Brief Intro into Greater Madagascar Tenrecs:
Greater Madagascar tenrecs are small ground dwelling mammals found throughout the island of Madagascar, but mainly in the eastern forests & lower elevation of Madagascar, where they reside in the subtropical or tropical forest regions. When they seek shelter they make dens in tree cavities & crevices, & small holes in the ground. There are about 35 different species of tenrecs in the world known. Some tenrecs like the lesser Madagascar & greater Madagascar tenrecs look like hedgehogs, & because of this many refer to them as lesser & greater “hedgehog” tenrecs. But tenrecs aren’t closely related to hedgehogs at all, they’re related to similar animals like moles & shrews, & very distantly related to each other. Tenrecs are more closely related to elephants than to hedgehogs actually, tenrecs are related to elephants distantly.
Not all species of tenrecs are in the pet trade, only about 5 species are; the lesser Madagascar tenrec, common/tailless tenrec, greater Madagascar tenrec, lowland streaked tenrec, & highland streaked tenrec. But in the US only 3 out of those 5 species are available, & only recently in the last 3-4 years have common & greater tenrecs been imported into the US & become available for pet ownership again since the early to mid 2000’s. For many years only lesser tenrecs were available in the US for pet ownership, a couple of breeders had common & greater tenrecs but didn’t sell them to the public & kept all offspring. But thanks to current breeders, more were able to be imported from Europe from 2019-2021, as well as from Canada in 2024. So now multiple breeders are breeding & selling greater tenrec babies to pet owners. No breeders have successfully bred & sold any common tenrecs though in the US yet.
TEMPERATURE & HUMIDITY:
Tenrecs are much less temperature sensitive compared to most small exotic animals, like for instance hedgehogs, who are very temperature sensitive. Greater tenrecs unlike lesser tenrecs don’t go through a 6 month torpor/ hibernation, instead they seem to slow down & sleep for short periods throughout the year, for 1-4 weeks at a time. During these brief rest periods they have decreased activity & tend to sleep & not want to stay awake. They’ll fast during these periods as well usually, though some may come out occasionally & eat & drink minimally, but most stay asleep. During these rest periods you can still handle them, you just don’t want to keep them awake because that will use up energy they need to get through them, so just let them sleep if they want to sleep. Unlike with lesser tenrecs during torpor whose bellies tend to get & stay cold, greater tenrecs bellies stay warm when in a rest period. For babies & adults they should be kept between 74-80 degrees F/ 23-26 degrees C consistently. As for humidity, greater tenrecs are native to a more humid environment, so because of this they tend to do well with 50-60% humidity.
To maintain a warmer cage temperature for a tenrec we recommend using a heat source for them. The best heat source options are a ceramic heat emitter set up, which consists of a reptile or brooder heat lamp with a ceramic or porcelain socket, a 100-150 watt ceramic heat emitter (CHE) bulb, a reptile thermostat (preferably digital for better accuracy), & a hygrometer inside the cage (preferably digital for better accuracy). Or a space heater with a built in thermostat & a hygrometer inside the cage. A reptile or chicken radiant heat panel hooked up to a thermostat & a hygrometer inside the cage needs to be used.
Recommended heat source setups:
Space heater- must have a built in thermostat & auto shut off sensor on the base for safety.
Radiant heat panel- depends on cage size, generally an 80-120 watt panel.
Thermostat- 500-1000 watt digital reptile thermostat
Hygrometer- digital hygrometer that’s water resistant
HUMIDITY:
To maintain adequate humidity levels for a greater tenrec, we recommend using a humidifier in the room their cage is located in if your home doesn’t already stay above 50% humidity, which most don’t.
Recommended humidifiers:
HEALTH CONDITIONS:
Tenrecs for the most part are pretty hardy healthy animals & don’t seem to experience many ailments like other small pets do. One health condition that tenrecs are prone to is Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD). MBD is a disorder of bone strength usually caused by abnormalities of minerals (such as calcium or phosphorus), vitamin D, bone mass or bone structure. With tenrecs the MBD is caused by a lack of calcium/calcium deficiency. The way to prevent this is to make sure at least once a week you’re adding reptile calcium powder with D3, but you want it to be phosphorus free because they’re don’t usually have an issue with needing phosphorus. If your tenrec doesn’t get much natural sunlight often, then you can also provide your tenrec with a tube UVB bulb to help with their calcium absorption so long as they come out of their hide to bask under it, which not all will. The D3 in the calcium powder needs UVB to be activated. We also suggest using Smart Water, which is a kind of bottled water, because it has added calcium in it so it’s just a good easy extra step to get calcium in them. Smart Water tastes like normal water, so it’s pretty easy to get them to drink it. Smart Water is especially great to give expectant & nursing mothers because they’re going to be more depleted of calcium since a lot of theirs is going to their babies. Tenrecs are more prone to tooth decay if they eat before going into a rest period & don’t swallow all the food & some remains in their mouth & rots. So it is good to periodically check their mouths to make sure this isn’t occurring. Tenrecs aren’t prone to cancers, while they can get cancer it is unlikely for them to. MBD is the most common health condition they can get, so just make sure you’re giving them added calcium & that’ll help decrease their chances of having it. If you notice them having issues walking/moving around, their paws looking strange, etc. please take them to the vet because those are signs of MBD. Make sure you’re also using an exotic vet for your tenrec, most vets including exotic vets don’t know much about tenrecs or even met one before, but exotic veterinarians are trained to deal with exotic species & will know more & be more helpful than a dog & cat vet would be. Dog & cat vets also legally aren’t allowed to treat exotics since they weren’t trained & licensed to, but that doesn’t stop all dog & cat vets from sometimes treating exotics, so just keep these things in mind.
