Housing
A variety of cages are suitable for the African Pygmy Hedgehogs. The ones we use are the indoor rabbit type cages. One that is frequently recommended is the large ZooZone type cage which are very good.
The cage should be secure and keep the hog from escaping and keep other creatures out (whether human or animal!) Often recommended is a glass aquarium, while these may be suitable for temporary housing they are often difficult to clean due to their weight and as there is little ventilation they tend to become smelly quickly. The cage should not have a wire floor as this is harsh on the hogs feet and can cause health problems.
The minimum size I would consider using is 30 inches x 18 inches in addition to this the hedgehogs should be given some time out of their cage for them to run about and bond with their owners. All the cages we use are 40 inches x 20 inches.
The cage should be easy to clean, the indoor rabbit cages we use have plastic bottoms so they are easily washed. The wire tops are also easily removed allowing easy access to the hog and the cage furnishings making cleaning simple.
Also in the cage should be a hide or shelter for the hog. These can be anything of appropriate size from a cardboard box to an ice cream carton with a hole cut in the side for access. Items such as these have the advantage that they can be thrown away and replaced it they become soiled. We provide bedding in the nest box in the form of shredded newspaper and mail, we use a household shredder and shred the newspaper (the best I have found for bills and junk mail). Some people have concerns over the ink in the newspaper, however I have never had any problems regarding this. This may be because hedgehogs don’t tend to chew their bedding up as many rodents do.
For cage flooring I use wood shavings which are absorbent and easily obtainable from pet stores. I prefer the coarse type of shaving to sawdust which is also available, these tend to be very dusty which goes everywhere when you clean out the cage, also I have reservations about what effect the dust has on the health of hedgehogs kept on sawdust.
Food and water dishes should be easy to clean a sturdy enough no to tip over, wide based ones or clay type ones are idea. We use water bottles of the type for rabbits and rodents as they keep the water fresher and it is easier to monitor how much water each hog is drinking, also my hogs tend to poo in their water dishes and need very frequent cleaning to keep them fresh. One thing to bear in mind if you use bottles is that some people only use dishes and if the hog has never used a water bottle it may not be aware of how to get water out of them, so it is important to monitor them for the first few days.