Aw Finn!! Tenrec faces literally look like a fake stuffed animal or something haha!! This was really interesting to watch since for the longest time I thought tenrecs were related to hedgehogs haha!!
I didn't think that tenrecs were as cute as hedgehogs but oh my gosh I think he is just about the cutest thing I have seen in a long time. Keep up the great work!
Can we just take a moment to appreciate the adorable shirt you are wearing? Love it:) this was so informative and it was so nice to learn the differences !! Xoxo luv u!
You are SO knowledgeable. This was really enjoyable to listen to and learn from. Thank you so much for how much time and effort you clearly put into these videos and for caring for your pets ❤️
Aw, I work with both. I do love the tenrecs the most, although I have received a full tenrec chomp, and those teeth are no joke. We did have a very outgoing hedgehog, but our current one is much more shy, although she's young and she might come out of her shell more as she gets older. Tenrecs are fascinating; I wish I could go to Madagascar and look for them in the wild.
Hi! I'm getting my first ever pygmy hedgehog in 3 weeks and your videos have been super helpful in preparing me for her arrival. I kinda have something that I can not find the answer to on the internet though. My hedgehog will ofcourse be kept in a properly heated cage, but the rest of my house is generally colder than the recommended hedgehog temperature, about 17-20 degrees Celcius I'd say depending on the room. Can I take my hedgehog out of her heated cage to give her a bath and a short cuddling session with this temperature or do I need to preheat the room before I do this? Like how quickly do they respond to a colder temperature? I can't find anything on this and I don't want to do anything wrong or risk her getting sick.
Nadia with my hedgehog, she's fine with coming out of her warm cage for snuggles! If she's in a warm bath, against your chest, or in a snuggle sack, it'll be quite a bit warmer than just the room in general!
The risk more than getting sick is that they enter in a hibernation mode and it's hard for pets hedgehogs to survive hibernation. I know is quick but I don't know how quick either, of course you can take them out and cuddle for 5 minutes without problem, even better if you cover it in a warm blanket. Personally I don't like to have them out more than 1 hour even with a heat source if the room is cold, so you can cuddle in bed and play keeping him warm with something and let him walk alone for less than 2 minutes (I'm very afraid of it so I never risk more than 3-4 minutes, but maybe they can be in lower temperature for more, idk)
Hello from Czech Republic! I'm glad we could help with the sex identification. :D Btw thank you so much for your info about hogs, I'm getting one next week and I can not wait! :)
man when i got my hedgie everyone, even the breeder i got him from, kept saying "they're clean animals man, they choose a corner and do their business there, no probs" L I E S
Can you please tell me about Tenrec or Finn cage set up compare to Hedgehog's cage? What kind of requirements for Tenrec ( minimum space...etc)? Thx so much
Surprisingly, my hedgehog is pretty clean. She has two bins attached with a PVC pipe. The smaller cage has her wheel and she ONLY goes to the bathroom in that cage and one her wheel.
Hi, Thank you for this video :) I would like to get a tenny, I've read that although they clean themselves with sandbaths, you CAN give them a gentle warm bath with a little olive oil or coconut oil, to help with dry skin. What are your thoughts on that? have you tried it? also, are they less noisy then hedgies at night? thank you :)
+bubble bubbly In theory you can give them baths, but it should really only be if _completely_ necessary, and I’d avoid it if possible. Even with adding moisturizing elements like oils, water tends to suck moisture from a tenrecs skin and can cause serious bouts of dry skin. Realistically speaking though, tenrecs are very clean animals and most never need the water anyway :)
New follower. Not 100% sure if I'm getting a hedgehog yet, but can hedgehogs live in glass tanks or does it need to be a cage like a rabbit cage? (I currently have a bearded dragon and understand glass tanks retain heat better)
Thought this was a really interesting video. I never really was interested in tenrecs, but have seen a few friends with them and think they are gorgeous. Finn is so cute 😍. Xx
So I’m planning on moving to college next year and I wanted to have a pet to come with me and bring me company. Do you think a hedgehog is a good pet for that? Or are they to much to handle in a college environment?