BREEDING & MATURITY:
Greater tenrecs reach sexual maturity by 6 months old. Greater tenrecs unlike lesser tenrecs, can breed year round & have no specific breeding season. A female greater tenrecs gestation period is about 61-69 days. Tenrecs behavior, especially males, can become more aggressive during breeding season sometimes, but this usually happens if there’s a tenrec of the opposite sex they can smell nearby. Male greater tenrecs can re-impregnate a female right after she’s given birth to babies, similar to mice & rabbits. So the male needs to be separated from the female once you believe she is pregnant, or at least once she is close to giving birth. Once sexually mature, even females may try to mount another female as an assertion of dominance. Tenrecs have a mating call that they’ll make when around another tenrec during breeding time, the mating call is very loud & sounds like a screeching screaming noise that is repetitive. Unlike male lesser tenrecs who have a pungent odor to them which intensifies during breeding season, male & female greater tenrecs have no such pungent odor & instead both have a natural smelling musk to them. Male tenrecs can also secrete a milky white liquid substance from around their eyes when they’re excited about something, this can happen when around another tenrec or even when giving them something new & they like it. Some female tenrecs can also secrete the milky substance from around their eyes as well, but most don’t. Greater tenrecs weight ranges from 200 grams up to 600 grams as adults.
You should weigh your tenrec at least once a month to keep track of their weight to ensure it stays consistent. Weight changes can be a sign of a health issue if it’s extreme, so it’s important to track their weight regularly. A digital kitchen scale that weighs in grams is the best to use.
Recommended weight scales:
SEXING A GREATER TENREC:
Tenrecs are one of few mammals that you cannot sex from looking at external reproductive organs like you can with most animals. Their reproductive organs are all internal, & only a males penis will come out during breeding with a female. Tenrecs have a cloaca, which is a single reproductive, intestinal, & urinary opening. Unlike most mammals which have separate openings for each bodily function, tenrecs just have the one opening. To accurately 100% sex a tenrec you need to DNA test their saliva & send it to a lab who can test it to confirm their gender. There is only one lab who currently does this, it is Genomia Laboratory in the Czech Republic. With lesser tenrecs they can have distinctive facial features indicative of a certain sex, but greater tenrecs don’t have distinguishable facial features. And unlike lesser tenrecs who secrete a milky white substance from around their eye’s when aroused, greater tenrecs don’t.
COHOUSING / CAGE MATES:
Greater tenrecs are solitary animals, they should be housed alone generally. Sometimes females can live together if it is a mom & baby or 2 sisters, but some tenrecs may not want a cage mate. So if you planned to cohouse your tenrecs please always be prepared to have to separate them & have a backup cage & supplies on hand in case. Males should never be kept together however, males will fight because they’re territorial. Unlike lesser tenrecs who you can house males & females together & just separate during breeding season to avoid them having babies, male & female greater tenrecs should never be housed together unless intending to breeding them & you are an educated & experienced breeder. If housing 2 tenrecs together the cage size at minimum should be 48 inches x 18 inches x 24 inches.
BEHAVIOR:
Greater tenrecs are generally reserved yet friendly animals who enjoy coming out for a cuddle & to hang out with their humans. They’re mostly low energy. A tenrecs first defense if scared, threatened, & stressed is to bite & put their quills up, unlike hedgehogs whose first defense is their quills & to ball up but not biting. Greater tenrecs are anti-social animals, they prefer to be alone but can enjoy human companionship (please see the section about cohousing/cage mates for more info on this). Tenrecs aren’t prone to being huffy & overly bitey if well socialized, but without proper socialization & handling from a young age they definitely can be. Greater tenrecs are commonly thought to be the more bitey/ mouthy of the pet tenrec species, however this varies from tenrec to tenrec. When tenrecs bite they tend to grind their teeth together & can even vibrate their mouths. It can be difficult to get tenrecs to release once they’ve bitten, because their natural instinct is not to let go & wait till the prey goes limp to eat them. Don’t blow in their faces, try to scare them off by making loud noises or making quick movements near them, because this usually just makes them latch on harder, not let go. So, to detatch a tenrec who’s biting, you generally need to take your fingers under their front teeth & bottom teeth & gently pull them apart to release the skin, etc. they’re holding on to. Tenrecs can ball up, hiss, huff, click, & make other noises when upset, but it’s very uncommon for adult tenrecs to ball up & click. Most only hiss when startled & raise their quills, but they typically lower their quills quickly once they realize who/what it is that startled them & stop hissing.
