The vast majority of existing literature considers the basic diet of an African Pygmy Hedgehog to be a good quality dry cat food which is high in protein and also has the advantage of allowing the hedgehogs to exercise their teeth thus preventing dental problems.

I currently use a mix of Pets at Home Purley, Royal Canin and Go Cat Indoors. 

It is advisable to offer a varied diet as much a possible.  The main diet can therefore be supplemented with the following items:-

1. Cooked Chicken, Mince, Lamb or Beef
2. Boiled or Scrambled Egg
3. Vegetables - Carrots, Sweet Potato, Peas, Sweetcorn, Stewed Apple

All of my hoglets have been offered the above items in order to prevent “fussy” eaters.

In addition, live foods are also warmly welcomed by most hedgehogs which include:-

Crickets

It is important to highlight that these foods should only be offered as a treat, perhaps once or twice per week as they are high in fats. 

Fruits and vegetables may also be offered in the form of apple, tomato, peas, mashed potato and broccoli.  However, many hedgehogs generally tend to show little interest in such foods.  A way round this problem is to combine food items e.g. a little cooked chicken with vegetables. 

This ensures that the hedgehogs are consuming healthy foods which also provide a valuable source of vitamins.

African Pygmy Hedgehogs are solitary animals in nature and only meet up together in order to mate and so it is advisable to house them separately.  However, a small number of hedgehog keepers have claimed to keep a small number of females together without experiencing any problems providing ample space is provided. 

Keeping more than one male together in the same cage will almost certainly lead to fighting.

The cage should be placed away from drafts and direct sunlight to avoid stressing the hedgehog.  Varying types of caging is used by many hedgehog keepers and breeders.  The most common of these are indoor cages designed for guinea pigs or rabbits (e.g. Ferplast Duna and Zoozone Cages)

I use padded fleece liners in my hedgehog hogs and either snuggle sacks or cut up pieces of fleece in their nest boxes.

It is important to provide a secure hiding place for your hoglet to sleep in - I use wooden log cabins for my females and my males have large plastic pigloo castles.

Toys are warmly welcomed by hedgehogs.  The best investment would be a large exercise wheel.  I use two wheels - silent spinners and Bucket Wheels made by Carolina Storm Wheels.  

Wheels provide an important source of exercise for our hedgehog, and help to prevent boredom and health problems such as fatty liver and obesity. 

However, do ensure that the wheels are solid as many hedgehogs can catch their feet in the bars of those without a solid base.  

In addition to exercise wheels hedgehogs also like tubes and balls which they can push around their cage with their noses.  Small toys available for cats or ferrets containing bells are especially favourable for hedgehogs.  African Pygmy Hedgehogs are adventurous in nature and also enjoy exploring tunnels on any kind whether they are plastic or cardboard.  I usually place small amounts of food around the cage in the evenings (in tunnels etc) to provide some stimulation for the hedgehogs and keep them occupied.