Are Hedgehog Spines Actually Poisonous? Explained Clearly in One Article

Summary: The hedgehog is a small mammal no more than 25 cm in body length. Its most distinctive feature is that its whole body is covered in short, dense spines. When startled, it bends its head toward its belly, curls its body into a ball, rolls up into a spiky sphere, tucks its head and limbs inside, and erects all its spines to protect itself. Now let us take a look at whether hedgehog spines are poisonous!

The hedgehog is a small mammal no more than 25 cm in body length. Its most distinctive feature is that its whole body is covered in short, dense spines. When startled, it bends its head toward its belly, curls its body into a ball, rolls up into a spiky sphere, tucks its head and limbs inside, and erects all its spines to protect itself. Now let us take a look at whether hedgehog spines are poisonous!

Are Hedgehog Spines Poisonous?

Hedgehog spines are not poisonous, but they may carry large amounts of bacteria on them. After the skin is punctured, the wound needs to be disinfected.

What Should You Do If You Are Pricked by a Hedgehog?

Hedgehog spines are not poisonous, but they will inevitably carry bacteria. If you are pricked by a hedgehog, you can treat it with hydrogen peroxide or another disinfectant to avoid infection. Local anti-inflammatory treatment is all that is needed.

What Are Hedgehog Spines For?

Although the hedgehog is covered in spines and looks like a fierce killer, it is gentle in temperament and mainly feeds on insects, worms, leaves and blades of grass. It rarely actively uses its spines to attack other animals. In most cases, the hedgehog uses its spines only as a “shield”, not as a “spear”.

1. When attacked by a strong enemy, it will immediately curl its body into a ball. Faced with this “spiky ball” that cannot be touched, let alone eaten, even the fiercest enemy can only slink away disappointed.

2. When going out to forage, the hedgehog will deliberately use its spines to pick up some fallen leaves, like the branches on a scout's head, using them as camouflage to avoid being discovered by enemies.

3. If it accidentally falls from a height, the dense spines on its body become springs, one after another, playing a cushioning role. Even if it falls from a 20 m high cliff, it can still remain unharmed.

4. The hedgehog also uses the spines on its body as a “hand”. When foraging, if it finds more food than it can eat, it will “take away what it cannot eat” and impale the extra food on its spines to carry it back to the nest.

5. In rare cases, the hedgehog will also use its spines as a weapon to attack enemies. Especially when it is attacked by a venomous snake, it will cleverly smear the venom from a toad's skin onto its spines, turning them into more powerful “poison arrows”. With this magic weapon for defeating enemies, it can often make invading venomous snakes come and not return, and in the end they instead become its prey.