# hedgehogs are the cheerleaders at the puppy bowl



## andra (Aug 23, 2010)

I don't know if anybody watches the puppy bowl on Animal Planet; it plays during the superbowl. It is cute  Anyway, this year they have added hedgehogs as the cheerleaders!

I have a pet hedgehog named Spikey; I also had one named Mr. Pickles but he recently crossed over the rainbow bridge. So, it will be neat to see.

There seems to be some buzz about this because I even saw, on the cable news channel, the sports reporters discussing this


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Oh fun - I have to be sure to watch for them!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

andra said:


> I don't know if anybody watches the puppy bowl on Animal Planet; it plays during the superbowl. It is cute  Anyway, this year they have added hedgehogs as the cheerleaders!
> 
> I have a pet hedgehog named Spikey; I also had one named Mr. Pickles but he recently crossed over the rainbow bridge. So, it will be neat to see.
> 
> There seems to be some buzz about this because I even saw, on the cable news channel, the sports reporters discussing this


Don't know the show, but my son had a hedgehog named Prickles for a number of years. She was really cute! In the summer, we let her out in the yard (supervised, of course) and let her catch her own bugs. She LOVED it!!!

Here are a couple of pictures of her. The first is in the HUGE "tunnel" system he made for her out of PVC and sweater boxes, (like a giant "Habitrail" for hamsters) and the second is her enjoying the garden.


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## andra (Aug 23, 2010)

Hedgehogs have very poor eyesight so if they smell food or even flowery smells on your fingers, they will nip/bite. But typically, they use their quills as defense and dont really bite.

Hedgehogs love to be outside in the grass but you have to supervise because of dangers, including escape attempts and hawks. And they love to stick their heads in tubes. There are a lot of cute videos of hedgehogs 'tubing' on youtube. 

The puppy bowl is a cute show that features puppies (obviously) of various breeds playing around with toys in a room that has a floor that is marked just like a football field. There is an announcer that calls the action kindof like a football game.


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## sandypaws (Aug 8, 2012)

Wow, how cute are those little guys!


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## StarrLhasa (Jun 6, 2010)

We have tuned into the Puppy Bowl for a few minutes of puppies frolicking. They are very sweet.

What comes readily to mind when I think about the Puppy Bowl is the pups drinking from the water bowl which has a glass or plexi-glass bottom with a camera underneath it facing upwards at the puppies faces and tongues.


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## emichel (May 3, 2012)

These hedgehogs look fake, they look just like my puppy's stuffed hedgehog! Ha ha, OK maybe it's that the stuffed hedgehog looks real. Since I've never seen a real one, I wouldn't know the difference. ound: I am totally going to watch the Puppy Bowl this year, same as last year. I think it's lot's more fun than football. :jaw:
-- Eileen


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

emichel said:


> These hedgehogs look fake, they look just like my puppy's stuffed hedgehog! Ha ha, OK maybe it's that the stuffed hedgehog looks real. Since I've never seen a real one, I wouldn't know the difference. ound: I am totally going to watch the Puppy Bowl this year, same as last year. I think it's lot's more fun than football. :jaw:
> -- Eileen


Nope! They're totally live, and yes! They do look like wind-up toys!:biggrin1:

These are actually the African Pygmy Hedgehogs and have been bred long enough in captivity that they are like hamsters, and come in all sorts of different colors.

The European ones are larger, have longer noses and darker fur. (not quite so wind-up-toy looking!) I don't know if they can be tamed as pets, but a lot of people feed them in their gardens at night.


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## andra (Aug 23, 2010)

Krandall is correct--they are domesticated African Pygmy hedgehogs. The photo I posted is of Mr. Pickles (rest in peace my little snifferoo); his coloring is called Algerian Chocolate with a face mask. They are adorable, endearing little creatures. They have very specialized needs and can live up to around 5 years so it is a commitment. I am lucky to have an exotic vet practice very close to me that only sees exotic pets. Even so, when I bring in one of my hedgies (and Spikey has chronic health issues and has daily medication), it creates a buzz in the office


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## sandypaws (Aug 8, 2012)

Interesting, Karen, that you mentioned African Pygmy as when we lived up there, we had African Pygmy goats, three of them. The kids were in 4H and the oldest one and myself fell in love with them when we saw them and so we got 2, one for each of us, then added another for me. Bud built a small barn in the wooded area of our backyard. It was neat!
Sorry to go off subject, but the African Pygmy thing brought back memories.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

andra said:


