Management of Four-Toed (African Pygmy) Hedgehogs

Wild four-toed hedgehogs are solitary; as pets, they are usually housed in individual cages. Minimum floor dimensions of 2 × 3 feet (0.6 × 0.9 m) are recommended.

Hedgehogs are able to climb and can escape through small holes, so the cage must be secure and preferably lidded. Sufficient ventilation is important when selecting an enclosure. Large, plastic storage containers or single-level, plastic-bottomed wire cages are suitable, provided that the wire is appropriately spaced. Widely spaced wires can result in limb entrapment or death. Glass aquariums are not recommended because they do not provide sufficient ventilation.

Providing a hiding place in the enclosure is essential. The cage substrate should be soft and absorbent. Recycled newspaper bedding is a good choice; other acceptable bedding options include aspen shavings, alfalfa pellets, and hay. Rough, dusty, or scented substrates are not recommended. Pieces of string or loose fibers of cloth can entrap hedgehog digits and limbs. The substrate should be 3–4 inches (8–10 cm) deep in at least some areas of the cage to allow for burrowing.

Ambient temperature should be 22–32°C (72–90°F), and 24–29°C (75–85°F) is optimal. If hedgehogs are too cool or too warm, they can go into a torpid state, which is believed to be unhealthy, because it suppresses their immune systems and can lead to impaired organ system function or starvation. A heating pad placed underneath the enclosure or a ceramic reptile heater may be used. Low humidity (< 40%) is preferred.

Hedgehogs avoid bright light; however, a photoperiod of 12 hours should be provided.

Healthy hedgehogs are very active. Exercise wheels are highly recommended. The running surface of the wheel should be solid metal or plastic, as hedgehog legs can become entrapped in wire wheels. Solid-surface wheels are also easier to clean.

Hedgehogs can be let out of their enclosures for supervised exercise. Plastic or paper tubes, hay, safe climbing structures, and other toys provide enrichment.

The ideal diet for a four-toed hedgehog is commercially prepared hedgehog or insectivore food typically presented as kibble. If such food is not available, a high-quality weight-management cat food is an alternative.

Food should be rationed to prevent obesity. Depending on the animal’s weight and activity, 3–4 tsp (15–20 mL) of the main diet is typically fed daily. Hedgehogs should be weighed weekly to ensure long-term management of a proper weight. Growing animals and reproductively active females may be fed ad lib, and their diet may be supplemented with calcium-rich foods (such as black soldier fly larvae, insects dusted with calcium powder, and dark leafy greens) required for growth and nursing.

In addition to their main diet, all hedgehogs should be provided with the following supplements daily:

• approximately 1–2 tsp (5–10 mL) of varied moist foods (eg, canned cat or dog food, cooked meat or egg) and/or gut-loaded invertebrate prey (eg, crickets, dubia roaches)

• approximately 1 tsp (5 mL) of vegetable/fruit mix (eg, beans, cooked carrots, squash, peas, tomatoes, leafy greens, banana, grape, apple, pear, berries)

Hiding invertebrate prey and dry food items in bedding promotes foraging.

Hedgehogs should not be fed raw meat or eggs because of the risk for Salmonella infection. Milk can cause diarrhea.

Vitamin or mineral supplementation is not necessary for hedgehogs fed a balanced commercial diet.

Hedgehogs are often slow to accept new foods, and diet changes must be made with care.

Fresh water should be available at all times. Most hedgehogs quickly learn to drink from water bottles or bowls.

Female four-toed hedgehogs should be at least 6 months old before breeding. A weight gain of ≥ 50 g within 3 weeks after having access to a male suggests pregnancy. Abdominal and mammary enlargement might be detected at 30 days (1).

Risk of infanticide and cannibalism of the young can be decreased by providing the female with strict privacy from other hedgehogs and humans, starting a week before delivery and for 1–2 weeks after parturition.

In cases of lactation failure or abandonment, cross-fostering of the hoglets by another dam with similarly aged young is usually successful. If a surrogate dam is unavailable, a canine milk replacer can be fed through a feeding tube or syringe; however, hand-rearing of hedgehogs is associated with high mortality.

Weaning generally occurs at 4–6 weeks, and the young may be moved to separate cages at 8 weeks. Daily handling starting at 3 weeks can help the hedgehog develop into a tame adult.

Because most four-toed hedgehogs readily adopt a defensive posture (roll up into a tight ball) when handled or restrained, a complete physical examination requires chemical restraint. Placing a balled-up hedgehog into a container of shallow water to get it to unroll (most hedgehogs are averse to being in water) is sometimes suggested; however, this method does not permit a thorough examination, is stressful for the hedgehog, and can negatively affect the hedgehog's body temperature.

Before handling, the hedgehog should be observed in the examination room. A superficial examination can be done while the hedgehog moves about within a transparent container (eg, evaluation of the ventrum is possible), in its cage, or on the examination table. Healthy, unstressed hedgehogs, even if initially shy, should be active and eventually unroll and attempt to explore their environments. However, stressed hedgehogs might refuse to unroll, even after hours.

