The answer plain and simply is… No. I always wondered why people said they were allergic to hedgehogs. I mean come on — allergic to a hedgie? But there is actually a reason as to why people can be allergic to these little prickly balls of cuteness. Have you ever heard, You are what you eat? Well, that same statement holds true for hedgies. A hedgehog likes to eat a wide variety of foods. Sometimes owners and breeders will feed them fish or a fish based cat food/diet. If the person holding that hedgie is allergic to seafood then there is a very good chance they will be allergic to that hedgie due to the food/oils coming through their pores. This can hold true to a hedgie eating or being around other things that people are allergic to. This could hold true for just about anything a person is allergic to unfortunately. The main thing to remember is, you probably aren’t allergic to the hedgie, but you could very well be allergic to something that they’re eating. If this at all concerns you, always ask the breeder/owner what the hedgehog has been eating or what their diet consists of. It’s always better to be safe than sorry. Always take precautions.

Time is definitely the way to change your mind. After trying the blankets, and trying the wood pellets, and even toying around a bit with the Carefresh bedding, guess who the winner is? Wood chips! I know, I know! Who would guessed that I’d be willing to put up with the dust. Yes, it is dusty, but that all depends on the wood chip size I found out. I talked with a local farm store attendant when I was on a time crunch and needed some bedding. He said that typically the smaller the critter the larger the size of wood chip they like. Who knew? Well, I also found out that with the larger wood chip comes with less dust. The finer the chip the more dust. Which, yes, does make a lot of sense.

I had actually gotten some wood chips from another source and had nearly changed my mind on their effectiveness because they were considered a medium chip but had the dust level of a small chip. Needless to say, I was not a fan of that. The whole room was COVERED in dust from changing out the bedding because of how fine this wood chip had been.

When it all comes down to it though, everyone is going to have their own opinion on bedding material. I personally like now the larger flake of wood chips because you can get way more for your money. I did like the Carefresh bedding, and, if it wasn’t so dang expensive, I’d probably be using that. Unfortunately, the more hedgies you have the more expensive that bedding can be so bulk large wood chips definitely are the way to go. Just a heads-up on my findings 😉

When it comes to hedgehogs, a lot of people recommend different bedding options. It makes things tricky when trying to set up a cage and decide what the proper thing is to use. Some breeders will swear by a certain bedding, and, honestly, there really isn’t a right yes or no answer for bedding. I’ll give you an idea of what can be used and some of the perks or disadvantages for those. Let’s begin…

Wood Pellets – These so far are my personal favorite. They turn into sawdust when wet, which makes it easier to clean up. They don’t stick to your hedgie, which is a super big plus side when wanting to take them out. However, they do sometimes get stuck up into the belly of the hedgie when they roll up tight and you take them out – this makes them a little messy considering the second the hedgie unrolls the pellets fall out. This isn’t anything major considering how easy it is to pick up the pellets. It’s a little bit harder for the hedgies to burrow in this type of bedding so I do like to provide little pieces of blankets for them to cuddle up in and hide. The blankets can then be either discarded or washed after they get soiled.

Wood Chips (or sawdust) (Pine or Aspen are the safest) – Wood chips are nice because they’re easy to clean up and cheap to purchase. This is definitely a nice plus. They can, however, make the cage dusty for your hedgie and will get caught on their quills, making it messier for when you take them out. You also have to make sure that these are pine or some kind of safe wood for the hedgies just in case they ingest them.

Blankets/Fabric – Some people like just laying down a blanket (like fleece or something soft) for the hedgehogs and either throwing it out when it’s dirty or washing it in the laundry. This idea is nice, but just always seems so messy. You’d have to wash it probably every couple of days or once a week. In a way, this could be a cheaper method, but it could also be more expensive if you have to wash the blankets frequently. This is definitely cleaner for the hedgies, unless the blankets are dirty.

Carefresh Bedding – Carefresh has a lot of bedding options – wood pellets, wood chips, paper bedding, fluffy chunks, etc. This is a nice option for many. They can be a little pricey, but definitely give out a good array of choices. Most of these options do tend to hold the poop smell in more and aren’t as good to use, but definitely acceptable. The fluffy chunks and the paper bedding give a good thickness for the hedgies to burrow in, which they absolutely love and it does help to keep them cozy and happy.

Overall, wood pellets are my favorite due to being the least messy and being cheap. I mean you can pick up a 40-lb. bag for under $10.00 usually. Of course this depends on the brand and where you purchase it from. In the end, it’s up to you what you’d like to use for your hedgie, but at least you can choose with a more informed opinion on what works the best for your situation. Have fun shopping!

P.S. I do try to put links with all of the choices. Of course it’s sometimes cheaper just to find it at your local pet store or a farm/feed store, but there definitely are easier options. Amazon definitely is my favorite shopping place!

The hedgies are now here. We had went down to pick them up in Minneapolis at the Delta airlines cargo pickup area. Talk about tricky to find the first time you go down there! It worked out perfect though and we were able to get the four little babies and bring them home. Parsley became the friendliest first and absolutely loves crawling around on us and exploring. Lonnie quickly figured out his wheel in his cage and exercised the second he found out how it worked. That was quite the sight! Just seeing his little legs running around on the wheel was pretty fun to watch. Parsley and Bessie are sharing a cage right now because they’re still babies and Parsley decided the bed was her’s and left Bessie outside the little snuggle area. Poor thing! Kind of felt a little bad for her. Amos is seriously the smallest out of all four and quite friendly. He decided to sleep in the corner next to his wheel. Why? I have no idea, but apparently he thought that that was more cozy than the blanket. The lil goof! I will post some pictures here pretty soon and will add a picture here for the post as soon as I get one. Can’t wait to show you guys!

The cages are ready and the hedgies will be arriving from Blizzard Baby Hedgehogs tomorrow – which is way too exciting! The beginning of our endeavors is about ready to begin. The hedgehogs will be arriving at the airport in the afternoon from all the way in Michigan. Poor things will have a long flight, but soon enough they will be at our home and happy. I’ve been spending the last two weeks getting their homes ready and getting the things that will make them happy in there. I will do a different post on exactly what I did so that you, too, will have that option of setting up your own hedgie habitat. The cages are actually plastic totes with holes burned in them for air and a wheel (12″ Kaytee Giant Comfort Exercise Wheel) and house for exercise and comfort. It was interesting to think that, yes, these lil guys can live in a tote, but it’s actually recommended because the floors are flat for them and they have a lid for the lil guys not to be able to climb out. Who knew?! Anyway, I’m pretty excited about them arriving tomorrow! It’s felt like forever since I picked them out – hard to believe it’s only been less than 2 weeks! The updates will continue to come for sure. 🙂