> Krandall is correct--they are domesticated African Pygmy hedgehogs. The photo I posted is of Mr. Pickles (rest in peace my little snifferoo); his coloring is called Algerian Chocolate with a face mask. They are adorable, endearing little creatures. They have very specialized needs and can live up to around 5 years so it is a commitment. I am lucky to have an exotic vet practice very close to me that only sees exotic pets. Even so, when I bring in one of my hedgies (and Spikey has chronic health issues and has daily medication), it creates a buzz in the office


We have an exotics vet near us too. I guess a lot of people don't spend much time socializing their hedgies, so it's hard to treat or even examine them. They were always delighted when we brought Prickles in, because she was so willing to visit with everyone. (anyone with a piece of apple was automatically on the "friend" list!)


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## andra (Aug 23, 2010)

Spikey is so tame and loveable because he was my first and I got him 'as a puppy' so to speak and I really socialized him. And now with daily medications twice a day plus in the past I had to do 10 days of IM fluids (which was quite a traumatizing ordeal for me) injected into his back, he is quite harmless now. I board him at the vets due to the medication issue when I travel and he is always a hit with the staff  He loves to be in his blankie on a lap and he will do the 'hedgie splat' which is when they spread out, arms extended.

Mr. Pickles was a re-home; his original owner was deployed and returned to the breeder. He was related to Spikey and the breeder asked if I would take him and I said yes. He was more of an adventurous hedgie--loved to climb all over and never really would just snuggle like Spikey. He was sometimes a little grumpy and also loved to get up mid afternoon for his snack. He was prone to overeating. Spikey regulated his appetite and would not eat more than he needed even when I tried to fatten him up a bit.

They are fascinating little creatures


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

sandypaws said:


> Interesting, Karen, that you mentioned African Pygmy as when we lived up there, we had African Pygmy goats, three of them. The kids were in 4H and the oldest one and myself fell in love with them when we saw them and so we got 2, one for each of us, then added another for me. Bud built a small barn in the wooded area of our backyard. It was neat!
> Sorry to go off subject, but the African Pygmy thing brought back memories.


Pygmy goats are cute too! I've just always been wary of goats because they tend to be such escape artists!!!:biggrin1:


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

andra said:


> Spikey is so tame and loveable because he was my first and I got him 'as a puppy' so to speak and I really socialized him. And now with daily medications twice a day plus in the past I had to do 10 days of IM fluids (which was quite a traumatizing ordeal for me) injected into his back, he is quite harmless now. I board him at the vets due to the medication issue when I travel and he is always a hit with the staff  He loves to be in his blankie on a lap and he will do the 'hedgie splat' which is when they spread out, arms extended.
> 
> Mr. Pickles was a re-home; his original owner was deployed and returned to the breeder. He was related to Spikey and the breeder asked if I would take him and I said yes. He was more of an adventurous hedgie--loved to climb all over and never really would just snuggle like Spikey. He was sometimes a little grumpy and also loved to get up mid afternoon for his snack. He was prone to overeating. Spikey regulated his appetite and would not eat more than he needed even when I tried to fatten him up a bit.
> 
> They are fascinating little creatures


We got Prickles as a baby too... she was SO cute and tiny when we brought her home! We made a bunch of Vellux sleeping bags for her, and she LOVED to curl up in them. She was very sweet and friendly if she was awake, but could be grumpy if you woke her up. Then she'd hiss at you, and if that didn't work, she'd do that prickly "pop" thing they do. If you really NEEDED to waker her up, and you scooped your hand under her, she'd uncurl, and as long as there was food involved, all was forgiven.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

There are so cute. I think my sister has one!


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## Pixiesmom (Jul 31, 2008)

Wow, what a timely thread. My daughter has been asking for one for months, and I've tabled the subject for now. There are two or three breeders within a 60 mile radius of me. So maybe I'll be calling one soon(ish).


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## Pixiesmom (Jul 31, 2008)

Oh, she's a preteen-the issue was will *I *get stuck cleaning the enclosure and feeding, etc..
My poor husband is still the ONLY one who is feeding and cleaning the tank for her little african frogs from a few years back!


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