HANDLING & BONDING:
Greater tenrecs tend to be reserved in their behavior, they don’t care for playing. They generally do enjoy handling, & you should handle your tenrec at least a few times a week but every day is best, to make sure they stay well socialized. It’s always best to handle them confidently & use multiple handling methods to socialize them, like moving them from hand to hand, holding them in your lap, etc. They are climbers & so they will usually try to climb up your shirt & arms, so long as they don’t fall it is okay to let them do this, but always keep a hand under them in case they do fall. Some like to climb up & lay behind your neck & fall asleep, they can be great animals to “wear around” since they like to do things like this, some also climb up to your chest & do the same thing. Many tenrecs will get onto a schedule if you’re doing a similar routine daily with them & will come out the same time nightly to greet you sometimes & some even do that in the mornings too. When looking for a tenrec, if you want one with a good temperament that is able to be handled easily & is friendly, then you need to make sure you get one who was handled a lot & socialized well as a baby because that makes a big difference with their long term temperament. We suggest getting a baby from a reputable breeder that tracks lineage to make sure inbreeding isn’t occurring with the lines, & because a reputable breeder is going to properly socialize their babies to ensure they’re friendly & calm. Rescues & ones from a questionable background may not have been properly socialized & so you’re more likely to get one that does ball up a lot, is huffy, always has their quills raised, hisses a lot, & bites a lot.
Tenrecs being nocturnal means they will generally only be awake during the night, if you want to interact with your tenrec while they’re awake then it’s best to wait till 8pm or later & then take them out. During the day tenrecs will be more calm & cuddly because they want to sleep, you can take them out of their cage during the day but just make sure you aren’t forcing them to stay awake because that can mess with their day/night cycle. If you take them out during the day just let them sleep if they want to sleep, it’s usually best to take them out with a snuggle sack/pouch or a blanket so they can snuggle up & sleep. Tenrecs aren’t really animals that “play” much, so play pens & toys kind of go to waste on them, but many do love to free roam outside in the grass during the spring to summer when it’s warm out, you just need to make sure you’re watching them so they don’t run off or get picked up by a bird of prey like a hawk or eagle. Tenrecs may seem slow, but they can run decently fast if they want to & owners have lost their tenrecs outside because they turned their backs on them for just a minute & they ran off. So they always need to be watched intently when outside. The temperature needs to be at least 72 degrees Fahrenheit/ 22 degrees Celsius outside to take them outside.
FEEDING:
Insects- Greater tenrecs should be offered insects at least a few times a week, but can be fed them daily. An example of what to feed a greater tenrec is 15-30 large superworms, 2-4 medium-large dubia roaches, & 2-4 medium-large hornworms. Tenrecs need to be fed live insects regularly & not freeze dried or canned, those can be given as occasional treats but not as their staple diet of insects. Tenrecs can eat a large variety of insects, they can have any feeder insect there is really. They should be offered a wide variety of different insects from a young age to try & keep their diet well balanced & varied like it would be in the wild. They should only be fed feeder insects, which are insects bred specifically to be fed, they shouldn’t be fed/given insects from the yard/outside or bait insects as they could have parasites or pesticides in them & that would be very harmful to them. Commonly fed insects are- superworms, mealworms, dubia roaches, hornworms, crickets, black soldier fly larvae/ Phoenix worms (they’re the same thing), waxworms, silkworms, & butterworms. Tenrecs can ingest large insects that are pretty big compared to their body size.
Tenrecs are pretty intense eaters, so if you want to hand feed them, make sure you use tweezers to give them the insect because they tend to mistake fingers & hands as their food also & will probably bite you, & tenrec bites can be nasty if they think you’re food because they won’t want to let go. We suggest just putting the insects into a dish & put it into their cage. You can get live insects from feeder insect breeders that sell online or from a pet store, online feeder insect breeders usually sell their insects in larger quantities so it is usually best to go to a pet store first to get smaller quantities of multiple insects for them to try them first to see if they like them before you start buying the insects in large amounts. Most pet stores sell cups of insects starting at 10-15 count & go up to 100-150 count. But pets stores do price gouge/overprice their insects pretty badly, so for the long term I wouldn’t suggest buying from pet stores if you have access to order from a good online feeder insect breeder because they’re much more cost effective to buy from than pet stores long term.
Make sure if you feed insects daily that they’re not high fat insects (like wax worms, butter worms, etc), tenrecs can become obese if fed lots of high fat insects or too many insects during each feeding. If your tenrec becomes overweight, start to slowly decrease their insect intake by a few each feeding time, they just need to be fed at least a 20 count of insects every few days.
Recommended feeder insect breeders:
Protein:
Tenrecs do also need meat/animal protein in their diet, a good way to provide meat protein is to feed them cooked unseasoned meats weekly at least & you can give them thawed frozen pinkie mice. You can feed raw meats, but only if the meats are made to be fed raw to animals, meats from a grocery store aren’t made to be fed raw & usually contain bacteria’s like salmonella, etc. & need to be cooked in order to kill the bacteria in them to make them safe for consuming. Some pet stores & online companies sell raw meat for pets to specifically feed them a raw meat diet. We suggest you get frozen pinkie mice from feeder rodent breeders because their stock should be healthy, some pet stores do sell frozen pinkies but their stock comes from the same mills & backyard breeders they get their pet rodents from & those animals are usually sick & have diseases so you don’t want to feed potentially sick animals to your tenrec & it make them sick. If your tenrec is really picky you can feed them freeze dried raw meat kibble toppers crumbled into their kibble, most like that.
Recommended kibble toppers:
At Quill Valley Exotics we make a homemade frozen food “mash” of organ meat, tenders meat, eggs, berries, & some good supplements. Our mashes ingredients, preparation instructions, & feeding instructions can be found below. We feed 1 tablespoon of mash on the days we don’t feed insects.
