Fatty Liver Disease

As ever, I do research on hedgehog health in order to make sure my little critter has the best healthcare available. This includes researching his kibble and giving him and monitoring not only the ingredients, but also the protein to fat ratio. As mentioned before in this blog hedgehogs require a diet high in protein and low in fat. They are insectivores, and in the wild their diets are naturally set up this way. Fat is hard to come by out there, so naturally wild hedgehogs never have a problem with health problems such as Fatty Liver Disease. FLD occurs when a hedgehog (or dog/cat/etc) has too much fat in their diet, which is deposited in the liver, and causes fatty build up. The liver can't handle this build up and serious health issues ensue. Think you're hedgehog is loosing weight too rapidly? Was s/he a porker before and as now thing as a rail and lethargic on top of that? Ask your vet to test for FLD. This disease can be fatal if left untreated.

Before you get to the point of rushing to the vet, panic stricken, to test for FLD, try taking some preventative steps. Any hedgehog book or website (or owner) worth their salt will tell you that pet hedgehogs need a wheel. For most hedgies this is their main form of exercise. Check my blog for my post about the best wheel to choose. In addition to wheeling, however, you may also try setting up a play pen for your pet to scoot around in. Tunnels and soft things to burrow in are a favorite. If the weather is suitable- in the 75-80 degree range- you can also try supervising your hedgehog outside for some exploration time. My boy likes to snuffle around in the grass an anoint with all the new and interesting things. Be sure to keep a close watch and NEVER leave them unattended. Another form of physical activity is swimming. Yep, in case you didn't know, hedgehogs can swim. Fill a bathtub, sink, or container with just enough warm water to reach their skirt line (also known as the place where their quills start). The water should be deep enough for them to paddle around. This is another activity which must be carefully supervised as you want to make sure they don't drown accidentally. Most hedgies just abhor water, but over time they may come to like it. In any case, a rare bath wouldn't go amiss to cleanse those nasty poop boots. Try adding Aveeno oatmeal to the water to help with dry skin!

The main message today is don't overindulge your quilly companion. A few treats are fine and hedgies just loooove their mealworms, but the majority of their diet should be cat food with protein percentage in the 30 range and fat in the 10 range. Here is a link to a site with great hedgehog information. And, as ever, I recommend going onto Hedgehog Central for any questions might have. Ever. You can find a link on my blog. Here is a link to a chart made my a HHC member called LizardGirl, and it covers the ingredients of many types of commonly used cat food. This list is really superb, just FYI.

Well, that concludes this episode of Hedgehog Express.

Farewell to Calpurnia

On Thursday my sweet little guinea pig, Calpurnia, died of surgery complications. She had a massive thyroid tumor which was unfortunately misdiagnosed until it was very late in the game. The wonderful veterinarian, Dr. Shepard, performed a very risky surgery to remove it. The massive tumor was growing around all the important bits in her throat; her jugulars were so encased that there was no blood flow in them! Cal made it through the risky surgery like a trooper and seemed to be doing well for a little while. Then she crashed, and despite Dr. Shepard's best efforts she passed away. I got the call just as I was preparing to go on a long weekend trip north, so my mother and I went to the vet's office to collect Cal's remains. Dr. Shepard took us into a waiting room and gave us hugs and the full story. We talked about Cal, the surgery, and about small animals and their healthcare in general. We took Cal home and buried her in our little pet cemetery. Then today we received a card from the vet's office (signed by everyone) expressing condolences. I have to say this is possibly the smartest and kindest vet on the planet. I hope everyone who has a pet is as lucky as we are to find a good veterinarian to take care of their beasties, big and small.

Now that pretty little Cal has passed away I have no guinea pigs. It's the end of a glorious era of small cahttery little critters. Guinea pigs don't posesses a mean bone in their body, and they are so enteratining to watch, cuddle, and listen to. In they heyday of guinea pig ownership I would come down the hallway to my room and all four pigs would start crying "wheeek wheeek wheeeeek!" to try and get my attention, for food of course. They loved finishing up table scraps of fruit and vegetables, and when the weather was nice I would let them outside to eat to their little heart's content.

Cal has the softest white fur, gorgeous pink eyes, and the silliest crest on her head. She was always more timid when it came to cuddles, but the sneakiest about snaring all the best morsels for herself. Woe betide any creature who got between her and something tasty!

I am sure I will own guinea pigs again one day, but for now their cage is empty and I will dearly miss their little voices.

Moving Day

Today is moving day! Phinneus and I are heading back home (with the assistance of mother and Matt) for a couple of weeks. The weather is finally nice enough for Phinneus to have more outside time, which should blow his little mind away. I mean, outside is quite a difference from the fleece lined bin he spent all winter in. First, however, we have to load my one million boxes into my sisters van/Matt's truck and caravan the two or so hours home. Phin always spends the trip wrapped in fleece blankies in his little carrying bag completely asleep and unaware. I often wonder if he even notices his surroundings have changed. It's hard to tell with hedgehogs.

Two Households, Both Alike in Dignity

Haha, okay this is not Romeo + Juliet, there are no tragic lovers involved in today's post, and nobody is drinking poison. BUT there are two households; Phinneus has two households he could end up in while I am in Africa, to be exact. As I type, Little Man is settling down in a fleece blankie after and exciting quarter of an hour of running around as I clean and pack up my school-year residence. He was good and didn't poop in a inconvenient patch of carpet for once. His wheel was absolutely disgusting- clean one night usually means the next is extra terrible- and his fleece shows the evidence of a full night of chomping, pooping, and scooting. Hedgehogs are not like other small pets, they require a little extra TLC to keep them in good working order. Phinneus needs his clean blankies, a clean tank, daily food and water changes, daily wheel cleans, and daily snuggles. A bit more than little Pherb the hamster, or Renn and Raven the gerbil sisters require. Still, the work isn't bad and the reward of having a sweet little hedgehog companion on your life is more than enough. So who is willing to take my little hoglet in for a few months? We will find out soon. For now he is still in my care to coddle and generally make a fuss over.

New Camera New Phinneus!

Well, not really a new Phinneus, but the new camera sure turns out fabulous pictures of the little hog.

Little PhinMaster was dragged out of bed and made to sit for photos while I experimented with the new camera. Now that he's back in bed I am going over to Matt's to photograph the new kitten and Rodrigo Cat-Face.