Muchan: Any idea how old the hedgie is? if shes over the 6 month mark chances are she may indeed prove to already have irreversible damage done to her health by the poor quality of her diet.
If you or your brother are prepared and confident you can care for a hedgie with health complications that may need alot of extra time, effort, medical attention and heartache...well in that case by all means do your best
But if you just want a simple pet-owner relationship why dont you just wait till one of the LYN breeders has some nice new healthy babies?

Could it be WHS? either way,poor thing : (

the hedgie just around 2 months++ and they dun really fed them whiskas as we feed ours. I mean usually they fed them woms n sometimes fruit.. whiskas only a bit as snack... to be honest.. i just found out bout this but most of the hedgies are still good n healthy... so I think I can still treat the hedgie back use our way.. haha

Cimredopyh : I planned to wait... but my bro is not here... he's at my hometown.. and he's been asking me to buy back one for him.. but I'm not sure how to bring back.. so this time I go n search for some breeder here.... and I found out that the way they treat their hedgies is totally diff from us.. as I know they gave them rice n bread to eat also.. and now they still looks healthy... -.-

Guys, so basicly, hamster food is cat's food? Want to get a hedgie for my birthday tho. *July oh God*

Hi abang brother, I dont really get what you mean by hamster food is cat's food but ill try to clarify a little on hedgehog diets.

Hamsters and hedgehogs are pretty different diet wise
Hedgehogs belong to a group of mammals called insectivora, people often mistake them for rodents but they are not
Hamsters are rodents

Hedgehogs need a high quality cat food as a staple food with below 15% fat and approx 30% protein. Too much fat or too much protein and they will develop kidney stones and/or fatty liver disease.

they should not be fed nuts, seeds, or any types of grains as they don't really have any important nutrition benefits for the hedgehog, plus they have a tendency to choke on them

They can be fed some types of fruit and veggies as a treat but all seeds must be removed as they are toxic to the hedgehogs.
The best treats for them ( in fact this is a necessary supplement to their diet ) are insects, mealworms and crickets that you can purchase from most pet stores.

Hedgehogs can also be fed plain cooked meats and fish and even eggs as a treat, NO seasoning, just boil or steam in plain water

This post has been edited by Cimredopyh: Feb 15 2008, 06:51 PM

i think you meant 'so basically hedgehog food is cat's food'...

Ohhh haha!
Your right i think thats what he meant, i couldnt figure it out

Ohhhhh i see, your not buying them in Malaysia. At two months it shooouuuuld be ok, as at that age they have not been eating solid food for very long. Btw did you get to see their mum?
Rice and bread is nowhere near a suitable staple diet either...........

Edit: Sorry im a little slow today

This post has been edited by Cimredopyh: Feb 15 2008, 06:52 PM

Eh eh i write about hamster?
LOLLOLOLO!!!!!!!!!

Thanks dude. Can i give them Science Plan?

Thanks for correcting me. xD

Science Plan used to be a really good cat food but i heard some time ago that they switched their ingredients and the quality of their ingredients has become pretty mediocre ( i have 2 cats )

Ive noticed that LYN people push Innova Evo (50% protein 22.2% fat), Orijen (45%protein 20% fat) and Arcana as the best you can feed Hedgies but unfortunately these are all much too high in protein which will eventually lead to kidney stones. Now these brands are really high quality and some of he best stuff you can feed your cat/dog.......but not your hedgehog
I should add that Acana Light that comes in a pale grey beige packet is ok but not the regular variety

The 'best' cat food suitable for hedgies that we have available locally is actually Solid Gold Katz N Flocken, however its not stocked in small packs and not that easy to find ( I get it from pet safari, mix it with RC indoor 27 and RC babycat which i will eventually phase out when hes 6 months old)

Heres a recently updated list that you can bring shopping with you
http://hedgehogcentral.com/forum/index.php...e=post&id=20628
please note that it lists specific variety's that are suitable not brands. For example just because RC is there that does not mean every variety of RC is suitable

I know a brand called Solid Gold, but not sure if it's the same one. I feed my dogs California Natural's herring and sweet potato, but the kibbles need to be crushed a little because it's too big.

