Almost all hedgehogs can safely use a water bottle instead of a water bowl. Water bottles are more sanitary than bowls and they also give you the ability to easily see how much your hedgehog is drinking each day.
Baby hedgehogs or hedgehogs that have difficulty using a bottle may do better with a water bowl. Some hedgehog owners prefer using glass or stainless steel bowls for drinking. Water bowls will need to be checked frequently to make sure they are clean and full.
Plain fresh water is all that is required for them. Sadly, this mixture can be lethal for birds if they bathe in it as the sugar will cause problems with their feathers. Please do offer plain water in shallow bowls in the garden for thirsty hedgehogs but do not add anything else to it.
Filtered water is preferred. Most owners choose to offer water through a sipper bottle hung in the cage. If using a sipper bottle, ensure that your hedgehog will drink from it.
In terms of water, hedgehogs ingest water from their prey and natural sources like dew and puddles. Ponds also provide a water source so it's important to ensure garden ponds have sloping sides or an exit ramp so 'hogs don't fall in and get stuck.
In a bath tub or sink, get the water going at a warm temperature. If it's too hot or too cold for you to be comfortable, your hedgehog won't be comfortable either.
While hedgehogs aren't usually aggressive, they will extend their quills when they feel threatened. Supervise children to ensure they aren't playing too rough with your hedgehog. They don't like being wet and generally don't like their heads petted.
Feeding hedgehogs
You can encourage hedgehogs into your garden by providing food and fresh water. Tips for leaving out food and water: Leave out foods like tinned dog or cat food and crushed cat or dog biscuits.
Only solid bottom cages are suitable for hedgehogs, any wire bottom cages could trap their legs or rip off toenails. Provide a soft bedding free of dust, such as recycled paper pellets or if you use wood shavings use only kiln dried pine or aspen. Do not use cedar shavings as they could irritate your hedgehog's lungs.
Those resembling pet food with a high meat content are most suitable. Place in a shallow dish and put in a sheltered area of your garden, or a feeding station (see below), around sunset. Splitting food over several sites may reduce aggression at food bowls. Don't forget to offer water bowls too!
Almost all hedgehogs can safely use a water bottle instead of a water bowl. Water bottles are more sanitary than bowls and they also give you the ability to easily see how much your hedgehog is drinking each day.
A full-grown hedgehog should be drinking 25-40 milliliters (1.5 -2.5 tablespoons) of water each day. Young hedgehogs drink far water more daily, owners have measured as much as 60 milliliters (4 tablespoons) in a single night. Extremely active hogs may drink even more than this.
Get some soap.
It's important that you don't use anything that might his irritate or dry out his skin. A “no tears” baby shampoo or unscented liquid hand soap are both good options. Oatmeal baby shampoo is one of the most popular products for bathing hedgehogs.
Hedgehogs will also be very thirsty, so if you can, leave out a shallow dish of fresh water. This will need to be topped up, and disinfected on a regular basis.
This ceramic hedgehog feeder is specially designed for hedgehogs. Hedgehogs can easily reach the feed through the recesses. Moreover, the dish is easy to keep clean because of the smooth material.
The best advice regarding how to feed a baby hedgehog is to gently squeeze the formula out and never squeeze too much, too fast. It is meant to drip out just like it would from the nipple. Also, once a day, give them 4-5 drops of multi-vitamin with one feeding.
SAFE PLACES. Whether it's on your lap or in its enclosure, your hedgehog needs something they can hide under or in to feel safe. This can be anything from a fleece blanket to a guinea pig hut. Hedgehogs are natural burrowers and love dark confined spaces where they can feel safe.
It's a good idea to put out food for hedgehogs all year round. In spring, it will be a boost for those emerging from hibernation, while in late summer and autumn it will help hogs build up those all-important fat reserves to survive the winter.
Fruits: Dried fruit should be avoided, but a small amount of fresh fruit can be offered to your hedgehog as treats. Apples, bananas, berries, and melons are popular choices among hedgehogs.
The most important invertebrates in their diet are worms, beetles, slugs, caterpillars, earwigs and millipedes. As well as these, they also eat a wide range of other insects. More infrequently, they will take advantage of carrion, frogs, baby rodents, baby birds, birds' eggs and fallen fruit.
While the room you keep their habitat in may feel comfortable to you, remember that hedgehogs are much smaller and lack the clothing you wear to keep yourself warm. They are quite sensitive to the cold, and can begin to enter hibernation in a room that feels just chilly to you.
Hedgehogs sleep in the day and attend to business at night. What they're doing at night is mainly eating. Hedgehogs need to eat a lot of food for their size. They will eat up to 100 beetles and other invertebrates in one night.