Pinto Hedgehog passed on February 23, 2013.

I got the little guy November 6, 2010 from New England Exotics, Maine. He weighed a whopping 16 ounces! He was friendly and the kids at my lectures loved him.

He was placed in with Prickles after being quarantined for a couple of weeks. In January 2011, Prickles died stressing Pinto out. He began having green stools and he hid under one of the ramps. He recovered after a few months.

In April I introduced him to Eddie and they got along fine. By September Spike was moved in with them. 3 hedgehogs and 2 wheels make for a chunky hedgie. Pinto gained 3 ounces because Eddie and Spike used the wheels all the time… obsessively.

unfortunately, Eddie passed in May, 2012. Pinto continued to gain weight. By September he weighed 20.9 ounces!

Now, I knew Pinto and Spike were reaching 3 years old and thought I had better get another young one. Hence Henry came in September. Pinto held his weight but Spike began losing weight slowly.

In January 2013, I removed Spike for his weight loss and placed him in isolation. Pinto had dropped down to 16 ounces. I noticed some of the food was not completely being eaten, so I increased it.

There were a few green stools and a couple bloody ones too.

I found Pinto in the doorway to his igloo. Poor Henry had been trapped inside. He weighed 14.7 ounces. So, you can see he had lost weight. I try to weigh all my animals on a monthly basis to ensure that everything is fine. I watch their stools and eating habits, too.

In my 11 year experience with hedgehogs, they live on average 3-4 years old. There isn’t much you can do. Did you know that they can get cancer, too?

Rest in Peace little Pinto.