If you are bringing home a new hedgehog, you might have several questions about its diet. For example: can hedgehogs eat hornworms and other insects? Let’s find out.
When you are bringing home a pet hedgehog for the first time, you have a lot of things to worry about. What to feed them, what will they like? In this article, we will discuss if hornworms or other worms are good for your hedgehog.
Are Hornworms Nutritious For Hedgehogs?
The natural diet of wild hedgehogs includes worms, small insects, and plant material. These animals need a source of protein in their diet, which is why worms can be good for them.
Hornworms are a good source of food for hedgehogs. These worms have low fat, high calcium, a good amount of protein, and water content.
However, these worms do not contain chitin (because they have no exoskeleton), which is important for hedgehogs. For this reason, hornworms cannot be primary feeders for your hedgehog.
How To Store and Feed Hornworms?
Hornworms can grow quickly and reach their pupae stage in just three to four weeks. It is not a good idea to keep them as a feeder for more than a week.
When you are feeding the worms to your hedgehog, make sure that you squish their head. While they don’t have teeth, these worms can bite, so it’s best to make sure that you feed them when they are dead.
You can feed them one or two times a week as a source of protein for hedgehogs.
How To Maintain Hornworms?
Hornworms grow quickly, so if you want to keep them for longer, you need to make special arrangements.
To keep them from growing too fast or becoming too big, put these worms in the refrigerator and set the temperatures at around 55 F. This will slow their growth but not kill them.
You should not keep hornworms for more than three weeks in a fridge. If you have dead hornworms, dispose of them in a sealed bag or container.
Don’t release live feeder worms into your garden or the wild – they will quickly turn into moths, spread their eggs, and start eating any tomato plants that are around.
Can Hedgehogs Eat Live Worms?
Yes, hedgehogs can eat live worms. Wild hedgehogs can hunt and do eat live worms and insects all the time. They are capable of doing the same when you are feeding them.
You can offer live worms when you are feeding your hedgehog at home. But some of them, like hornworms, will tend to bite, so it is a good idea to squish their heads before offering them to hedgehogs.
What Other Insects and Bugs Can Hedgehogs Eat?
Hedgehogs can feed on a number of insects and tiny organisms. Worms can be nice occasional treats for them. Here are some of the more common types of food that you can offer them:
- Wax Worms
- Super Worms
- Dubia Roaches
- Butter Worms
- Wax Worms
- Crickets and Grasshoppers
- Silkworms
Don’t eat too many worms, especially wax worms to hedgehogs, because they contain a lot of fat. You should also keep a check on their weight to see if their diet is causing them to become obese.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often can hedgehogs eat hornworms?
Hedgehogs can eat hornworms up to three times per week. These worms are low on fat and can work as a protein and calcium supplement. Hornworms should not be a staple for your hedgehog, but these can be good as treats.
What can hedgehogs not eat?
Hedgehogs are omnivores; they can eat a variety of foods. However, some foodstuffs you should avoid giving them.
Do not feed your hedgehogs avocado, bread, milk, raisins, and citrus fruits. You should also avoid feeding them tinned foods, biscuits, and snacks meant for cats or dogs.
Can hedgehogs eat tomato worms?
Yes, it is safe for hedgehogs to eat tomato worms which are nothing but hornworms. Hedgehogs can eat most types of live worms and insects.
As a pet owner, it is important to store whatever worms you are feeding them at a safe temperature, so they are viable for the hedgehogs to feed on.
Can you cut hornworms in half?
Yes, cutting them in half is another way to prepare them before feeding them to a hedgehog. However, these bugs are very large and have a lot of water content. It is likely that there is going to be a lot of mess if you cut them.
But if your hornworms have grown too large and you don’t want them biting your hedgehog, cutting them in half is one way of doing it.
Conclusion
When you are becoming a parent to a hedgehog, you need to understand their diet and other aspects of keeping them healthy.
Hornworms can be a nice addition to a hedgehog’s diet, but make sure to buy them from a quality dealer, store them properly and feed them as a snack, not as a primary feeder.
Thank you for reading!
9 Comments. Leave new
Don’t ever squish this if you find one in your garden. The babies will hatch and become more wasps that will keep your tomatoes free of hornworms.
Well, that was a sad ending to that story.
Mother nature, she’s kind of mean some times
Interesting finding! – First, the caterpillar seemed like a younger stage of a Sphinx species to me. Sphinx drupiferarum or gordius, I thought. But its roundish head (without any black markings, typical for all those species), shape of its stigmae and the broad white markings of the lateral stripes rather speak for a young Dolba hyloeus (Pawpaw sphinx) larva. I guess the plant called boxwood in Your area is a holly (Ilex sp.). Thanks for sharing! Best wishes,
As always Bostjan, your insightful comments are greatly appreciated.
Baculovirus, I believe.
Thanks Cesar.
Am so impress to no much about the animal
Thanks