What's wrong with Pickles?

[AlliLovesPickles]

So, my hedgehog Pickles is about 6 months old.
i bought her from a hobby breeder and she has never seen a vet.

lately, her ears appear to be dry, crusty (on the outside) and somewhat battered around the edges.

i've tried putting some Dr.Bronners & Sundogs organic, unscented, balm on her ears, i've done so three times in the last week or so, and have seen minimal improvement.
(the balm consists of of jojoba oil, beeswax, avocado oil, hemp oil and natural tocopherols, let me know if any of these things are harmful or unsafe for use on a hedgie)

i was thinking mites, but i did the "black cloth" test, and little white specks fell when i ruffled her quills, but as they did not move, they appeared to be dandruff or dry skin.

i also noticed she was losing a few more quills than would seem usual last night when she was out of her cage. as many as seven or eight fell out last night alone.

i am still worried about her health, and i am wondering if she does have mites or a fungus of some kind, or possibly just dry skin.
i do not want to take her to a vet if i don't have to.

does anyone else have any experience with these symptoms?

 

[Kalandra]

Tattered ears could be nothing but overly dry skin, dirt build up, or a fungus.

What type of bedding is Pickles living on? Does Pickles like to use a TP tube? I ask because dirt can build up on their ears and I have had hedgehogs get it from sticking their heads in TP tubes as well as had rescues come in who lived on particulate bedding. Both can be cleaned off, but it can take some work to get it off.

I've never used the balm that you describe, so I cannot comment on how well it would work. I have used nipple cream (found in the baby section near the baby bottles) and bag balm. Both work pretty well for both dry skin and softening the dirt build up. They both work best if you can rub them into the ears on a regular basis.

For fungus, you'll need to visit a veterinarian to get a definite diagnosis. Fungus isn't as commonly reported as it used to be as many hedgehog owners are using fabric instead of wood particulates for bedding now. Treatment used to be an anti-fungal ointment applied to the ears.

 

[Nancy]

Ditto everything Kalandra has said.

Some hedgehogs are very prone to getting gunk buildup on their ears and for some, it will start to build up on an almost weekly basis. I've had a couple of rescues come with tatters that were over 1/4" long and all it was was gunk.

As well as what as already been mentioned, you can use vasaline, Vitamin E oil, Flaxseed oil or Jojoba oil to loosen the gunk. If she allows you to rub it into her ears, the buildup could start to come off within a day or two. If all you manage is to swipe her ears with it, it will take a long time.

If she had mites she would be scratching.

Hedgehogs are prone to dry skin, made worse by shavings, Carefresh and other commercial type loose beddings.