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Date of Rescue: October 14, 2022Date of Birth: UnknownGender: FemaleSpecies: HedgehogDiet: CarnivoreLifespan: 3-6 yearsAnnual Costs of Care: $600-$1,000
A backyard breeder used me as a breeder hedgehog and I had babies that were sold. I was eventually sold from the backyard breeder to a human that kept me for a while and got bored of me. I was given to someone else. I got a very bad infection and lost my eyesight. Eventually the human threw me away in the trash. A neighbor, and coincidentally a Solid Rock employee, witnessed the incident. I was scared to death and climbed in the gutter. A rescue took place and I found my forever home at Solid Rock. I am a very nervous and shy girl. Humans have always been so cruel to me. At my new home everyone is very nice and patient and they just allow me to be a hedgehog and do my own thing. Although I prefer not to be bothered by humans and will most likely run and hide the moment I hear your voice, I am such a good girl for baths, nail clippings and going to the vet. I will hiss, pop, or spike for a minute but quickly calm down now when my human needs to pick me up for animal care. Because I am blind, my days and nights are confused so although I am naturally nocturnal, I unknowingly come out during the day. I use my excellent smell to get around, but I only walk from my house to my food to my wheel, so I don't get confused. I love my new bioactive habitat. I love the plants and smells. I never had that before and it makes me happy, which you will see when you catch me splooting. I love my house inside my new habitat. I love to decorate the inside of my house with hay and weeds. When I hear your voice, I will go straight into my house and so you don't bother me. It makes me feel safe and secure. I love to run on my wheel. I never had a wheel before and I think it is so cool! I ran 14 hours straight one day and the staff was scared to death I would hurt myself. I don't know what came over me, but I have not done it again since. Normally I run for an hour or two at a time. Solid Rock named me Mahgra (Ma-gra) after the blind character in the series SEE who is beautiful and sweet (just like me).
The ‘Hedge’ part of their name comes from where they build their nests hedges, bushes and shrubs. The ‘hog’ part comes from the small snorting/ grunting sound they make which is similar to a pig/warthog.Hedgehogs are nocturnal which means they are up at night and sleep during the day. In an household you will not see them unless you go into their room late at night. They sleep a lot too so even at night they are only up for small periods of time, at a time. Hedgehogs have around 5000 to 7000 spines on their back. These can be raised and lowered to respond to threatening situations. Each quill/ spine lasts about a year before dropping out and being replaced. These "spikes" will hurt when they are using them for protection.Hedgehogs are not social at all. In the wild they live alone and will fight others to the death. Hedgehogs venture out on their own after only four to seven weeks of nurturing from their mother. They usually then spend their entire lives alone with the exception of pairing up to mate with another hedgehog. They do not want or need any social activity from any other living beings- including humans. In the wild hedgehogs will travel up to 2 miles nightly. This is why in captivity, they must have a wheel. A wheel for them is like a treadmill for us. Being able to walk as long as they want is a necessity. A hedgehog may anoint itself it they smell or taste something really strong or that they like. They will attempt to cover themselves in a foamy saliva, much like a cat cleaning itself. This is called self-anointing. Some will do it and others never will. Hedgehogs need temperatures of 75-80 degrees. This means, in captivity, they will need heat lamps and thermostats to regulate their environment. There are seventeen species of hedgehog throughout parts of Asia, Africa, Europe and New Zealand. There are no hedgehogs native to Australia and no living species native to the Americas.
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