Where is hedgehog legal

Compared to companion animals, caring for African pygmy hedgehogs is very difficult and meeting their legal needs under the Animal Welfare Act is no easy task in a typical household. Therefore, we can't fairly recommend keeping African pygmy hedgehogs as pets.

Additionally, African pygmy hedgehogs are naturally nocturnal and so must be left alone during the daytime. Therefore, you'll only be able to interact with them during the night while they're awake. Of course, this means they'll also keep you up in the late hours! Plus, as these species are solitary by nature, if you were to house two together it's likely that they would fight. African pygmy hedgehogs travel large distances in the wild and it's therefore not kind to keep these animals in small enclosures in captivity.

Our team sadly see hedgehogs kept in small rodent cages, which is a completely unsuitable environment for this very active species. Our inspectors have taken in African pygmy hedgehogs that were no longer wanted by their owners, or when owners have realised they cannot care for them properly. Sadly, we have attended properties where hedgehogs were being kept in completely unsuitable conditions; in enclosures which are far too small, where hedgehogs have been neglected or were being fed an inappropriate diet, resulting in serious health problems.

Our team has also been called to capture and collect stray African pygmy hedgehogs that have been deliberately abandoned - mostly likely after their owner realised that they couldn't look after them properly. Doing so releasing an African pygmy hedgehog intentionally is a punishable offence under the Animal Welfare Act. Unfortunately, It's currently legal to own an African pygmy hedgehog as a pet, however under the Animal Welfare Act, owners must be able to meet the animal's full welfare needs, which includes allowing the animal full opportunity to display normal behaviour.

Information on keeping a non-domestic animal as a pet, plus care sheets for more common species. Maine Department of Environmental Protection. Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Maryland Department of the Environment. Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game. Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Minnesota Division of Fish and Wildlife. Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality. Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. Missouri Department of Conservation. Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Montana Department of Environmental Quality. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation.

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality. Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Nebraska Department of Natural Resources. Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. Nevada Department of Wildlife. New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. New Hampshire Fish and Game Department. New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. New Mexico Environment Department. New Mexico Game and Fish Department.

New York Department of Environmental Conservation. North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries. North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. North Dakota Game and Fish Department. Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Ohio Division of Natural Areas and Preserves. Ohio Division of Wildlife. Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality. Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. Pennsylvania Game Commission. Rhode Island Bureau of Environmental Protection. Rhode Island Division of Fish and Wildlife. South Carolina Department of Natural Resources.

Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Texas Parks and Wildlife. Texas Wildlife Services. Utah Department of Environmental Quality. Utah Department of Natural Resources. Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation. Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation's. Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.

Another reason for the hedgehog ban is a health risk for humans, especially hedgehog owners and those handling them. Hedgehogs are more prone than other animals to spreading diseases. Salmonella bacteria are highly present in the droppings of hedgehogs and can be carried on their bodies and anything they come into contact with; in fact, numerous salmonella outbreaks, beginning in the s, have been linked back to salmonella carried by domesticated hedgehogs. Hedgehogs are also especially prone to spreading foot and mouth disease as well as rabies, chlamydia, pseudotuberculosis, and other fungal and bacterial diseases.

As a precaution to prevent the spread of disease through hedgehog ownership, the CDC does advise owners not kiss or snuggle their hedgehogs too closely, to wash their hands frequently when touching or handling them, and to avoid letting hedgehogs roam in food preparation, serving, or storage areas.

All of the animals on this list, which also includes rhinoceroses and warthogs, are banned from being owned as pets. Those places have also made it illegal to own hedgehogs.

Other countries, states, and municipalities have bans on specific breeds, while some require permits before owning a hedgehog as a pet. Hedgehog-loving Georgians will not sit idly by without their prickly friends.