When exploring, hedgehogs constantly lick a normally moist nose. Respiration is normally silent, except when the hedgehog hisses or huffs in defense. Normal feces are dark brown and soft. In the spiny areas, skin may appear slightly dry or flaky; however, excessive scaling, spine loss, erythema, and crusting are abnormal.

Most of the examination, however, must be done once the hedgehog is heavily sedated or anesthetized. Components of the physical examination of four-toed hedgehogs include the following:

• Hydration: Hydration can be assessed by skin turgor.

• Eyes: The eyes should be clear.

• Ears: Pinnal margins should be free of crusting or ragged edges. Four-toed hedgehogs have small, long, horizontal ear canals, making routine otoscopic examination difficult and otoscopic examination of the tympanic membranes impossible.

• Skin and spines: The skin and spines should be free of scale or crusts.

• Oral cavity: The oral cavity and tongue should be inspected for masses, signs of periodontal disease, dental fractures, ulcers, and foreign material. The tongue should be fully extended and the caudal oropharynx, including the soft palate, should be inspected (see oral examination video). The teeth should be white, and the gingiva a uniform pink.

• Lymph nodes: Lymph nodes in the cervical area should be palpated for enlargement. Lymph nodes in hedgehogs are normally difficult to palpate; however, lymphadenomegaly can be present with neoplasia or infection.

• Heart: The heart should have a regular rhythm and no murmurs, and a femoral pulse should be palpable.

• Abdomen: The abdominal contour should be flat but may be distended by obesity, organomegaly, masses, or fluid.

• Joints: The major joints of limbs should be put through a full range of motion.

• Digits: Digits should be inspected for encircling fibers and overgrown nails.

• Reproductive anatomy: In males of reproductive age, the large seminal vesicles might be mistaken for an abdominal mass because they extend from the pelvic inlet to the kidneys, dorsal to the bladder. The prepuce or vulva should be evaluated for evidence of swellings, inflammation, discharge, or adherent debris. The penis can be extruded for evaluation. Testicles are usually palpable in the para-anal area.

Oral examination, four-toed he...

video

Collecting sufficient quantities of blood from four-toed hedgehogs for blood testing can be challenging. Peripheral vessels (saphenous, cephalic, and femoral veins) can be used for small samples. Although a traditional approach to the jugular veins can be used, they are difficult to locate because hedgehogs have short necks; a blind stick is required in most patients.

An easier option is to access the proximal portion of the jugular veins at the thoracic inlet (see proximal jugular venipuncture video). This technique can be used to collect sufficient quantities of blood for diagnostics and avoids inserting a needle into the thoracic cavity (2). The needle is inserted and advanced perpendicular to the skin surface at a palpable notch formed by the clavicle and manubrium.

Proximal jugular venipuncture,...

video

Collection from the cranial vena cava should be done with caution because of the risk of inadvertent cardiac puncture or damage to major vessels; short needles and deep sedation or anesthesia should be used when collecting blood from this vessel. Jugular venipuncture is preferred.

Subcutaneous injections can be given in the mantle or furred areas. Small-volume intramuscular injections can be given in the triceps, quadriceps, gluteal, orbicularis, or epaxial muscles. IV catheters can be dislodged if the patient balls up. An intraosseous catheter may be placed in the tibial crest or proximal femur using a 25-gauge spinal needle; tibial catheters can remain accessible even when the patient is balled up.

Radiographic imaging is useful; however, the spines in the hedgehog's mantle can obscure detail. For lateral views, the spines should be pulled away from the chest and abdomen and taped down. Ultrasonography is a useful imaging modality in hedgehogs, especially to evaluate the abdomen. CT is helpful to image a variety of anatomical locations in hedgehogs and is often useful for dental, otic, respiratory, and skeletal disorders. Anesthesia or deep sedation is generally required for proper positioning.

Oral medication is often difficult to administer. Some hedgehogs accept liquid medications that have been compounded with fruit or meat flavor. Alternatively, medication can be injected into mealworms or mixed with a small amount of preferred food. Applying topical medications is complicated by the presence of spines and self-grooming, and some odors might initiate self-anointing behavior.  

Voluntary feeding is facilitated by providing the patient's customary diet and by offering live invertebrates. Anorectic animals can be fed a critical care formula designed for carnivores or omnivores or a canned, high-calorie canine or feline diet via syringe. For ongoing assisted feeding, an esophagostomy tube can be used; however, anorexia can persist while the tube remains in place.

Hedgehogs are not bacterial hindgut fermenters and lack a cecum, and there are no particular concerns regarding antimicrobial use. For appropriate drugs and dosages used in the treatment of hedgehogs, consult the hedgehogs chapter in Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary, 6th edition (2023), or other sources.