Ingredients for mash:
1lb of chicken hearts
1lb of chicken gizzards
1lb of chicken livers
2-3 chicken tenders
3/4 cup of strawberries
3/4 cup of blueberries
2 quail eggs
1-2 chicken eggs
2 TBSP of cricket powder
1 TBSP of collagen peptide powder
1 TBSP of flaxseed meal powder
1-1.5 TBSP of bone broth powder/liquid
1 tsp of Benebac probiotic powder
1 tsp of reptile calcium with vitamin D3 powder
Cooking & mixing instructions for mash:
Boil the hearts, gizzards, & liver in water for 5 minutes.
Boil the chicken tenders in water till fully cooked.
Use a food processor or blender to blend the organs & tenders up together with the strawberries & blueberries. Do this while everything is still scalding hot, so when you add the eggs while blending they get cooked. Quail eggs can be added in whole with the shell, don’t add the shell of the chicken eggs though.
Keep the water the organs were cooked in, to add to the food processor/ blender to help add moisture so the mash comes out the right consistency. You don’t want any big clumps of pieces, blend up until everything has been chopped up into a smooth consistency.
Storing instructions for mash:
We store our mash in silicone candy molds in the freezer for easy storage & distribution. To do this just use a piping bag with no tip or a ziplock bag with a corner cut off to fill the silicone molds with the mash. Cover the molds with Saran Wrap & put in a big ziplock bag in the freezer. They will last months in the freezer.
Feeding instructions for mash:
Take out one of the pieces of mash from the silicone mold in the freezer & put them in the cage 1-3 hours before you want your animal to eat them so they thaw out enough to be eaten.
Kibble: Tenrecs should have access to kibble at all times in their cages, the kibble should be high in protein & fat, we recommend 17-22% fat & 38-45% protein. The best kibble option to feed them is a high quality, high protein, & high fat kitten or cat food that has real meat as the first few ingredients & no fillers, by products, or dyes in it. Many cat foods have kibble pieces that are too big for tenrecs to be able to chew because tenrecs have small teeth & small mouths, so kitten food is a common choice for tenrec owners to use due to it’s kibble size usually being substantially smaller than a cat kibble is. But there are cat kibbles that have small enough kibble pieces for them to chew, listed below is a good kibble option. Tenrecs don’t usually like to eat much kibble, they prefer insects & other proteins, but they will munch on it here & there. They do need to have kibble in their diet to give them important nutrients that is in the kibble which they need to be healthy.
Recommended kibble:
TREATS:
Greater tenrecs can have small amounts of fruits, cooked unseasoned eggs, baby foods can also be given as an occasional treat just make sure they don’t contain grains or pasta. We don’t recommend feeding vegetables because they can’t digest them well.
CAGING / ENCLOSURES:
Greater Madagascar tenrecs are semi arboreal animals, this means they’re climbers, however they don’t climb as much or as high as lesser tenrecs & tend to stay lower to the ground. The definition of semi arboreal is: often inhabiting & frequenting trees but not completely arboreal. Arboreal relating to animals means, living in trees. Greater tenrecs have long curled nails & their feet are made for gripping. So greater tenrecs can climb but they’re not always amazing climbers, they tend to do best in cages with minimal low climbing branches & not a super tall cage, rather one with more floor space than climbing vertical space.
We suggest using an enclosure that is at least 36 inches long by 18 inches wide by 18 inches tall. You can use enclosures that are larger, tenrecs do best in larger cages, that is just the minimum we suggest. We recommend enclosures that provide more floor space than climbing space for greater tenrecs, but the height should be a minimum of 18 inches.
Best types of enclosures for greater tenrecs are solid walled enclosures like terrariums & vivariums, or wire cages with ½ inch or less bar spacing because they can escape through anything larger than ½ an inch, & a solid floor. A terrarium or vivarium must have a completely vented top & preferably ventilation near the bottom of the cage as well.
Recommended cages:
CAGE ACCESSORIES:
Exercise wheel:
Tenrecs need a wheel to get proper exercise, a wheel is a non-negotiable item. Tenrecs can have 2 different kinds of wheels, a solid surfaced running wheel & a wire/mesh wheel. We do suggest sticking to solid surface wheels because some tenrecs have gotten toes caught in the holes on wire ones & injured themselves. If using a wire wheel be very careful & watch them closely for any injuries. We don’t suggest using wire wheels with cross bars due to the rise of them catching a leg when getting off the wheel. The wheel must be a minimum of 12 inches in diameter & 5 inches running width.
