Heating Lamps Heating lamps are another economical option. They heat the air around the cage, not only the sleeping surface. Remember that hedgehogs are sensitive to light, and using the lamp constantly may disrupt their sleep. To avoid this, you can purchase “night lights” that emit a minimal amount of light.
Use a hot water bottle to heat your hedgehog.
Hot water bottles work well to provide heat for many hours. Just make sure that it isn't too hot for you to hold. If it's too hot for you to hold, it's too hot for your hedgehog. If your hot water bottle doesn't already come in a cover, always wrap something around it.
Hedgehogs are sensitive to temperature changes. The ideal range is between 75°F and 85°F. However, they will tolerate temperatures between 72°F and 90°F.
Hedgehogs need environmental temperatures between 70 and 80 degrees. Keep your hedgehog's cage away from drafts, direct sunlight, or cold areas. You may want to provide your hedgehog with a small warm spot in his cage where he can go to get warm but would also be able to get away from if he feels too warm.
Signs of hedgehogs in danger of being too cold are decreased activity, decreased appetite, sneezing (as opposed to puffling). So, if she's not on her wheel and exploring at night, eating her food and turning down mealworms and other treats, check the temperature in her enclosure!
A heating setup is extremely important as it can mean life or death for your hedgie. If your hedgehog gets too cold, below 72°F, they may try to hibernate or go into shock. If they get too hot, they won't be able to self-regulate the heat and begin aestivation.
A hibernating hedgehog will feel cold, you probably won't be able to find a heartbeat (even if you do happen to have a stethoscope with you in the garden!) and breathing will be difficult to detect.
Hedgehogs Are Primarily Nocturnal
Crepuscular animals or species are active during the twilight hours, around dusk or dawn, when the light provides them with excellent protection. Crepuscular creatures are different from diurnal and nocturnal animals that are busy day and night.
Night manoeuvres
Like bats, hedgehogs avoid artificial lighting, keeping to less well-lit areas, and this could affect other behaviours.
Hedgehogs are, by nature, nocturnal, but that does not necessarily mean that they should not be awakened for bonding or playtime during the day. Some hedgehog owners have found that their hedgehogs have a particular time when they wake up in a better mood than other times.
Too small to hibernate hedgehogs/overwintering
Overwintered hedgehogs need to be kept indoors in a constant-temperature room (around 65°F or 18°C) to prevent them from trying to hibernate.
Keeping the Temperature Constant with a hedgehog heat pad
Hedgehogs should be kept in an environment that is between 75 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. If the temperature drops below this, the hedgehog may start to hibernate.
Should I try to keep them warm? Hedgehogs don't need to be warm to hibernate, in fact they drop their body temperature down to match the environmental temperature. This lets them save the energy they would have used on trying to keep warm. It also means they don't move around and eat as usual.
Acceptable bedding materials include shredded paper, newspaper, recycled pelleted/absorbable material, and wood shavings, such as aspen or untreated pine. Avoid corncob bedding as it tends to grow mold when wet.
If a noise is loud to you, it is probably too loud for your hedgehog as well. Observe the sounds your hedgehog is making towards you as well. If he is purring, he is happy and content.
Many hedgehogs love to play in warm water and will enjoy themselves during bath time. We prefer to give hedgehogs a bath in a sink or a bathtub. Hedgehogs are prone to relieve themselves in the warm water so we prefer to use our laundry sink.
Like many pocket pets, hedgehogs love to explore mazes and tunnels. This will keep Hedgie active, and offer him mental stimulation. You can buy labyrinths, or make your own out of shoeboxes or PVC pipe. To make your pet's explorations even more fun for him, hide a snack at the end of the tunnel.
Our observations show that nesting Mums often leave their young ones to rest elsewhere. That rest is often through the first and last part of the night but can also be in the day time. Routinely we expect to see hedgehogs come out in the evening around 9.30pm and go back to bed by 5am.
Hedgehogs are nocturnal, meaning they sleep during the day and are active at night. They also make sure to hide themselves away in their nest when they're resting, to avoid disturbance and predation. For these reasons, sleeping and resting aren't behaviours we're likely to see a lot in the garden!
No, do not change his schedule. Hedgehogs are nocturnal by nature and it really isn't healthy to try to change them.
A hibernating hedgehog will be completely rolled up into a tight ball with no face visible. You can tell that the hedgehog is hibernating and not dead by the fact that it will 'ripple' when touched very gently. It may also emit a little 'snore'!
“A sick hedgehog will often be less active and/or weaker than normal and usually will have a reduced appetite,” Dr. Wilkinson says. “Many times they will stop running in their wheel at night.” Weight loss, loose or reduced stools and reduced or bloody urine also can indicate your hedgehog is under the weather.
If your hedgehog is acting sluggish, lethargic, uncoordinated or they are wobbly with the inability to move limbs; it may be a hibernation attempt. Some hedgehog owners fear the worst – Wobbly Hedgehog Syndrome – which is a definite death sentence. Between the two, you can determine hedgehog hibernation quite easily.
Hypothermic hedgehogs will be sluggish and unlikely to curl up. They will also usually feel cold to the touch, but not always, so do not rely on this as an indicator. To help raise body temperature, wrap the hedgehog loosely in a towel and place on a hot water bottle, also wrapped in a towel, in a box.