when he wants back in the cage. Good rule of thumb, if you dont want it bit keep it away from their mouth.

 

[Nancy]

Some hedgehog love chewing on fabric and certain fabrics and smells on the fabric entices them. It's perfectly fine to let them chew on clothing, just make certain you pull the fabric loose so he doesn't accidentally grab skin too. You can also make a little chew cloth. Something that is hedgehog safe you can dab a drop of vanilla, rub a stick of gum or candy, basically anything non toxic and not spicey or hot and you only need a slight hint of the smell. Then put the cloth in front of him.

My Abby used to appear downright vicious when going after her chosen chew area. She loved to chew on the neck of my t-shirt and I'd set her on my lap and she would charge, mouth open and sometimes frothing to my neck to grab and tug on my t-shirt. Sometimes she made me uneasy even though she had never bitten me and I knew that's all she was going to do. She would chew and tug and then throw herself back to annoint and I was supposed to catch her before she rolled down my chest. It was our nightly routine. :hilarious:

 

[Kalandra]

Ha! Good one Nancy. Cooper gets a certain look in his eyes when he wants to go after my hair (typically after I have washed it). He gets very determined. Lucky for me he just likes to go up in my hair and nuzzle.

 

[SpineyPigFaceLover]

Haha that sounds real cute Nancy! Unfortunately this doesn't appear to be some light-hearted rough-housing. I'm going to see if I can braid some pieces of fleece to see if he just needs a chew toy. I gave him a bath yesterday and of course he was desperate for my help because he hated being in that water. BUT when I took him out and wrapped him in a towel he reverted back to his same old grumpy self, not wanting my hands anywhere near him.

Hopefully once I build his permanent cage and get my coroplast in the mail tomorrow he'll feel a little better. I think he really just doesn't like the carefresh and small storage bin I have him in for now.

I have noticed though that he seems to like exploring. Maybe he truly is just more of a wanderer and less of a cuddler. I'm coming to terms with it, I just don't want him to be an aggressive boy.

 

[Kalandra]

How is this little boy? Any improvements on his behavior?

 

[SpineyPigFaceLover]

Not very much. He's not as bitey, but I'm also not giving him much of a chance to get at my fingers (which is what he loves to bite). I've been taking him out of the cage every night (despite the painful quilling up and puffing) to have him crawl on my and crawl around. I've been going about this process very slowly and patiently, giving him treats when he unrolls and goes about virtually confidently. I have very high hopes for him as he usually rejects my treats since he is so scared, but last night took to them very well and seemed to enjoy them.

I have a feeling it is going to take a very long time before my presence doesn't scare him, but I'm very willing to work with him!

 

[Kalandra]

Patience and respect are two traits you will learn from a hedgehog. You just cannot force a hedgehog to do something they really don't want you to.

Sometimes you just get those that are a bit more defensive, or shy and have to appreciate them for who they are. I've had a couple who were overly defensive, and once you figure out how to interact with them, life became a lot more enjoyable.

Little story for you.

When we got Riley & Rose they were 7 weeks old. Riley when I first met him was a little shy, but friendly. Not long after coming home, I was dealing with a super defensive, ball of quills. He tried to bite a couple of times, and after the 2nd attempt my fingers stayed away from his mouth. As he neared adulthood he mellowed a lot. He always was defensive though, but stopped trying to bite, and started to show enjoyment of being with me more. He died at about 1.5 years, but at that time he would walk into my hands and loved to snuggle on my neck to sleep. However if I tried to pick him up when he didn't want to be bothered, he would spike up and huff at me. Once in my hands he would lay his quills flat and the look on his face was "hey wait, you aren't suppose to do that." He was a sweet boy, but on his own terms.

 

[SpineyPigFaceLover]

Kalandra, I think you are absolutely right. My other two girls are the complete opposite and love to be held and explore, where as this one seems to be most content on his own. Your story helps me be a little more hopeful that I will eventually be able to interact with him a bit more in the future. I love him regardless of if he wants to be held or not. He is only 8 weeks old and has a whole life ahead of him so I know it's best not to rush things : ]

I'll be sure to keep you and everyone updated on his progress. I am confident that I can at least help him along in living an enjoyable life, even if he doesn't really want my hands around him : ]

 

[SpineyPigFaceLover]

Grumpy still is very jumpy, hisses and balls up whenever there is movement or sound in the room. It's mostly movements, whether slow or fast that scares him. I made a fleece bag to pick him up and hold him in, but it doesn't help him get used to me very much since I'm not touching him. The only ways I can actually hold him is if I scoop him up with his bedding (which hurts since he jumps around) or if he's swimming in water. He seems to be more interested in escaping water than me holding him! X P ... And forget about putting your fingers anywhere near his face!

I'm getting his permanent cage constructed on Friday which will give him some more room to move around. I am also implementing music in his room to get him used to noises. Also another strategy I'm going to try is to put him on a low-level table with no place to hide or burrow for about 10 mins at a time so that he can see, hear, and experience the world on a daily basis. While giving him treats during this process I hope to get him to associate my handling him with good things, not scary things.

...On a lighter note, I got him a cute plush hedgie toy, and he seems to love dragging it around his cage! lol

 

[Courtney]

He sounds like my Cuda. Cuda would actually go out of his way to bite me, sometimes lunging across the floor to latch onto my finger. He was this way for 2 years, despite me never giving him a reason to fear me. What worked the best for him was minimal handling... I would take him out nightly in his bag, set him on my lap while I worked on the computer and ignore him. I wouldn't touch him, but he could smell me. If I moved slightly, I'd get a warning nip through the fleece.

He was just one of those hedgehogs, I thought. It went this way for 2 years before he got sick and developed some sort of reaction to something that resulted in open sores on his belly and face. Throughout his rounds of treatment, he came to regard me as a tolerable person because I had the power to make him feel better. After his illness ran it's course, he gradually eased into a more relaxed state of mind... he no longer bit me and he would "say hello" to me every morning through a series of chirps and squeaks. He was never one for cuddling, but he would tolerate it. After Hemi died, he became my "go to" for cuddling, and he accepted it graciously. He would sit for hours while I held and talked to him.

Give you little guy time. He might be naturally wary of people (sometimes they are) and he'll never be a willing snuggler. Adjust to his personality and you'll both be much happier and relaxed. He'll meet you halfway.