Ainsley Willow Hedgehogs and More

11/08/2024

All hedgehogs spoken for!

11/08/2024

Don’t forget about the Shepherdsville KY Reptile and Exotics Show today! Just a reminder: There are mostly excellent vendors here. If animals look too young to be sold, it’s because they are. If the display cages are filthy, can you imagine how they live outside of the public eye? If they are skinny, hunched over and breathing heavily, they are extremely ill. I got excited because one of the breeders here had some mice in a color I need, but upon closer inspection, most of the mice were struggling. Buying from these breeders isn’t rescuing. You’re supporting a byb and causing them to continue to breed. If you don’t want to buy from me, that’s fine. Just don’t support a horrible breeder and remember you get what you pay for!

07/08/2024

UPDATES

HEDGEHOGS
I still have two adults and one baby. All females. The two adults will be at the Shepherdsville expo this upcoming Sunday.

HAMSTERS
Josette didn’t take, so she was re-paired with Elijah. Still trying to get Talla to breed.

HOLLAND LOPS
All four of Astra’s babies have survived. They will be going up on the website in a couple weeks. Looks like two bucks and two does.

MICE
Still have several mice. They will also be at the expo in Shepherdsville this weekend.

04/07/2024

01/06/2024

We were challenged by our friend Jessica Thomas from Thomas Homestead and Rabbitry (which for some reason it won’t let me tag) to show our . Buckley was our first buck. Bruce is our current buck.

31/05/2024

This post is meant as a teachable moment and not to bash this hedgehog parent who truly thought she was doing right by listening to the vet when she said kitten food alone would make her hedgehog fat. She has given me permission to share.

He is about 10 months old if I’m remembering correctly and weighs 239 grams. My babies at 6 weeks of age should weigh over 170 grams in order to be able to go home. Most of them are way over that amount. For instance, I have one that is 6 weeks old tomorrow and weighs 217 grams. So 239 grams for a 10 month old is way too skinny.

Why is he so skinny? The vet recommended that she mix Mazuri Hedgehog food in with the kitten food to keep him from being overweight. Mazuri has aspen shavings AND powdered cellulose in it to make it more filling, but it doesn’t have any nutritional value because they’re literally eating wood. It also has fish meal in it. Hedgehogs cannot digest seafood, which means they aren’t able to break it down to benefit from any of its nutrients. They’re literally just pooping it out.

But they’re mixing it, so it should be fine right? Nope. He is filling up partially on the Mazuri and not eating as much of the kitten as he needs to be eating to maintain a healthy weight. It is kind of like if you eat a whole bunch of cardboard before you eat your actual healthy food. The cardboard makes you feel full so you don’t eat as much healthy food and you become malnourished.

Unfortunately none of the hedgehog foods are good for hedgehogs. Many are full of pea protein which is high in phosphorus. Phosphorus in high levels like that can leech the calcium from their bones, especially since they’re so small, and cause Metabolic Bone Disease. Many hedgehog foods have multiple sources of seafood. They get zero benefit from it.

If a hedgehog gets over 525 grams on kitten food, all you have to do is measure out two tbsp of food for them each day; however, most hedgehogs self regulate and should just be free fed.

28/05/2024

A HUGE thank you to the linemen/women who worked so hard to get our power back on so quickly. I don’t know if any are on here, but it was MUCH appreciated!

17/05/2024

Are you holding off on getting a hedgehog because you have vacation plans this summer? We can help! All hedgehog parents who have gotten a hedgehog from AWHH gets one free week of boarding every year! Each additional day is $10/day.

28/04/2024

Come out to the Shepherdsville Ky Reptile and Exotics Show today and see me! It goes until 4 pm.

28/04/2024

All these animals will be at the Shepherdsville Ky Reptile and Exotic Show tomorrow from 10-4. It’s at Paroquet Springs in Shepherdsville. Unfortunately the hedgehogs that are left will not weigh enough to go but they are still needing placement.

24/04/2024

SIGNS OF A SCAMMER PAGE
1. They use the same photos on every other scammer page

2. They are posting males as females and vice versa

3. They have reviews turned off or there are negative reviews stating they’re a scammer

4. They speak in broken English

5. They copy and paste a generic phrase and use it on every single pic

6. They are posting European Hedgehogs as African Pygmy Hedgehogs

7. The page is “hedgehogs for rehoming,” “hedgehogs for adoption,” “hedgehogs for sale” etc.

8. They won’t allow you to send the deposit as goods and services and demand friends and family only. This isn’t a hard and fast rule as some legitimate breeders require this, but it’s because they’re scamming the government and not paying taxes on their income. It is common for breeders to require a few dollars extra to cover the fee they’re charged if you do Goods and Services.

9. They state the hedgehogs can be delivered to anywhere but won’t tell you where they’re from or what “shipper” they’re using. If they give you a transporter name, also look into the transporter to see if they’re legit.

