Vitamins and calcium

[Maja]

i wonder if you give your hedgehog vitamins and calcium and if anybody knows if the hedgehogs are able to take up vitamin D3 whit out UV-light? in the reptile world you need to have uv-light to the animal so they can take up D3 and be abel to take upp calcium but i havent heard for mor thatn one in England that uses UV-light to her hedgehogs. I wonder how you look at this in Finland.

[Kaisa]

Quite many use vitamin tablets that are ment for cats (Pirskatti is the name of the product) ocasionally. That contains many different vitamins and also calsium. <br> <br>Tablets are crushed to smaller portions, 1/5 part or les is enough for hedgehog. On one vets opinion it would be good to give one week that vitamin every day 3 - 4 times a year.

[Taina]

Eikös näille ulukommaan kielille ole juuri tuo Discussion forums? Vai olenko käsittänt viärin?

[Taina]

Modet, poistakaa tämä-kitoooos!

[Tuulia]

Personally I can't think of any use that comes from a UV-lamp. Hedgies are active at night and don't sunbathe anyway - at least tame hedgies. Wild ones might just be walking about at daytime once in a while, but at least my Albert doesn't move at all during the day. If I had a UV-lamp, it would be no use since Albert is sleeping under a fleece all day, and if I would leave the light on for the night he wouldn't move all night... <br> <br>I'm no vet so that's just my own speculation. I do feed Albert some vitamins occasionally, just to be safe, but I don't know for a fact what would be necessary.

[Maja]

yes i know but hove do they get calcium supply? i have asked our vet but haven't got any answers jet. whit reptiles they recommend UV even if it is a snake that is night living. This is my on thoughts about this and it is interesting for me anyway. I know that i can give them vitamiins and calcium but does thier bodys reserv them whitout UV. I think that in the wild even if they are night living they get in the eavning the dose of uv that thier bodys need. I have asked the same question from USA and England al al has the same answere as you al here.

[Maja]

<i>Eikös näille ulukommaan kielille ole juuri tuo Discussion forums? Vai olenko käsittänt viärin?</i> <br> <br> <br>there is some discussion forum in English but it is interesting to discuss between different countries that is a way to learn more.

[Tuulia]

Well, I really don't know, so I'm just as interested as you are. I know that some of the hedgie owners here have purchased hedgehog books that are quite scientific, could someone please look this up? I myself don't have any literature on the subject, not even some "hedgie as a pet"-thingys. There's some good book from Nigel Reeves and if I remember correctly, there should be some facts.

[Kaisa]

Nigel Reeve is the writer of the good book, propably it could be found also from Sweden. Unfortunatelly I don't remember the name of the book, as it has been almost every time been referred as "se Nigel Reeven kirja"

[Tuulia]

This is the book we've talking about: <br> <br><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/085661081X/026-7662265-8980447" target="_new" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/085661081X/026-7662265-898044 7</a>