Elliott Lang - African Pygmy Hedgehogs and Hedgehogs. Hedgehogs as pets: facts and Information. Care, breeding, cages, owning, house, homes, food, feeding, hibernation, habitat, all covered.

African Pygmy Hedgehogsand Hedgehogs .

Hedgehogs as pets: f acts and I nformation

Care, breeding, cages,owning, house, homes, food, feeding, hibernation, habitat, allcovered.

by

Elliott Lang

~~~

Smashwords Edition

Published by IMB Publishing

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With thanks to my dad for teaching me all aboutAfrican Pygmy Hedgehogs and Hedgehogs.

Also thanks to my wife and kids for sticking with methroughout the many hours I spent writing this book

Hedgehogs. Everyone loves a hedgehog, andwhat is there to not like? They are cute; with their little nosesalways twitching and the way that they prance around on theirlittle feet. The only thing that really deters people from warmingup to this enchanting pet is the quills.

In fact, the prickly quills protruding fromthe hedgehogs back make people believe that these friendly littlecreatures are far from friendly. Thankfully, this is something thatthe hedgehog is happy to dispel and more and more people areexperiencing the joy of owning a hedgehog.

And that is what this book is all about. Thejoys of owning a hedgehog. Yes, there is work, which I cover in thepages on basic care, health care and socialization, but there are ahundred other things that make owning a hedgehog a rewardingexperience.

It is a unique experience and while hedgehogsare often labelled as cage pets, the hedgehog can be a veryadaptable pet. They can be housetrained and will enjoy simplyplaying and cuddling with their owner. In addition, the pets arequite social when they are properly handled and many will adaptvery well to travelling.

Although this book is designed to lookspecifically at the African Pygmy Hedgehog, in the day-to-day care,there are many similarities and needs shared between all of thedifferent kinds of hedgehogs, which I touch on briefly.

As you can see, there is no limit to theamount of positives that can be said about hedgehogs. This bookgoes over everything you need to know about raising them, caringfor them and even breeding them.

So sit back...hopefully with a prickly friendin your lap...and enjoy this wonderful resource.

Before you branch out into the world ofhedgehogs, it is very important that you understand the hedgehogsthemselves. African Pygmy Hedgehogs, as well as other types ofhedgehogs, are not an ideal pet for everyone.

Each hedgehog has specific requirements andwhile they do reside in a cage, they are not a pet that you cansimply forget. This is an animal that needs daily care and contactand they can be surprisingly time consuming.

But before we get into their daily care,lets take the time in this chapter to really understand what ahedgehog really is.

What is a hedgehog? If you have seen themeven once, you probably have some idea of what a hedgehog is. Theyare well known for their small size and the quills that protrudefrom their back.

Although many people group them together withthe rodent family, hedgehogs actually belong to the mammal familycalled the Erinaceinae. This is a family of shrew, like mammals,that can be found in Europe, New Zealand, Asia and Africa. TheHedgehog itself can be found in all of those locations, however,there is no living species in North or South America and there areno native species in Australia.

Hedgehogs themselves are a nocturnal animalthat live primarily on their own. They are rarely seen with otherhedgehogs unless they are a nursing mother or are mating. Hedgehogslive in burrows and they are primarily feed off of insects, makingthem an insectivore.

In fact, the hedgehog is one of the oldestinsectivores that exists today and they have been linked back toover 15 million years. In fact, fossils of hedgehogs from theNeogene Period, which was a period in the earths history datingfrom 23.3 million years to 5 million years ago, show that there areno significant changes in hedgehogs throughout history.

The hedgehog is amongst one of the earliestexamples of a placental mammal. While hedgehogs have been aroundfor millions of years, the name hedgehog can be traced back to themid 1400s. The name is derived from Middle English and comes fromthe words heyg, which means hedgerows and hoge, which describes thepig-like snout that hedgehogs have.

Today, hedgehogs are still a wild animal andthrive in much of its natural habitat. There are 14 species ofhedgehog and many of them have made their way into the world ofsmall animal companions. They live extremely well as a pet and canbe domesticated very quickly.

Although hedgehogs do have quills, they arenot related to the porcupine and their quills are actually quitedifferent from those of the porcupine, which I will go over laterin this book.

As I have mentioned already, there are 14species of hedgehogs and while this book does focus on the care forthe African Pygmy Hedgehog, it is important to look at thedifferent types of hedgehogs that you can purchase. Remember thatwhen you are buying a hedgehog that you make sure it is the speciesof hedgehog that you desire.

African Pygmy Hedgehog: Themore commonly known hedgehog is the African Pygmy Hedgehog, whichthis book primarily focuses on. There are many different colours,which I will go over later. The African Pygmy Hedgehog is adomesticated variety of either the 4-Toed Hedgehog or the AlgerianHedgehog.

Algerian Hedgehog: TheAlgerian Hedgehog is native to North Africa but the small animalhas made its way to southern France, southern Spain, Malta, CanaryIslands and Djerba. It is between 8 to 14 inches in length andusually weighs between 400 to 1000 grams. The average lifespan forthe Algerian Hedgehog is roughly 4 years. In colouring, theyusually have a white belly and should have cream and chocolatebrown banded quills.

Brandts Hedgehog: Found inIran, Afghanistan, Yemen, Pakistan and Oman, this is a medium sizedhedgehog that thrives in desert locations. They are usually 9 to 12inches in length and weigh between 500 to 900 grams. The BrandtsHedgehog is dark brown in colouring and it has a very long quillthat is different to other hedgehogs. The average lifespan is 5years.

Chinese Hedgehog: Native toAsia, the Chinese Hedgehog can be found in China, Korea andManchuria. They are usually 12 to 15 inches in length and weight700 to 1000 grams. The Chinese Hedgehog has chocolate brown bandedquills and a brown belly; however, there are variations of colourin this species. They have an average lifespan of 5 years.

Daurian Hedgehog: A longeared variety of hedgehog, the Daurian Hedgehog is native toManchuria and Eastern Mongolia. They are usually 8 to 11 inches inlength and 450 to 700 grams in weight. The Daurian Hedgehog isidentified by the brown colouring and the longer ears. They usuallyhave a lifespan of 4 to 5 years.