IF IN DOUBT, ASK ME. I am happy to take a look and see if they seem legit or help you find a hedgehog near you from a reputable source. The Hedgehog Welfare Society is also a legitimate source for adoptable hedgehogs.

There are now scammer AI generated websites so be careful there too.

23/03/2024

Don’t forget about the Easter Goody Boxes I have for sale. They’re $25 with FREE SHIPPING in the continental US.

Items can also be purchased a la carte. Colors can be customized. I have three different color rabbits and the other toys come in different colors as well.

18/03/2024

Easter Hedgehog Goody Boxes $25 FREE SHIPPING

(Items can also be purchased a la carte)

15/03/2024

Made it!

12/03/2024

So close to 1k followers on TikTok!

02/03/2024

I just don’t understand how he’s still here!

27/02/2024

St Patrick’s Day Goody Box $25 SHIPPING INCLUDED IN THE CONTINENTAL US
(Colors subject to change based on availability, but will still be St Patty’s Day colors theme)

27/02/2024

PLEASE READ

I love all of the questions and updates I receive from people who have bought babies from me. It makes me feel great knowing that they went to homes that cherish them as family members and to people who want to provide them with the best life possible.

I sometimes spend 8-10 or more hours a day responding to messages from everyone. I have in the past told people no matter what time of day it is, if they have questions, go ahead and send it and I’ll get back to them when I wake up if I’m not already awake. And that is still perfectly fine to do.

I have been having issues getting to sleep because I see a message, check it in case it’s urgent, the respond anyway because I’m worried I’ll forget to respond later.

So in the future, if you’re having an urgent situation, as in an actual emergency (hibernation attempt, heat set up issues for a hedgehog in your care, a hedgehog having difficulty breathing, etc) I need you to type “URGENT” at the top of your message so it’ll show in the message preview. I will glance at the preview and only respond if I see that and it’s an absolute emergency.

If it is not urgent, just type it as usual and I will respond after 10 am. I will stop responding to non urgent messages at 7:30 pm. I will also only respond to urgent messages while I’m at work. All others will be responded to when my shift ends or the next morning depending on the time.

As always, if it is an emergency that requires immediate medical care, please proceed to the nearest exotic vet/emergency vet. Don’t wait for me to respond.

Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this by commenting on this post.

27/01/2024

www.ainsleywillowhedgehogs.com

24/01/2024

This is why doing research is so important! Everything in this kit is unsafe for hedgehogs, except for maybe the pouch.

Cages should be SINGLE LEVEL with SOLID sides. You can use this cage, but you’re going to have to cover the bars from the inside to cover all sides of the cage but the top. This prevents climbing, escape, and helps hold in heat. You’ll never get a wire cage warm enough otherwise.

Hedgehog food is crap. It is full of fillers and things they cannot digest like wood shavings, seafood, and pea protein. Pea protein is high in phosphorus. It will leach the calcium out of their bones and can cause MBD. If you’re feeding proper diet, you will not need any kind of supplement powder. I highly recommend Science Diet Kitten food. In fact, all health guarantees are void if you feed anything else.

That wheel is incredibly dangerous. Hedgehogs like to hop on and off their wheels while they are running. If they do that with this wheel, they’ll get stuck trying to go through the holes and get slammed down. Also, this wheel is nearly impossible to clean, so all that urine and f***s is going to cause sores on their feet.

Those treats are unsafe for hedgehogs. Any dehydrated foods, especially if given on a regular basis, can cause f***l impaction. I will sometimes give dehydrated beef liver or chicken hearts as a treat, but only like once a week. Live bugs are more nutritious for them.

Also, where is the heat set up? The best way to kill a hedgehog is let it get too cold.

I have links to everything you need on my website. I don’t make any money if you purchase through the links, so when I tell you these are the best items for your hedgehog, understand I’m doing it with their best interests in mind. I’m not just slapping things together to make a quick buck, consequences be damned.

https://www.ainsleywillowhedgehogs.com/hedgehog-supplies-checklist.html

22/01/2024

Still have three spots left on the wait list for Stevia’s babies.
Will be ready the third week of February.

21/01/2024

We are now accepting Afterpay! It allows you to break the amount up into four payments due every two weeks. You can get your animal as soon as we receive the money from them. There will be a 9.5% one time fee added on (6% sales tax and the 3.5% that square charges.) PM for more info.

15/01/2024

January 15, 2021 💜🦔🥳

09/01/2024

If you’re on NextDoor, please go “favorite” my business page. If you’ve purchased from me, please leave a review! Thanks!

5 Faves for Ainsley Willow Hedgehogs & More from neighbors. I am the state’s only usda licensed breeder of pedigreed Hedgehogs, Syrian hamsters, Fancy Mice and Holland Lops. I have been breeding since 2021.