Hi :) yesterday our male tenny actually bit me, which came as a bit of a shock/surprice.. don't know what I did wrong but he is completely new to us, and also going into torpor. Do you have any tips on how often I should handle him right now...? Should I just let him sleep 24/7? Or somehow make him used to us/our scent, pick him up and let him sleep on my lap or is it too early for that..? I tried to google how to calm them or bond with them but didnt find much info at all. He was tame with his former owner. I would so love for him to be as tame as Finn, but he hardly comes out of his hide at all (tried with food, he just sticks his nose through the window of his house and grabs the treat, then goes back to sleep or starts to hiss really badly). He is a little over 1 year old so it shouldn't be "too late" to bond with him, I hope! Thank you sooo much for taking the time to reply, we really appreciate it, specially since we didn't see this bonding-issue coming! Your videos really are helpful :) :)
..just wanted to add that we specifically asked if he is tame and also held him before we bought him. I watched your hedgie-bonding video and take comfort from the fact that blaise took a year to bond with :) Does tenrecs generally LIKE being held/pet? I ask because I read in a blog that they are more like an animal that you just watch, not interact with (I dont believe that though, but it scared me a little specially since I thought we would bond quickly and that didnt happen).
bubble bubbly I know hedgehogs and these according to the video are very different but yes letting him sleep in your lap should help, while he's laying in your lap feed him whatever type of treats he can eat, get him out of his cage for at least 30 minutes a day, I let my hedgehog sleep beside me while I'm on my phone or doing homework so that he's around my scent and associates my scent with safety and comfort. I hope this helps! Just hold him, and be patient and he will begin to thrive!!
KJade 14 Thank you so much for responding! :) we've had him for two weeks now and he sleeps a LOT. I sometimes pick up his snugglesack and just let him continue to sleep in it, but on my lap..sometimes he doesn't wanna wake up and sometimes he does- and then he is usually so quick I hardly catch up with him! he hasn't got used to be still even for a minute in our hands. (The courage of that little dude though! he slides down the backside of his huge cage like a stuntman lol ) After that biting incident I'm a little hesitant to hold him, or to try to make him "stay" in my hands for a couple of minutes...I don't know if it might be because he is in torpor and perhaps not superhappy that I disturb him? maybe he will be more cuddly when the torpor is over.I hope so. I will continue with patience though:) thank you very much for your advice:)
bubble bubbly of course!!! Keep up the good work! My hedgehog loves to sleep too lol, and he is NEVER still either, this one time he laid in my hand and fell asleep for like ten minutes and I got so excited but he never did it again. I have an Instagram account for him @lifeofoakley._ and if you need anymore advice or help on anything I can definitely help out and I'm always on my phone so I won't take long to respond. I'm really glad I could help! Also don't be scared, I know it hurts, my hedgehog always mistakes my pinky for a snack and he bit me last night and it STILL hurts 😂 but it helps to handle them in your hands so they can smell you and just be sure not to make any sudden movements while holding him. Your tenny seems to have a very adventurous personality and that's adorable!! Hope I can help with anymore questions you have and good luck!
How does a Tenrec feel vs a hedgehog? I mean they both have quills the hedgehogs quills are longer than those of a tenrec, butmaybe they feel different as well?
If you keep your home 75°-76° F all the time, can you get away with not having a heat source in their enclosure? Sorry for hedgie question in your tenrec video which I found absolutely interesting! I never knew about these! I haven't seen your videos on rats yet! You have rats, correct?
They’re not directly related, just more closely related to than hedgehogs. Here’s a quote from an article that may help expand on this: “Tenrecs are probably most closely related to golden moles (CHRYSOCHLORIDAE). Along with golden moles, scientists now consider tenrecs part of the Afrotheria, a grouping of African mammals with evolutionary connections that also contains the aardvark, sengis (or elephant-shrews), hyraxes, elephants, and sea cows.”
