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Hedgehog Senses
You know how your senses act. You know when you smell something good, or something unpleasant. You know when you see something pleasing to the eye, and you have color preferences. You are aware of what foods taste good to you and what foods taste bad. You know normal sounds and scary sounds. But, when it comes to senses, what is your hedgehog’s sense like?
Let’s first cover taste, since this is important to all hedgehog owners when they are deciding what to feed their hedgehogs. Hedgehogs do indeed have taste buds. Are there foods that he won’t eat? Hedgehogs will actually eat just about anything, and it is more a question of what is good for him than a question of what he does or does not like. Hedgehogs haven’t been domesticated for so long that they have become picky eaters, as humans have.
Hedgehogs have very poor eyesight, and there is no remedy for this. In fact, he uses his eyes, but relies on other senses to the degree that he doesn’t use it much. If your hedgehog went blind today it wouldn’t matter much to him, because he really doesn’t depend on his bad eyes. It is believed that in good light, your hedgehog may be able to make out shapes and to note landmarks, but their field of vision is so limited that it really doesn’t matter much…he will use his other sense to find his way around.
Your hedgehogs’ hearing is excellent, and very different from yours. A hedgehog can hear things that you absolutely could not hear, such as an insect crawling across the floor. In fact, an insect walking across the floor is probably rather loud to your hedgehog. Your hedgehog depends a great deal on his hearing for his protection and survival.
Your hedgehog’s strongest sense, however, is his sense of smell. He depends on his sense of smell for just about everything. He uses it to find his food and water. He uses sense of smell to distinguish who is holding him, and whether or not there are strangers about. He uses his sense of smell to find his way around. You may have noticed that your hedgehog sniffs the ground as he moves about…this is how he figures out where he needs to go, and avoids bumping into things.
These senses are what make hedgehogs so interesting. It is fun to watch a hedgehog use his senses. When he nibbles, he tastes something to see what it is…not necessarily to eat it. When he sniffs along his route, he is finding his way. When he stops and gets very still, he is listening, because he hears something that you cannot hear.
When he rolls up into a ball, or dives into his hiding place, it’s because his senses have told him that something isn’t as it usually is, and he is waiting to see if danger is lurking nearby. Yes, your hedgehog may not be able to see very well, but his other senses more than make up for it, and they are very important to his way of life, as a whole.
Hedgehogs, Hedgehogs information, Hedgehog tips, Hedgehog pets, Hedgehog advice
Next Article: Connecting With Other Hedgehog Owners
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