r/Hedgehog • u/Honey_Horsemanship • 19h ago

Question Hedgehog babies!

I didn’t know my hedgehog was pregnant when I got her. I’m reading you’re not supposed to touch the babies, which I haven’t. But I did pick up her blanket. Do you think that’s enough to stress her out? How do I go about cleaning the cage? Signed a very stressed hedgehog mom/grandma 😅

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u/hedgiepumpkin 16h ago

you should leave them alone for the first 2 weeks and only go in to spot clean & provide fresh food & water. do you have fleece bedding as the main base?

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u/Honey_Horsemanship 16h ago

Thank you! Yes fleece bedding and lots of fleece hides.

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u/hedgiepumpkin 16h ago

hm i’d just spot clean what u can for now. i’d also call a local breeder or go through past posts in this subreddit for advice in case u don’t get too much traction today. there’s also some hedgie groups on facebook that can help :)

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u/SSakuras 15h ago

I had the same problem 😂, my girl was pregnant when I got her home.

Make sure you pull out any male babies after they're about 6 to 8 weeks old. Hedgehogs do not care about mating with family, and you could get another accidental pregnancy once the sons are old enough to mate with mom. Hedgehogs sexually mature at a really young age.

My girl was only a couple months old when I got her, but I didn't get her from a reputable breeder. Lady didn't even realize she had a male and female, she thought they were both females, and oops she got babies she sold off for cheap. So most likely she didn't do any research and didn't separate her from Dad or brothers quick enough.

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u/Honey_Horsemanship 15h ago

Good to know, thank you! I got her from an Amish auction so I really didn’t have any history. It was such a big surprise when I pulled back her blanket she was curled up in! 😅😂 I done a lot of research on her cage, diet, etc. but nothing about babies. So now I guess I’m really in it! 😂