Hedgehog
"I poke, but I make a great pet :)"
...Mr. Hedgehog
Will Your Pet Hedgehog Hibernate
In the wild, hedgehogs hibernate during the winter months. Many people who are considering getting a hedgehog as a pet wonder if their pet hedgehog will hibernate as well. The answer is both yes, and no.First, European hedgehogs do in fact hibernate, and this occurs between the months of January and March. However, African Pygmy Hedgehogs, which are the most common type of domesticated hedgehog, should not hibernate, although this does not mean that they won't, under certain circumstances.
If you have an African Pygmy Hedgehog that goes into hibernation, you simply have a problem. In most cases, it is an indication that the hedgehog is not being kept warm enough. An African Pygmy Hedgehog that goes into hibernation, without being brought out of it with human interference, will most likely die, because his body is not prepared for it, as are the bodies of his wild counterparts. He has not put on the extra weight needed to survive hibernation.
Furthermore, you cannot bring a pet hedgehog out of full hibernation. You must catch him when he is in a semi-hibernation state. If you do not, and he goes into full hibernation, he will most likely die within a couple of days or less. Therefore, the best thing to do is to prevent even semi-hibernation from occurring.
First, hibernation will start if the temperature where your hedgehog is housed drops below 68 degrees F. You must make sure that the temperature in the room where your hedgehog is housed, or in your home, does not drop below this. If it does, your hedgehog will prepare for hibernation, and the only way to stop him is to heat the place up.
Second, keep an eye on your hedgehog. If he appears to be sleeping too much, this is a bad sound, and you need to wake him up. This may not make him happy, but it is necessary. If you have problems waking the hedgehog up, he is going into hibernation. Make sure he is warm, and take immediate steps to get him warm if he is not.
Hedgehogs simply don't like the cold. If your house is too cold for his liking, he will appear to be sluggish, and he may be a bit unfriendly as well. He may also appear to be a bit off balance as well, simply because he is too cold. Your hedgehog may also not be eating as much as he usually does, which is another sign that he is too cold and considering hibernation.
When you touch your hedgehog, he should feel warm. If he feels cool, he's probably too cold. Hedgehogs can be warmed up with heating pads in their cages, and many owners keep heating pads in cages full time. You can wrap your hedgehog in a blanket to warm him up slowly as well, and he should be provided with cloth materials in his cage - without ragged edges - to cover up with as well. The rule is quite simple-keep him warm, and he won't hibernate, and if he does hibernate, he probably won't survive it.
Next Article: Is Your Hedgehog Getting Enough Exercise