I don't think Science Diet's a good brand. Apparently their puppy and kitten food is still ok because it's for growing bodies, they can't afford to slack the ingredients. But the adult and senior they do, apparently.

This post has been edited by Reanne: Feb 16 2008, 12:35 AM

Yup Solid Gold is the brand
cat variety is called Katz N Flocken, its a lamb meat based all stages cat food
They have a wider selection for dogs

Actually the list i linked only includes dry cat foods, Its true what you say about dog kibbles, they will need to be crushed
California Natural has herring and sweet potato for both cats and dogs, im guessing the cat variety is probably smaller

This post has been edited by Cimredopyh: Feb 16 2008, 12:43 AM

There's only one place I know of that sells these 2 brands, I'm not sure whether they carry Solid Gold for cats, but they don't carry California Natural for cats anymore. My cat used to be on that, it's much smaller, in triangular shapes like Orijen and Acana. I'm not sure if they even get Herring and sweet potato here for cats, my cat was on the chicken and rice version.

I'm sure they carry both brands for dogs. I will check if they carry Solid Gold for cats tmrw.

For those who stay at Penang, Toby Pet do carries Solid Gold, i suppose they still selling now.

This post has been edited by White Palace: Feb 16 2008, 01:00 AM

Another thing about dog food is that the protein content tends to be lower than the cat food equivalent, also, the kibble itself is often not only larger but often harder

I just checked out the california natural sweet potato dog & cat nutrient analysis and the cat one is at 30% protein which is pretty much a perfect % for hedgies
dog version is at 21% protein which is a little on the low side

I notice many stores reducing their variety and stock of cat foods in the last couple years...so sad

Edit: White Palace just wondering do you sell the light variety of Acana for cats?

This post has been edited by Cimredopyh: Feb 16 2008, 01:58 AM

Cimredopyh : Thanks for ur explanation.... since I din really look into pet shops here... I had listed down foods that u all mention above.. hope they sell it here too... haha

anyway... i can mix the food rite? I mean, can I mix RC baby cat with acana light? or anything that good for hedgie.. just asking.. ^.^

I checked already, they do sell Solid Gold for cats, but no stock at the moment.

Good to know! Btw which store is this?

Yup you can mix, in fact its better to mix but keep it consistent of course. Dont keep changing the mix
Firstly they get a more complete diet when you mix 2 or more brands
Secondly in case one of your usual brands is out of stock/unavailable at least there are still other types he is used to that you can continue to feed him.
If you only use one type and suddenly no stock/unavailable....mhmm

PetsPeople in Plaza Damas. Very nice ppl, I've been buying my cat and dog food from them since 2006. It's a pet boutique, so not really selling pets, mostly food and accessories.

But I dont think they get a lot of customers, so sometimes when ppl don't buy they have to push the stock back or not stock it anymore. If more ppl buy the solid gold and california natural for cats, it may stay in stock and will stay available to us. I can ask them to bring in some light versions of kibble, but the problem is that if only one person wants, no point bringing in stock because most will remain unsold or sell too slow.

Too bad Kuching only have IAMS and Science Plan. Doesn't have any other choice.

It is much better to mix a few brands of dog or catfood.

Try not to use only 1 brand as each type of food contains something extra or less, so if you mix 2 to 3 brands, it is better.

Once I gave only RC, sure finish but RC does give kidney stones to cats, well, that's an info from my friend... so I switched to Orijen, which my hedgehogs don't eat much.

Now I mix RC Fit 32, with Back to Basics dogfood, Back to Basics Cat food, Orijen cat food and I included a sample pack of Eagle Pack for small dogs.... this mix has increased all my hedgies food intake a bit.

I'm not saying you guys should follow the brands I use. These brands are easily available for me and it's sharing with my dogs. It is just to say it is good to include a few brands that you can find easily, mix it together. Then you do not need to worry about picky eating.

Oh. Thanks for the explaination.

Btw, do you guys buy the big pack like 5kg or something or the small pack to feed your hedgies?