By now you have read lots of articles on how owning a hedgehog for a pet entails lots of responsibilities. But why did the interest live on? For one thing, hedgehogs are so adorable all the weight of what seemed an exhausting affair goes out of the window. For another, as the pet owner, you know owning a hedgehog is less challenging than keeping a dog or a cat (or a python).
Breeding hedgehogs is not easy. Getting them to mate is no problem - if you house a male and female together they’ll do it whether or not you intend them to - but ensuring a healthy delivery and keeping newborn hoglets alive requires constant attention and care.
The majority of hedgehogs bred in North America are African pygmy hedgehogs, which are themselves a hybrid of two wild African species - the 4-toed or white-bellied hedgehog (Atelerix albiventris) and the Algerian hedgehog (Atelerix algirus).
As the name pygmy would suggest, these animals are on the small side, typically weighing 300-700 grams and measuring 6-9 inches in length. Though many color variations are possible, the traditional coloration is a white-furred belly with black and white banded quills.
Hedgehogs are small spiny mammals that changes color from black to brown, in this article we will talk about Hedgehogs weigh, spines, behavior, teeth, diet, color and odor.
The typical hedgehogs weigh around ½ pounds and the African hedgehogs weigh around 1 pound. In the wild they live for about 3 to 4 years but as a pet they can live for 10 years.