Recommended solid surfaced wheels:
*(We don’t recommend wire/mesh wheels for tenrecs, we’ve had tenrecs get injured on them, & while these injuries happened once after years of use without issue, we won’t risk further injuries to our own tenrecs or others by recommending these type of wheels. We recommend solid surfaced wheels, if the tenrec is having issues with the smooth surface of the wheel then you can try adding bath tub anti slip grips on the wheels running surface & that can help, plus they’re washable. Don’t use fleece wheel covers for tenrecs wheels though, they’re fine & really great for animals like hedgehogs, but the animals nails must be kept trimmed to avoid catching nails in the fleece & ripping them & tenrecs have naturally long curled nails & need to have them long to be able to effectively climb. So it just wouldn’t be safe to give a tenrec a fleece wheel cover since their nails would get caught while running & could rip them off).*
BEDDING:
There’s a multitude of bedding options you can use for tenrecs, it’s best to use some kind of loose bedding/substrate so they can dig, burrow, build nests, & make tunnels which are natural behaviors they exhibit. Cedar & non kiln dried wood shavings are toxic to them. Popular bedding options are small pet paper bedding, aspen wood shavings, coco peat/loose coconut fiber, & reptile wood chips/mulch. Please keep in mind that all substrate should be frozen for a minimum for 24 hours & let thaw before use to kill off any possible mites in it, or you can apply kitten Revolution once a month topically to the tenrec (Revolution is an anti parasitic medicine safe for small animals). We recommend using paper bedding, it is soft, absorbent, easy for them to build tunnels with, & it’s not too expensive. We don’t recommend the use of fleece for their bedding, tenrecs aren’t domesticated animals & are still partially wild & still have the need to exhibit natural digging, burrowing, nest building behaviors & fleece won’t allow them to do these behaviors & that can be detrimental to their psychological health. Fleece can be used to cover secondary shelves in cages & cover wire ramps.
Recommended bedding:
HIDEOUTS / HOUSES:
Due to tenrecs being prey animals, they don’t like open space & prefer cluttered space so they feel more safe & secure. So, you want the cage floor to be filled ¾ the way with hides, logs, branches, tunnels, etc to provide lots of places for them to hide if they want to & so they feel covered in their cage & not exposed. Tenrecs must have at least one hiding place/house in their cage. Depending on the size of the cage you may need to add multiple hides. You can use wood hides, plastic hides, hay hides, snuggle sacks & other fleece bags, fleece made hides, etc. (NOTE: All items that are sewn must have hidden seams so the tenrecs cannot get any loose strings/threads wrapped around their feet, toes, head, nose, mouth, teeth, etc. which will easily cut off circulation and can turn into an emergency needing a vet a.s.a.p. Fabric hides should only have anti pill fleece on the inside, cotton or flannel can be used on the outside or fleece both inside & out. Felt isn’t safe to use for small animals). have
Recommended hides:
TUNNELS:
PVC pipes make great tunnels, they’re easy to find, cheap, & easy to clean. Make sure you get 4” PVC pipes, bigger is fine but anything smaller & greater tenrecs won’t fit in them & could get stuck. Most tenrecs like the elbow & T-shape PVC pipes, they usually like when you get connector ones & make longer tunnels too. Cork & wood tunnels are great, so are pet plastic bendy tunnels & fleece tunnels can be used as well.
Recommended tunnels:
CLIMBING ACCESSORIES:
You want to make sure that the tenrec has some climbing accessories so that they can get the exercise they need since greater tenrecs are semi-arboreal animals. Semi-arboreal means that they’re somewhat climbers. Items like wood logs & branches (both real wood & fake are okay) are needed throughout the cage. Make sure the wood you use is untreated & is pet safe, it’s best to stick to pet store bought wood for reptiles & birds/ wood labeled for reptiles & birds because that is pet safe. It’s quite a process to clean & sterilize wood from outside, it can be done but you have to boil, scrub, & bake it. Also, not all wood is safe for them, please research small pet safe woods before using any outdoor wood. If you use fake branches make sure they’re thick enough to hold a tenrecs weight, many are sold to use for lighter weight reptiles.
Recommended branches & logs:
CAGE WALL & FLOOR ACCESSORIES:
Optional but recommended, we suggest using fake vines & fake plants to add clutter to the cage walls & floor & help make the tenrec feel more secure in their cage.
Recommended cage wall accessories:
Recommended cage floor accessories:
FOOD / WATER BOWL & INSECT DISHES:
Tenrecs don’t drink out of water bottles & need to always have access to fresh water in their cage. If you have a multi-level cage we recommend putting food & water on each level in case they don’t want to go all the way up or down the cage daily to get to food & water, that way they’ll never be far from it. For food & water bowls we suggest using ceramic or porcelain bowls that can hold at least a few ounces of water/ is at least approximately 4”Lx4”Wx2-3”H (for water bowl we suggest they be no more than 2.5”H), we suggest ceramic or porcelain because it’s less likely for them to tip them over. Tenrecs tend to put their paws on the edge of the bowl while eating & drinking & will tip over light weight bowls like plastic bowls.
For an insect dish you want to use a smooth sided dish with at least 3”H sides to the insect cant climb out. Ceramic or porcelain dishes are preferred so the tenrecs don’t tip over the dish while eating, when eating insects most try to climb inside the bowl. The bowl should be at least 4”Lx4”W. If feeding insects like roaches & some worms it’s best to use a curved lip dish because they can climb out of most other dishes even if taller.
Recommended food & water bowls:
Recommended insect dishes:
BATHING & NAILS:
Tenrecs shouldn’t get water baths with soap, they don’t bathe in water in the wild & bathing them in water with soap will just remove the natural oils from their skin & dry it out. However, unlike lesser tenrecs who take sand baths because they’re from an arid desert environment with mainly sand, greater tenrecs don’t take sand baths because they’re instead from the forests where sand isn’t found. If given sand they will just use it as their restroom. Greater tenrecs don’t seem to bathe themselves.
