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| Name: |
Harley
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Age: |
Four years old
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| Gender: |
Male
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Kind: |
African Pygmy Hedgehog
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| Home: |
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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I
can't resist nominating "Harley," my 4-year-old African
Pygmy Hedgehog (light of my life). I adopted him just over a year ago
from a neglected situation he was in and I happen to think he's
adorable. My favorite special quality of Harley's is that he'll sit
on my lap for hours and nap, while I gently scratch between his
quills. He looks like a tiny football with legs when he swims laps
around the bath tub. (I had a sink-full of dishes one day when I
wanted to give Harley one of his aloe vera baths so I used the bath
tub, and darned if he didn't go straight to the deep end and start
swimming laps! (He appeared to be enjoying himself immensely). I was
chatting with a vet who said he had worked with the hedgehog breeding
program at San Diego Zoo, and he'd found out, during his work there,
hedgehogs love to swim. I don't think most people know it.)
Harley has a weakness for Dairy Queen Burgers, he snuffles little
pig-like grunts when he forages for the treats I hide, he coos like a
pigeon when he snores, and if I lean my long blonde hair down to
where he can reach it, he likes to play tug-o-war with it! All in all
a wonderful little guy (...and handsome too).
Harley is my first hedgehog; and I decided to adopt him because I am
a bleeding heart, and a sap. My sisters friend (who loves animals,
but has 10 cats - so she didn't want to take him) was house-sitting
and the owners said it had been a mistake to get Harley for their
son, and they didn't want him. Harley was in a cage so small he had
to sleep in his own feces, and couldn't move around; he'd been there
for a year. She saw that he seemed to be in a terrible state of
anxiety, and his skin was all cracked and bleeding. She ended up
calling me (she knew I love animals too), and, though I wasn't
entirely certain exactly what a hedgehog was, I said I'd come get him
right away. (I purchased a book about hedgehogs that same day and a
period of discovery began ... "worms!!...eeew, they eat mice,
snakes, bugs and...worms!!". He wouldn't 'un-ball' in the
beginning, and was scared pretty much constantly. Long story short, I
bathed him in warm aloe mixtures 6 times over 2 weeks before all the
dead, grey skin came off naturally; then his skin healed (which
seemed to help his personality quite a bit). I installed a few safety
features, and gave him free reign of my apartment. I held him every
day, and spoiled him with little treats (grub worms & minced
steak), aside from the regular kitten kibble he eats. Now he's OK!
He comes up to me, and sits like a dog & stares at me, I know
darn well he wants me to pick him up and rub & scratch his back,
so I lean down to get a hold of him, and still always get a cursory
single hiss and grunt (just to make sure I still know he's a tough
guy); but as soon as I begin he just sinks down, all his quills fall
flat against his back, and he melts. I think he's absolutely
adorable, and "he's me boy."
I clean up after Harley when he forgets to use his litter pan (25% of
the time) because I'm an adult and I choose to do so. Hedgehogs can
be very loving and affectionate, but respond only to gentle, loving
handling. They are nocturnal, inquisitive and fun to watch,
especially when they're exploring a new activity you've given them,
but they do not "play" as such. While their spines do not
release like those of a porcupine, they're needle-sharp, which means
that when they're not in the mood for it, they're not cuddly pets. I
think it's tragic, the large number of hedgehogs ending up at the
SPCA, and now that I know more about them I wish pet stores would
warn parents (especially at Christmas) that hedgehogs are not good
pets for children.
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Find out how your pet
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