A 4-hour fast is recommended for four-toed hedgehogs before they undergo anesthesia. Isoflurane is commonly used for induction and maintenance. After a period of preoxygenation, a common approach is to use 4–5% isoflurane via chamber for induction, then 1–2% via nose cone or face mask for maintenance (3). Although injectable agents can be used, recovery might be longer than with inhalant anesthesia alone. For deep sedation, a combination of alfaxalone (3–5 mg/kg) and midazolam (1 mg/kg) can be administered subcutaneously and is partially reversed with administration of flumazenil (0.05 mg/kg, SC) (3).

Tracheal intubation is difficult, as the oropharynx in hedgehogs is long and the epiglottis must be displaced from the soft palate to visualize the glottis. Intubation might be indicated for longer or oral procedures and is accomplished with a 1–2 mm internal diameter endotracheal tube, an IV catheter lined with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), or a modified red-rubber urinary catheter.

Intubated hedgehogs must be monitored closely because small endotracheal tubes create substantial airflow resistance and are prone to blockage with respiratory secretions. Monitoring end-tidal CO₂ is ideal. Alternatively, a supraglottic airway device can be used to maintain anesthesia in hedgehogs.

Buprenorphine can be administered by deep subcutaneous injection into the mantle and provides long-lasting analgesia. In one study, single doses of buprenorphine hydrochloride at 0.03 and 0.05 mg/kg, SC, provided analgesic effects for 36 and 48 hours, respectively (4). Hydromorphone (0.15–0.3 mg/kg, SC) or methadone (1–1.5 mg/kg, SC) can also be used for shorter-lasting analgesia for more intense pain (5, 6). Meloxicam is commonly used for analgesia; however, there is little information on its efficacy or safety in four-toed hedgehogs.

Once the patient is anesthetized for surgery, spines can be removed by clipping or pulling from the base of the spine with steady traction. Hedgehogs sometimes self-mutilate traumatic or surgical wounds; therefore, prompt primary closure with subcuticular sutures should be done whenever possible. Bandages and dilute chlorhexidine baths are well tolerated. If the cutaneous muscle is damaged, it must be closed in a separate layer. Contraction of the musculature used for balling-up can cause wound dehiscence. Elizabethan collars are not practical.

Ovariohysterectomy in hedgehogs is similar to the procedure in other mammals. The ovaries are small and surrounded by fat, making their identification difficult. Castration is rarely indicated. It can be performed via a para-anal skin incision over each testicle; a closed technique is recommended.

Four-toed hedgehogs have a short lifespan (4–6 years) and often hide signs of illness; therefore, a complete physical examination and baseline blood work under chemical restraint every 6–12 months are recommended.

There are currently no vaccines labeled or recommended for use in hedgehogs.

Because hedgehogs are not usually housed in mixed-gender groups, castration and ovariohysterectomy are not generally requested. Ovariohysterectomy is performed most commonly in hedgehogs with uterine neoplasia. Because of the high incidence of uterine disease reported in this species, prophylactic ovariohysterectomy should be strongly considered.

• Doss G, Carpenter JW. African pygmy hedgehogs. In: Quesenberry KE, Orcutt CJ, Mans C, Carpenter JW, eds. Ferrets, Rabbits, and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery. 4th ed. Saunders; 2021:401-415.

• Doss GA. A novel technique: how to perform proximal jugular venipuncture in small mammals. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2026;264(6):1. doi:10.2460/javma.25.10.0689

1. Hinkle D, Eshar D. African pygmy hedgehog pediatrics. Vet Clin North Am Exot Anim Pract. 2024;27(2):221-227. doi:10.1016/j.cvex.2023.11.005

2. Doss G. Proximal jugular venipuncture in African pygmy hedgehogs (Atelerix albiventris). J Exot Pet Med. 2020;35:94-96. doi:10.1053/j.jepm.2020.08.013

3. Doss G, de Miguel Garcia C. African pygmy hedgehog (Atelerix albiventris) and sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) sedation and anesthesia. Vet Clin North Am Exot Anim Pract. 2022;25(1):257-272. doi:10.1016/j.cvex.2021.08.005

4. Doss GA, Mans, C. Antinociceptive efficacy and safety of subcutaneous buprenorphine hydrochloride in African pygmy hedgehogs (Atelerix albiventris). J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2020;257(6):618-623. doi: 10.2460/javma.257.6.618

5. Peterson ML, Mans C, Doss GA. Subcutaneous hydromorphone hydrochloride provides antinociception with transient adverse effects in four-toed hedgehogs (Atelerix albiventris). J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2024;262(4):1-6. doi:10.2460/javma.23.11.0630

6. Peterson ML, Mans C, Doss GA. Efficacy and safety of subcutaneous methadone hydrochloride in four-toed hedgehogs (Atelerix albiventris). Am J Vet Res. 2024;85(3). doi:10.2460/ajvr.23.12.0276