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My African Pygmy Hedgehogs - Sonic and Prickles

Last Updated: 11/4/06

Sonic in Bathtub on 11/16/02, trying to get out.

My Hedgehogs' Story Part III

If you came here first, go to my main hedgehog page too!

Note: Both of my poor hedgehogs have died.

Prickle's cage wass 30 and 7/8 inches by 18 and 6/8 inches. My cousin's family bought this cage (I do not know where). Sonic's cage was 33 inches by 18.5 inches. I bought it at Brisky's (see hedgehog web sites). Her surface area was 4 square feet and his was 4.2 square feet so he has 5% more area. The cages had 6" high plastic pans and vinyl coated wire sides and lid. They had openings on the top and side. The two cages were stacked. Both cages contained a 250 mL water bottle hanging on the side, a small crock bowl for food, an 11" hedgehog wheel (I got from PawPrint, see under links; later replaced with a wheel that locked to the cage and did not wake me up in the middle of the night), a plastic igloo to sleep in, a plastic or cardboard tube to play in, a hedgie hat, two kinds of hedgie bags, and a fluffy cat ball. The bedding/litter was CareFresh. A small blanket and towel partially covered part of the cages to keep in heat and keep out extra daylight. They did need enough light to tell what time it was though so did not keep them in totally dark areas during the day. Hedgehogs should have some exposure to full spectrum fluorescent lighting or indirect sunlight for 10-12 hours a day. They need it to regulate their circadian rhythm. There was a full spectrum compact fluorescent fixture next to the hedgehog cages that I bought for the guinea pigs. It was on from 7 am to 6 pm. You can see a photo of their cage setup from afar including the light in the photo section.

Photos

These photos are in the order of newest to oldest.

After their deaths, I plotted their assumed age in weeks versus their weekly weight in grams. You can see how they both lost the weight at the beginning. For Sonic, you can see his weight crash when his tumor ruptured through his penis, how he then recovered and gained weight, and then his weight crashed again when he got a tumor in his mouth. For Prickles, you can see the huge amount of weight she gained at the end.
Sonic's Weight Graph
Prickles' Weight Graph

Two photos of Miss Prickles after death are in this section to show the condition that killed her.

Prickles on 10/1/05. She is coming at you! These two photos are the last photos of her alive as she died a year after I took these (10/21/06). I should have taken more photos recently!
Prickles on 10/1/05, left side view.

Sonic's eye on 4/16/05. Something was wrong with it. Perhaps it was an injury or a cataracts.
Sonic's tumor on 4/16/05. The photo is a little fuzzy but you can see the hole in his body. At the bottom of the tumor pit is the internal parts of his penis (the external parts were destroyed when it ruptured) through which he still urinates.

As Sonic was dying (see his cancer story), on 2/26/05, I took four photos of him and two of Miss Prickles: Sonic's head, Sonic's right side, Sonic's left side, Sonic's stomach [warning, this photos shows his somewhat gory and bloody medical problem (cancer that ruptured his penis) so if you are faint of heart, please do not view this photo; I put it up here for educational purposes; I surely did not wish to embarrass him.], Prickle's right side, and Prickle's head.

Sonic's Butt on 11/27/02. He sleeps with his rear sticking out. You can see his tail.
Hedgehog and Guinea Pig Cages on 11/16/02. This shows the guinea pig cage on the right (you can see Fritz), Prickle's cage on the bottom left, and Sonic's cage on the top left, on top of Prickle's cage.
Sonic in Bathtub on 11/16/02 trying to get out.
Sonic in Bathtub on 11/16/02, top view.
Hoglet (Faith) on 11/7/02. Her head was on the right. This photo has some gore as her head was eaten by Prickles. The baby is in a standard dixie cup to give you an idea of the size. This baby was born 11/6/02 and may have been killed anytime from that morning until the next morning when she was found.
Hoglet (Faith) on 11/7/02. This is a tummy view taken immediately after the above photo. Again, if you do not like gore, do not click here. The head used to be at the top. At the bottom, you can see her anus and vaginal opening close together so I believe she was female. Male babies have their genital opening 2/3 down the tummy.
Sonic on 10/25/02.
Prickles on 10/25/02.