New (to me) hedgie biting, has blood at corners of mouth (not mine)

[nearxe]

I adopted Muriel on Wednesday, and I'm beginning to have some concerns about her health. I am told that she is about 1 year old, and had a litter about a month ago. She bites rather a lot, which wouldn't overly worry me at this stage, considering her background, but I have noticed that there are little drops of blood at the corners of her mouth. She is active in the deepest parts of the night only, and she hasn't been eating much of her kibble, although she will eat superworms quite readily. Can anyone shed some light on this?

PS: Muriel is not my first hedgehog; I had a grumpy-pants by the name of Ambrose three years ago, so I knew what I was getting into attitude-wise.

 

[charlie]

Please do not feed her superworms, they can really hurt her, mealworms are okay. Since she is new to you she may be biting because she is smelling new things. If there is blood and she is having trouble eating, you need to check her mouth. She may have teeth issues which are bothering her and preventing her from eating properly or At least hard
Food. Try softening her food by soaking some kibble in hot water for about An hour before you feed her. It should be soft but hold it's form. Make sure she starts eating, if not, a vet visit will be needed.

Hoping she didn't have a litter a month ago, that seems way too early to remove her from her young.

What are you feeding her for kibble?

 

[charlie]

Sorry, I just noticed that this is third night only with you. She may still be adjusting to her very new environment. You'll still need to ensure she is indeed eating though. A gram scale ( the kind people can buy fairly cheap for their kitchens) is a great thing to use to track her weight daily.

 

[nearxe]

Thank you for the tip on the superworms, and the scale. Could the bleeding have been caused by the superworms?

The kibble in her dish has been disappearing slowly, and she's been pooping regularly. The brand is 8 in 1 "ultra blend select" hedgehog food.

I will check her mouth this evening; any tips on doing a mouth check on a REALLY ill-tempered hedgie?

It seems like the folks who had her before me were completely clueless with regards to hedgehog care, and weren't all that keen on putting the effort in. It might have been that she was separated from the litter a month ago; the details the shelter had on her were pretty fuzzy. Definitely a rehab hedgehog.

 

[Nancy]

I agree with April, do not feed super worms unless you cut the head off.

Here's another thought about the blood. Does she bite on her bedding and clothing? If so, the blood may be from that. I've had a few really oral hedgehogs over the years that would chew on cloth until their mouths bled.

She could also have a tooth issue.

 

[charlie]

Superworms bite so it is possible she could have bleed from that. Any sight of the blood now? I think 8-1 is one of the better foods, but I would slowly mix in some high quality low fat cat food to the mix. She may not like her kibble if she isn't eating much of it. Healthy poop is a good sign though.

 

[smhufflepuff]

I will check her mouth this evening; any tips on doing a mouth check on a REALLY ill-tempered hedgie?

How'd it go?

If it didn't work out yet, I'd say to sit with her a little, give her plenty of love, and try a q-tip... or other soft object that she could chomp on that will allow you to see the inside of her mouth as she chomps. My vet will use a popsicle stick (not really from a popsicle). You could even flavor it a little with wet cat food, wormie parts, or whatever she likes to entice her to open her mouth.

 

[nearxe]

Hi everybody. So I did finally get her to open her mouth for me, and her teeth and gums look fine. It's just little sores at the corner of her mouth, as if it was stretched too wide open. This would make sense, as I keep a flat palm when I'm handling her, and she has to really open up to get a grasp on me. Poor girl; what a temper. The dry climate here probably doesn't help either. I guess I'll just keep an eye on it, and if the sores get bigger, we'll go from there. Will definitely keep her off the super worms, though.