    Willow
Willow was my daughter's hedgehog. I was pretty
reluctant about letting one of these prickly pets into the household
.... but I gotta say, she grew on me! Hedgehogs as pets?
Well, yes! Actually, my first encounter with a "pet" hedgehog was
in Augsburg, Germany in 1984 when we had to take our Yorkie, Misha, to
the vet. While waiting, an elderly German came in with a small
box. Inside .... you guessed it, a hedgehog .... in German, "ein Igel."
Flash forward ... hedgehogs in captivity as pets usually don't live
very long (not that they live very long in the wild either!). I
anticipated about a year and a half. Fortunately, good care and
attention permitted Willow to live with us for nearly 4 years before
passing away from cancer. |