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Deciding to breed your hedgehog can be a prickly situation. By nature the African pygmy hedgehog is of a solitary nature. Very territorial, there can never be a cage large enough to hold more than one at a time.
In the wild, they “own” an area around their burrow that can have a radius of up to 350 yards. Even hedgehogs of opposite sexes do not share quarters or territory willingly and forced sharing will result in injured animals. Coming together only to breed, they will wish for separation within 24 to 48 hours after the actual copulation.
The African pygmy hedgehog is sexually mature by one year of age. Males and females can be easily distinguished from each other due to the well-defined penis of the male.
When choosing to breed, be sure of the stock you plan to use. If the hedgehogs you own have no previous breeding history, try to obtain information as to THEIR parents.
Make sure the stock you have come from mothers (dams) that have healthy litters, good temperaments and conformation. Males should have a strong, healthy sex drive and be persistent in courting the female.
Once you have decided you have the best stock possible to breed, you will want to keep them separated until you are ready and able to keep a watch upon them to reduce the risk of fighting and injuries.
Use the female’s cage as a love nest but be sure to remove all pans and “house” areas in which she could hide in or behind. Have the cage in a quiet environment to reduce the chances of loud noises or voices upsetting the courtship.
Quietly and without any fanfare, slide the male into the cage and be prepared to watch a unique type of courtship. The female will play hard to get while the male circles her and makes a variety of sounds in his attempt to seduce her. He will snort, twitter and squeak while gently nudging her, as is his way of caressing her. The female hedgehog on the other hand will puff up with all her spines standing straight up. She will jump and hiss while her body actually will vibrate. This is where you need a male with a good, strong libido.
Most females can be won over but it will take persistence, stubbornness and a true need from the male. If he gives up too easily you will know to look elsewhere for a male for future breeding attempts.
Once the female has decided to give in, she will lay her spines as flat as possible and the male will mount her carefully from the rear. It is recommended that you leave the hedgehogs together for no longer than 48 hours at a time. If you are not sure of an actual mating, you can wait a couple of days and attempt putting them back together again.
Each time you put the animals together it is vital that you mark the date down on a calendar. Normal gestational periods for African pygmy hedgehogs are 30 to 40 days. If by some chance you put a male in with a female during her birth time, it wouldn’t be at all uncommon for the male and female to eat the babies. If this occurs, it isn’t a fault of either hedgehog but the result of their instincts.
Once you have bred the female, you can start examining her on a regular basis to check for pregnancy. If pregnant, you will feel the change in her abdomen plus her nipples will change to where you will see the two distinct rows of breasts. They will also increase in size.
To enhance the chances of a healthy litter, you will need to prepare the female for the upcoming birth. She will want a nest to have her babies in so provide a home for her. This needs to be a small, enclosed area made of wood or plastic. It will need to be dry, draft free and darkened. You will also want to keep the environment surrounding the hedgehog quiet and semi-warm. A constant 70 to 75 degrees is ideal. If this isn’t possible, place a heating pad under the cage. Never place the pad in with the animal as they can chew the cords and suffer electrical shorts or become burned by the pad itself.
As the estimated time of birth arrives, restrict your handling of the mother.
If you hear the squeaks from newborn babies, resist the urge to count and examine them. Mothers will often reject babies that have been handled by humans. Try not to disturb her any more than necessary so change the food and water quietly.
When the baby hedgehogs are three weeks old you will be able to see them venturing out of their “den” and examining the world around them. Don’t be surprised when the newborns don’t look exactly like their parents.
Born blind and with only a few soft, white spines they will take 30 to 35 days for their permanent spines to appear. The eyes will open sometime between 10 and 18 days and the mother may continue to nurse her young up to two months.
Young hedgehogs need to remain with their mother until they are eating solid food as their only nourishment. Once they have been weaned, the mother will again become territorial and begin to try and run her babies away. This is normal behavior and not a sign of a poor mother.
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