As for their nails, tenrec nails are long & need to be in order for them to be able to grip & climb. They don’t usually need their nails trimmed unless they’re not able to wear their nails down on wood while climbing, this is how they would wear their nails down in the wild. Only if you notice their nails starting to flop over when they walk or they’re getting close to curling into their feet, then do they need their nails trimmed a little. Don’t cut their nails short because then they’ll be unable to climb properly & may injure themselves if they tried to. If you need to trim their nails, use regular human nail clippers, baby nail clippers, or cuticle clippers.
Recommended nail clippers:
Not all species of tenrecs are in the pet trade, only about 5 species are; the lesser Madagascar tenrec, common/tailless tenrec, greater Madagascar tenrec, lowland streaked tenrec, & highland streaked tenrec. But in the US only 3 out of those 5 species are available, & only recently in the last 3-4 years have common & greater tenrecs been imported into the US & become available for pet ownership again since the early to mid 2000’s. For many years only lesser tenrecs were available in the US for pet ownership, a couple of breeders had common & greater tenrecs but didn’t sell them to the public & kept all offspring. But thanks to current breeders, more were able to be imported from Europe from 2019-2021, as well as from Canada in 2024. So now multiple breeders are breeding & selling greater tenrec babies to pet owners. No breeders have successfully bred & sold any common tenrecs though in the US yet.
TEMPERATURE & HUMIDITY:
Tenrecs are much less temperature sensitive compared to most small exotic animals, like for instance hedgehogs, who are very temperature sensitive. Greater tenrecs unlike lesser tenrecs don’t go through a 6 month torpor/ hibernation, instead they seem to slow down & sleep for short periods throughout the year, for 1-4 weeks at a time. During these brief rest periods they have decreased activity & tend to sleep & not want to stay awake. They’ll fast during these periods as well usually, though some may come out occasionally & eat & drink minimally, but most stay asleep. During these rest periods you can still handle them, you just don’t want to keep them awake because that will use up energy they need to get through them, so just let them sleep if they want to sleep. Unlike with lesser tenrecs during torpor whose bellies tend to get & stay cold, greater tenrecs bellies stay warm when in a rest period. For babies & adults they should be kept between 74-80 degrees F/ 23-26 degrees C consistently. As for humidity, greater tenrecs are native to a more humid environment, so because of this they tend to do well with 50-60% humidity.
To maintain a warmer cage temperature for a tenrec we recommend using a heat source for them. The best heat source options are a ceramic heat emitter set up, which consists of a reptile or brooder heat lamp with a ceramic or porcelain socket, a 100-150 watt ceramic heat emitter (CHE) bulb, a reptile thermostat (preferably digital for better accuracy), & a hygrometer inside the cage (preferably digital for better accuracy). Or a space heater with a built in thermostat & a hygrometer inside the cage. A reptile or chicken radiant heat panel hooked up to a thermostat & a hygrometer inside the cage needs to be used.
Recommended heat source setups:
- Ceramic heat emitter setup
- Heat lamp- 8.5-13 inch dome heat lamp with ceramic or porcelain socket *never plastic!*
- CHE bulb- 100-150 watt bulb
- Thermostat- 500-1000 watt digital reptile thermostat
- Hygrometer- digital hygrometer that’s water resistant
Space heater- must have a built in thermostat & auto shut off sensor on the base for safety.
Radiant heat panel- depends on cage size, generally an 80-120 watt panel.
Thermostat- 500-1000 watt digital reptile thermostat
Hygrometer- digital hygrometer that’s water resistant
HUMIDITY:
To maintain adequate humidity levels for a greater tenrec, we recommend using a humidifier in the room their cage is located in if your home doesn’t already stay above 50% humidity, which most don’t.
Recommended humidifiers:
- Large humidifier- Homedics ultrasonic large deluxe 1.47 gallon tank humidifier
- Small humidifier- Homedics ultrasonic 0.97 gallon tank humidifier
HEALTH CONDITIONS:
Tenrecs for the most part are pretty hardy healthy animals & don’t seem to experience many ailments like other small pets do. One health condition that tenrecs are prone to is Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD). MBD is a disorder of bone strength usually caused by abnormalities of minerals (such as calcium or phosphorus), vitamin D, bone mass or bone structure. With tenrecs the MBD is caused by a lack of calcium/calcium deficiency. The way to prevent this is to make sure at least once a week you’re adding reptile calcium powder with D3, but you want it to be phosphorus free because they’re don’t usually have an issue with needing phosphorus. If your tenrec doesn’t get much natural sunlight often, then you can also provide your tenrec with a tube UVB bulb to help with their calcium absorption so long as they come out of their hide to bask under it, which not all will. The D3 in the calcium powder needs UVB to be activated. We also suggest using Smart Water, which is a kind of bottled water, because it has added calcium in it so it’s just a good easy extra step to get calcium in them. Smart Water tastes like normal water, so it’s pretty easy to get them to drink it. Smart Water is especially great to give expectant & nursing mothers because they’re going to be more depleted of calcium since a lot of theirs is going to their babies. Tenrecs are more prone to tooth decay if they eat before going into a rest period & don’t swallow all the food & some remains in their mouth & rots. So it is good to periodically check their mouths to make sure this isn’t occurring. Tenrecs aren’t prone to cancers, while they can get cancer it is unlikely for them to. MBD is the most common health condition they can get, so just make sure you’re giving them added calcium & that’ll help decrease their chances of having it. If you notice them having issues walking/moving around, their paws looking strange, etc. please take them to the vet because those are signs of MBD. Make sure you’re also using an exotic vet for your tenrec, most vets including exotic vets don’t know much about tenrecs or even met one before, but exotic veterinarians are trained to deal with exotic species & will know more & be more helpful than a dog & cat vet would be. Dog & cat vets also legally aren’t allowed to treat exotics since they weren’t trained & licensed to, but that doesn’t stop all dog & cat vets from sometimes treating exotics, so just keep these things in mind.
