Hedgehogs are adorable creatures that are becoming popular as pets, but there will always be one hedgehog popular than the rest; Sonic. Thanks to Sonics iconic blue color, you may be wondering if there are any real-life blue hedgehogs too.
Let’s go through everything you need to know about hedgehogs and the color blue.
Hedgehogs are not blue. There are about 17 hedgehog species in the world, and none of them are blue. There are over 90 different color varieties that hedgehogs can be, but unfortunately, you will not find one that is a real-life Sonic but without the super speed.
What colors can hedgehog be naturally? Can you use hair dyes to dye your hedgehog blue to resemble your childhood hero? And why is Sonic the Hedgehog blue? Let’s find out!
Are Hedgehogs Blue?
Whenever anyone brings up hedgehogs, the conversation always steers to the most favored and well-known hedgehog in the world: Sonic. This superpowered blue hedgehog has become a part of many people’s lives and has kept growing in popularity as the decades go by.
However, with the growth in Sonic’s popularity comes a question that is now on many people’s minds. The question of whether real hedgehogs are blue or not.
This is quite the topic as there are many people who believe that there are blue hedgehogs in the world because of Sonic, but let’s go through the truth.
Unfortunately, even though it would be magical and make many people’s dreams come true, there are no blue hedgehogs in the world. About 17 different hedgehog species exist today, and not a single one of them is blue; not even the hedgehogs that live in cold climates are blue.
This is extremely disappointing for many people as it would be incredible to own a pet that is basically the unpowered version of the superhero you grew up with, but unfortunately, this is not possible.
What Colors Can Hedgehogs Be?
So, hedgehogs are not blue, but what colors can they be? Well, there are actually a surprising number of different colors that hedgehogs can be, and the number may shock you. Hedgehogs are one animal out of many in the animal kingdom that you can naturally find in many colors.
There are around 90 different hedgehog color variants that you can find in the wild and therefore found in pet hedgehogs. Still, even with that many colors, there is no blue. Some of these hedgehog colors are rare, but some are pretty common and easy to find.
Most of the hedgehog color variants can be difficult to find at the pet store close to you, but if one of the color variants catches your eye, especially one of the rare ones, you should be able to find a breeder that can help you get the hedgehog in the color you want.
While there are over 90 different hedgehog colors, these colors can be placed into a few different categories. One of the most common categories is called salt and pepper. Hedgehogs in this color are the most common and are the ones you usually find when searching for hedgehogs online.
But there are several different colors; you will need to look more in-depth to find them, such as the cinnamon-colored hedgehog.
This hedgehog has a lovely light red little nose and a white belly, with some pink skin showing through on their shoulders, and their spines have a cinnamon accent along all their bands.
Another example of a hedgehog color that is slightly more unique than the cinnamon is the dark cinnicot hedgehog color. These hedgehogs have white bellies with some pink skin on their shoulders and a dark brownish-red nose, with a marking on their face that resembles a mask.
These two colors are not all the available hedgehog colors, but they are deemed the cutest by most hedgehog enthusiasts. So, if you wish to find out what all the 90 different colors are, you will need to do some more research on the topic.
Can You Dye Your Hedgehog Blue?
So, even though you do not get naturally blue hedgehogs, is there a way you could turn a hedgehog blue by dying it?
Unfortunately, we will never have the blue hedgehog of our dreams, as you should never dye the fur or quills of your hedgehog. Hedgehogs are highly sensitive to chemicals, including those used in almost all hair dyes you can find today.
These chemicals can irritate your hedgehog’s skin and cause rashes to appear, and your hedgehog will go through this pain even if the dye does not take to its quills, which happens more often than not.
Unless your hedgehog is really light in color, the chances of the dye taking to the quills are extremely low, so you will be causing pain to your hedgehog and wasting money at the same time.
There have also been hedgehogs confiscated from their owners due to their owners trying to dye them; you may even lose your beloved hedgehog if you try this. So, you should never try and dye your hedgehog any color.
Why Is Sonic the Hedgehog Blue?
Now that we have covered real-life hedgehogs and what colors they come in, why is Sonic The Hedgehog blue then? If he is a hedgehog, then shouldn’t he be a normal hedgehog color? This news may shock many, but Sonic was not always blue.
In the beginning, Sonic was a regular brown hedgehog color until one fateful day when he entered Dr. Ovi Kintobor’s laboratory. Dr. Ovi was a kind scientist that was busy working on a special device that would rid the Mobius of evil.
For his plan to work, Dr. Ovi required seven Chaos Emeralds, of which he was only missing one. So, sonic offered his help to the scientist to find the last one.
Dr. Ovi was so fascinated by Sonics’ speed that he asked Sonic if he could run some tests on him, which is when Dr. Ovi created the Kinetic Gyratoscope. This machine resembled a hamster wheel and was used to help Sonic increase his speed.
However, one day when Sonic was using the Kinetic Gyratoscope, his speed increased far beyond what the machine could keep up with, so when Sonic broke the sound barrier, the machine broke too.
The explosion that resulted from this accident fused Sonic’s spines together and turned him from his natural brown color to his now-iconic blue.
Final Thoughts
Hedgehogs in real life are not blue and will, unfortunately, never be blue, but that is okay, as we want our animals to be healthy and happy. So, if our childhood superpowered blue hedgehog does not come to life, that’s okay, as we would rather have our real animals healthy.
Luckily, there are many colors that hedgehogs do naturally come in, so you are still bound to find one you love!
I have a bachelor’s degree in Computer Information Systems and over 10 years of experience working in IT. I have a wife and two children and love taking them to the zoo to see all the animals. I grew up with dogs and fish and now have two dogs and two cats. I’ve also played guitar for almost 20 years and love writing music, although it’s hard to find the time these days.