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When owning any kind of pet, it’s important to learn everything you can about them, including their reproductive cycles. Animals such as dogs and cats are much more common pets, and if you’ve ever owned a dog, you’re probably aware that females can bleed when they’re in heat.
But animals such as hedgehogs can be a bit of a mystery since they aren’t as common of a pet. Knowing what to expect can also help you make sure that your hedgehog is in good health even if you don’t want to breed her.
Since there are numerous species of hedgehog we will focus on the four-toed, or African pygmy hedgehog (Atelerix albiventris).
For the record, hedgehogs do not have periods and shouldn’t bleed throughout their reproductive cycle. Hedgehogs do have heat cycles, but it is not the same as a dog or even a human’s menstrual cycle. If you notice blood in your hedgehog’s cage, it’s an indicator that something else is going on. Continue reading to learn more.
Do Hedgehogs Have Periods?
All female mammals have an estrus cycle, which is the period of time from one ovulation to the next ovulation. In humans, the estrus cycle is called the menstrual cycle, during which time a “period” of bleeding occurs. Some other mammals besides humans experience bleeding during their estrus cycle as well, including some primate, bat, shrew, and rodent species, but not all of them do.
Hedgehogs fall into the latter category, meaning that they do not have periods, nor do they bleed at all during their estrus cycle. In the wild hedgehogs breed once or twice a year when conditions are favorable to raising young; this means warmth with plenty of food and water. Pet female hedgehogs who live inside with plenty of food and water will reproduce all year round.
If you do see bleeding from the vulva in your hedgehog, it’s an indicator that something is wrong. This can be caused by urinary tract infections and diseases of the uterus.
How Can You Tell When a Hedgehog Is in Heat?
Hedgehogs are polyestrous animals, which means that they can go into heat several times throughout the year in the event that they don’t become pregnant. But, they are also thought to be induced ovulators, which means that they may only ovulate (release eggs) when stimulated or when mating has occurred and not necessarily on any sort of regular cycle.
It’s because of this reason that it can be hard to tell exactly when a hedgehog is in heat, and not much is known about the reproductive cycles of hedgehogs so there is a lot of mixed information out there. However, a hedgehog’s estrus cycle is a lot shorter than larger animals.
If you’re trying to breed your female hedgehog, the only way to know for sure whether or not she is in heat is to leave a male and female together and see if she is receptive to mating attempts. Anecdotally, she will be receptive for around 9 days of a 16-day cycle. Typically breeders will pair hedgehogs 5 days on and 5 days off until they mate.
Combining the 9 days on, 7 days off’ theory with the theory that ovulation is triggered in hedgehogs while they are in the presence of a male, there’s a high chance that your hedgehog could become pregnant shortly after being in the presence of a male for a few days. You can always watch for signs that she is responsive to a male, but you can’t keep an eye on her constantly or know for sure when she is in heat since there is no blood or any other obvious signs.
What If Your Hedgehog Is Bleeding?
Knowing that hedgehogs don’t have periods, seeing vaginal discharge or blood in your hedgehog’s urine or poop should be a cause for concern. It’s not always a sign of a serious problem, but it is a sign that something isn’t right in your hedgehog’s body.
Blood in a hedgehog’s urine could be the sign of a urinary tract infection and blood in the stool can be due to gastroenteritis, both of which require veterinary treatment.
Alternatively, it could be a sign of some sort of uterine cancer, growth, or infection. The bottom line is that if you see anything that looks like blood coming out of your hedgehog, it’s a good idea to have a vet check her out.
Should You Breed Your Hedgehog?
The decision on whether or not to breed your hedgehog is ultimately up to you. But, we can offer you some things to consider before you make that decision. For starters, breeding a female hedgehog does have risks associated with it since you have no way of knowing what complications may arise.
Are you prepared to nurse the little hoglets if the mother can’t? Are you prepared to lose her or her babies to complications?
If your hedgehog does become pregnant, she could have babies within approximately 35 days. In the best-case scenario, you’ll have new hedgehog babies. But in the worst-case scenario, problems could arise while the hedgehog is giving birth that could lead to the death of the mama or the babies.
Even if the mama is healthy and all the babies are fine, you’ll have to make sure that you provide plenty of food and enough shelter for all of them. Since hedgehogs prefer to live alone, you’ll have to have separate cages for each baby when they get old enough to live on their own. Otherwise, you’ll have to make sure that you have homes lined up for them.
You’ll also have to potentially provide vet care for all of the hedgehog babies if you intend on keeping them. Essentially, breeding a hedgehog involves more of a monetary and time commitment for you. It’s definitely something that you need to make sure you can and are willing to handle.
Should You Spay a Female Hedgehog If Not You’re Breeding?
If you have a female hedgehog and are not planning on breeding her, you may be wondering if you should have her spayed? This is another area involving the reproductive systems of hedgehogs that is up for debate, so you can make up your own mind.
On the one hand, knowing that being in the presence of a male is the only way she can get pregnant, why would she need to be spayed if this isn’t the case?
There are also concerns with the size of hedgehogs and the location of their internal organs that make spaying procedures more difficult than with other animals.
However, the general consensus among vets is that it is a good idea to have a female hedgehog spayed if you aren’t going to breed her. The reason is that female hedgehogs are prone to uterine tumors, which can be fatal.
Spaying a hedgehog removes the risk of uterine tumors entirely since the uterus is removed.
Final Thoughts
Knowing about your pet’s reproductive habits is important even if you’re not intending on breeding them, especially in female hedgehogs that are prone to certain reproductive cancers. Hedgehogs don’t have periods, so if you see blood, it’s a sign that something is wrong.
It can also make it hard to tell when they are ready to breed if you are trying to breed them, but their short cycle means that they are ready more than 50% of the time. Hopefully, this article was helpful in answering any questions you may have had about your female hedgehog’s reproductive system.
Featured Image Credit: Anneka, Shutterstock
