If you want to house two hedgehogs together, it has been our experience that it’s
extremely rare for two males to get along together. We experimented with this
several years ago when it was first suggested that hedgehogs might not be entirely
as solitary as early literature stated. The experiment was as disaster and we
abandoned it after one poor male was eviscerated by his roommate. It has been our
experience that many females enjoy, or at least tolerate, a roommate. This is not
always the case, so one should keep in mind that any time you have two hedgies,
you can’t guarantee they’ll get along. That said, it is a terrible idea to house a male
and a female together indefinitely. You might not see babies, but unless one is
infertile there is a strong chance that they will have them and eat them. You don’t
want to see what that looks like, believe me.
There is often a concern about scent marking with male critters. In a normal
household environment without females around, a lone male is unlikely to do much
scent marking. If he gets a whiff of other hedgies, especially female, you may see
some occurring- the judges table at a hedgehog show is a great example of that.
Overall, I have not found that one species is smellier than the other.
In conclusion, if you are just looking for a good pet, gender of the hedgehog should not
be your primary consideration. Look for a hedgie that is friendly and seems to like
you, and you and hedgie will be happy.
Note: If you aren't sure if hedgie is a boy or a girl, check the underbelly. If it
looks like it has a "belly button" then it's a male. Males have a large
urogenital gap, while females do not.
back to Basics page.