BREEDING & MATURITY:
Greater tenrecs reach sexual maturity by 6 months old. Greater tenrecs unlike lesser tenrecs, can breed year round & have no specific breeding season. A female greater tenrecs gestation period is about 61-69 days. Tenrecs behavior, especially males, can become more aggressive during breeding season sometimes, but this usually happens if there’s a tenrec of the opposite sex they can smell nearby. Male greater tenrecs can re-impregnate a female right after she’s given birth to babies, similar to mice & rabbits. So the male needs to be separated from the female once you believe she is pregnant, or at least once she is close to giving birth. Once sexually mature, even females may try to mount another female as an assertion of dominance. Tenrecs have a mating call that they’ll make when around another tenrec during breeding time, the mating call is very loud & sounds like a screeching screaming noise that is repetitive. Unlike male lesser tenrecs who have a pungent odor to them which intensifies during breeding season, male & female greater tenrecs have no such pungent odor & instead both have a natural smelling musk to them. Male tenrecs can also secrete a milky white liquid substance from around their eyes when they’re excited about something, this can happen when around another tenrec or even when giving them something new & they like it. Some female tenrecs can also secrete the milky substance from around their eyes as well, but most don’t. Greater tenrecs weight ranges from 200 grams up to 600 grams as adults.
You should weigh your tenrec at least once a month to keep track of their weight to ensure it stays consistent. Weight changes can be a sign of a health issue if it’s extreme, so it’s important to track their weight regularly. A digital kitchen scale that weighs in grams is the best to use.
Recommended weight scales:
- Ozeri digital kitchen scale
- Etekcity digital kitchen scale
SEXING A GREATER TENREC:
Tenrecs are one of few mammals that you cannot sex from looking at external reproductive organs like you can with most animals. Their reproductive organs are all internal, & only a males penis will come out during breeding with a female. Tenrecs have a cloaca, which is a single reproductive, intestinal, & urinary opening. Unlike most mammals which have separate openings for each bodily function, tenrecs just have the one opening. To accurately 100% sex a tenrec you need to DNA test their saliva & send it to a lab who can test it to confirm their gender. There is only one lab who currently does this, it is Genomia Laboratory in the Czech Republic. With lesser tenrecs they can have distinctive facial features indicative of a certain sex, but greater tenrecs don’t have distinguishable facial features. And unlike lesser tenrecs who secrete a milky white substance from around their eye’s when aroused, greater tenrecs don’t.
COHOUSING / CAGE MATES:
Greater tenrecs are solitary animals, they should be housed alone generally. Sometimes females can live together if it is a mom & baby or 2 sisters, but some tenrecs may not want a cage mate. So if you planned to cohouse your tenrecs please always be prepared to have to separate them & have a backup cage & supplies on hand in case. Males should never be kept together however, males will fight because they’re territorial. Unlike lesser tenrecs who you can house males & females together & just separate during breeding season to avoid them having babies, male & female greater tenrecs should never be housed together unless intending to breeding them & you are an educated & experienced breeder. If housing 2 tenrecs together the cage size at minimum should be 48 inches x 18 inches x 24 inches.
BEHAVIOR:
Greater tenrecs are generally reserved yet friendly animals who enjoy coming out for a cuddle & to hang out with their humans. They’re mostly low energy. A tenrecs first defense if scared, threatened, & stressed is to bite & put their quills up, unlike hedgehogs whose first defense is their quills & to ball up but not biting. Greater tenrecs are anti-social animals, they prefer to be alone but can enjoy human companionship (please see the section about cohousing/cage mates for more info on this). Tenrecs aren’t prone to being huffy & overly bitey if well socialized, but without proper socialization & handling from a young age they definitely can be. Greater tenrecs are commonly thought to be the more bitey/ mouthy of the pet tenrec species, however this varies from tenrec to tenrec. When tenrecs bite they tend to grind their teeth together & can even vibrate their mouths. It can be difficult to get tenrecs to release once they’ve bitten, because their natural instinct is not to let go & wait till the prey goes limp to eat them. Don’t blow in their faces, try to scare them off by making loud noises or making quick movements near them, because this usually just makes them latch on harder, not let go. So, to detatch a tenrec who’s biting, you generally need to take your fingers under their front teeth & bottom teeth & gently pull them apart to release the skin, etc. they’re holding on to. Tenrecs can ball up, hiss, huff, click, & make other noises when upset, but it’s very uncommon for adult tenrecs to ball up & click. Most only hiss when startled & raise their quills, but they typically lower their quills quickly once they realize who/what it is that startled them & stop hissing.
