Meet Nugget an African Pygmy Hedgehog

I have been having a few issues with my ear lately. I am not sure why, but it seems to be very sensitive and as a result I have been starting to walk around with my head tilted.

When mommy came home from work, she noticed me walking with my head tilted to the left and immediately knew something was wrong. I am normally a very active critter specially at night (seeing that I am a nocturnal animal) but today I just felt off.

Pygmy Hedgehog

Mommy knew this wasn’t normal and immediately took me to the vet. Mommy placed me in my travel cage and we set off to the vet. I know I’m small, but wow. The veterinary practice seemed really big. A small critter like me could get lost in a place like this.

After reporting to reception, a vet came to show us to her consult. She chatted to mommy before gently examining me. The vet prescribed some medication and some parasite control. She explained to mommy if I did not improve mommy would need to bring me in to see the Avian & Exotic Veterinarian Dr Dorianne.

Shortly after, I was back at home with mommy going about my normal activities. In the days that followed I had very little relief from my ear so off we went to go see Dr Dorianne.

We arrived at the clinic and had a seat in the waiting area. A friendly lady came and introduced herself as Dr Dorianne the Avian and Exotic Veterinarian. She took us through to her consult and discussed my health with mommy. Mommy explained that the treatment did not make a significant difference and that mommy was concerned that something might be stuck inside my small ear.

Dr Dorianne explained to mommy that she would like to keep me in hospital in order to properly examine my ear. Mommy said her goodbyes and I got taken to the back where the hospital is.

Dr Dorianne chatted to the anaesthetist and they planned my anaesthetic. Due to my size I would be getting gas anaesthetic. You might wonder why? Well, normally anaesthetic is administered via an IV Catheter (which is a device used to draw blood and give intravenous treatments) but with exotic pets such as myself our veins are so small that it is very difficult to catheterize us. However, restraining and handling us in order to insert the IV Catheter places tremendous stress on us. Exotics also have faster metabolisms which affects the efficacy of injectable anaesthetics, for these reasons anaesthetic gas is a better option.

The anaesthetist explained to me I would be feeling a bit sleepy and before I knew it, I was off to dreamland exploring far away places. When I woke up, I felt a little groggy. Dr Dorianne looked at me and asked me how I was doing? I tried to put on my best smile while saying I was doing fine.

Dr then explained to me that while I was asleep, they used a camera to look into my tiny ear. Dr could not find a foreign body in my ear. My ear did however seem to have an infection and Dr then proceeded to flush (cleaned out) my ear. Dr said I would be happy to hear that I could be discharged.

When mommy came to fetch me, Dr Dorianne explained the medication to her and we were all set to go home. I am so relieved that mommy was able to get me to a specialist and that my ear got treated.

Scroll to Top