How do you detect kidney stones in hedgies

[Leigh]

Hi my female hedgie is two years old, she is fine in herself she is eating well, drinking and playing in her wheel all night but I have recently noticed blood in her cage, I watched her go to the toilet and can't tell if it is in her urine or stools as she always does it at the same time! It doesn't happen all of the time and there doesn't seem to be a pattern to it, I am looking around for a vet in my area who knows anything about African Pygmy Hedgehogs because the vet we use for our other animals doesn't know a thing and so far I haven't had much luck so thought I would ask if anyone has experienced the same symptoms with their hedgie whilst I continue my search for a specialist vet, thankyou.

 

[smhufflepuff]

Any time there is blood like that, you'll want to see a vet - I hope you find one soon. As you probably also know, hedgies are great at hiding illnesses or injuries, so once you spot a problem like you've spotted, you'll want to get her in quick.

In the meanwhile, you might be able to figure out a little bit about where it's coming from -- the poo or pee. If you take a poop and smush it against something white (like a paper towel or tissues), you'll be able to see if there's red in there vs a nice brown poo all the way through. If it's not in the poo, then you're probably looking at one of two sources: her bladder or uterus. Unlike most human females, hedgies have a single opening that branches a bit father up into the two ducts: the urethra and birth canal. If the blood is coming out with her pee, it could indicate a urinary tract infection, a uterine infection, or a bigger problem with both or either (eg, uterine cancer).

Oh goodness... I just noticed the date on your post... How is she now?