Here comes the General

It’s been two weeks since my anxious little Professor went missing.

No signs. No sounds. No responses.

I’d been looking at hedgies online and kept coming back to two little awkward dorks in a shop in Meguro, Tokyo.

I ordered a better cage (not handmade by me from 100¥ shop items…although I’m still proud of that cage) from a person who custom makes cages in Japan (found them via Mercari/yahoo auction) and it should ship soon.

I did some extra escape-proofing of the existing cage.

Yesterday, after teaching my three Saturday dance lessons, I packed my hedgehog carrier and set off to Kojima pets in Meguro two meet the two dorks I’d been looking at. I just couldn’t stop thinking about them.

I made a beeline for their cage and flagged a staff member over. She was concerned that I’d find it painful to pick one up…but I told her I’d had one as a pet before.

I have craft hands. No needle mouse is going to penetrate these calluses.

The two girls shared a cage. I picked up the larger of the two (3 months old, the second pictured above) and she wasn’t having it. She just stayed in a ball. I picked up the second (2 months old) and in a few moments she uncurled to sniff at me, curious.

Hellooooo, General Jinjur.

I perform under the dance name of Ozma. My last hedgehog was Professor, after Professor Wogglebug. Pulling another name from Oz cannon made sense for my cinnamon tension mouse.

I filled out the paperwork and bought pet insurance.

Last time I got my hedgehog from a hedgehog cafe. More expensive and no insurance options…and probably more traumatized. This time I’ll have online resources to vets, LINE access to vets and 50% of bills covered.

Jinjur came home with me. She tiny but she unleashed quite the fear poop in her carry case.

If you think hedgehogs have tiny little rabbity poops….you’d be so wrong. They sorta poop like dogs. It’s a bit astounding. It’s a sizable passing.

Every once in a while someone on a hedgehog FB page posts a mid-poop shot. I wish they wouldn’t.

General Jinjur is already more personable than the Professor was at this stage.

There are two thoughts on how to handle your tension-mouse in the first week.

-leave them alone but have a shirt that smells like you in the enclosure

-have that shirt in there but handle them

a few times each day so they start bonding with you ASAP.

With the Professor I followed the first route…but because he hid and wouldn’t emerge if he heard or smelled me or lights were on it was easy. I often wondered if he was alive that first week. I’d lay in the dark listening.

I’m trying the second way with Jinjur. She was fine with the lights being on. She let me watch her eat. She would pause on her wheel if she smelled me…but would return to running once she felt safe.

Tonight I’m bringing home some pool-noodles from the 100¥ shop.

Her new cage will mean moving the bookcase a little ways from the wall. I’ll be shoving pool noodles in the gap to protect it from becoming a hiding space…just like I do the other heavy items such as the fridge and the washing machine (both of which I moved several times in the Professor search. A tube in my washer also broke last week…flooding the kitchen…but I have since fixed it myself. On the second try).

Jinjur is settled into the old cage. Once the new one comes I’ll keep the older one for a few more weeks…just in case the Professor returns somehow.

They wouldn’t be able to share a cage or play together, because that’s how hedgies get preggers, but I could be a two hedgehog home.

Yay for needlemice. Anxious little babes for an anxious little woman.