HANDLING & BONDING:
Greater tenrecs tend to be reserved in their behavior, they don’t care for playing. They generally do enjoy handling, & you should handle your tenrec at least a few times a week but every day is best, to make sure they stay well socialized. It’s always best to handle them confidently & use multiple handling methods to socialize them, like moving them from hand to hand, holding them in your lap, etc. They are climbers & so they will usually try to climb up your shirt & arms, so long as they don’t fall it is okay to let them do this, but always keep a hand under them in case they do fall. Some like to climb up & lay behind your neck & fall asleep, they can be great animals to “wear around” since they like to do things like this, some also climb up to your chest & do the same thing. Many tenrecs will get onto a schedule if you’re doing a similar routine daily with them & will come out the same time nightly to greet you sometimes & some even do that in the mornings too. When looking for a tenrec, if you want one with a good temperament that is able to be handled easily & is friendly, then you need to make sure you get one who was handled a lot & socialized well as a baby because that makes a big difference with their long term temperament. We suggest getting a baby from a reputable breeder that tracks lineage to make sure inbreeding isn’t occurring with the lines, & because a reputable breeder is going to properly socialize their babies to ensure they’re friendly & calm. Rescues & ones from a questionable background may not have been properly socialized & so you’re more likely to get one that does ball up a lot, is huffy, always has their quills raised, hisses a lot, & bites a lot.
Tenrecs being nocturnal means they will generally only be awake during the night, if you want to interact with your tenrec while they’re awake then it’s best to wait till 8pm or later & then take them out. During the day tenrecs will be more calm & cuddly because they want to sleep, you can take them out of their cage during the day but just make sure you aren’t forcing them to stay awake because that can mess with their day/night cycle. If you take them out during the day just let them sleep if they want to sleep, it’s usually best to take them out with a snuggle sack/pouch or a blanket so they can snuggle up & sleep. Tenrecs aren’t really animals that “play” much, so play pens & toys kind of go to waste on them, but many do love to free roam outside in the grass during the spring to summer when it’s warm out, you just need to make sure you’re watching them so they don’t run off or get picked up by a bird of prey like a hawk or eagle. Tenrecs may seem slow, but they can run decently fast if they want to & owners have lost their tenrecs outside because they turned their backs on them for just a minute & they ran off. So they always need to be watched intently when outside. The temperature needs to be at least 72 degrees Fahrenheit/ 22 degrees Celsius outside to take them outside.
FEEDING:
Insects- Greater tenrecs should be offered insects at least a few times a week, but can be fed them daily. An example of what to feed a greater tenrec is 15-30 large superworms, 2-4 medium-large dubia roaches, & 2-4 medium-large hornworms. Tenrecs need to be fed live insects regularly & not freeze dried or canned, those can be given as occasional treats but not as their staple diet of insects. Tenrecs can eat a large variety of insects, they can have any feeder insect there is really. They should be offered a wide variety of different insects from a young age to try & keep their diet well balanced & varied like it would be in the wild. They should only be fed feeder insects, which are insects bred specifically to be fed, they shouldn’t be fed/given insects from the yard/outside or bait insects as they could have parasites or pesticides in them & that would be very harmful to them. Commonly fed insects are- superworms, mealworms, dubia roaches, hornworms, crickets, black soldier fly larvae/ Phoenix worms (they’re the same thing), waxworms, silkworms, & butterworms. Tenrecs can ingest large insects that are pretty big compared to their body size.
Tenrecs are pretty intense eaters, so if you want to hand feed them, make sure you use tweezers to give them the insect because they tend to mistake fingers & hands as their food also & will probably bite you, & tenrec bites can be nasty if they think you’re food because they won’t want to let go. We suggest just putting the insects into a dish & put it into their cage. You can get live insects from feeder insect breeders that sell online or from a pet store, online feeder insect breeders usually sell their insects in larger quantities so it is usually best to go to a pet store first to get smaller quantities of multiple insects for them to try them first to see if they like them before you start buying the insects in large amounts. Most pet stores sell cups of insects starting at 10-15 count & go up to 100-150 count. But pets stores do price gouge/overprice their insects pretty badly, so for the long term I wouldn’t suggest buying from pet stores if you have access to order from a good online feeder insect breeder because they’re much more cost effective to buy from than pet stores long term.
Make sure if you feed insects daily that they’re not high fat insects (like wax worms, butter worms, etc), tenrecs can become obese if fed lots of high fat insects or too many insects during each feeding. If your tenrec becomes overweight, start to slowly decrease their insect intake by a few each feeding time, they just need to be fed at least a 20 count of insects every few days.
Recommended feeder insect breeders:
- Flukers Farms
- Rainbow Mealworms
- Dubiaroaches.com
Protein:
Tenrecs do also need meat/animal protein in their diet, a good way to provide meat protein is to feed them cooked unseasoned meats weekly at least & you can give them thawed frozen pinkie mice. You can feed raw meats, but only if the meats are made to be fed raw to animals, meats from a grocery store aren’t made to be fed raw & usually contain bacteria’s like salmonella, etc. & need to be cooked in order to kill the bacteria in them to make them safe for consuming. Some pet stores & online companies sell raw meat for pets to specifically feed them a raw meat diet. We suggest you get frozen pinkie mice from feeder rodent breeders because their stock should be healthy, some pet stores do sell frozen pinkies but their stock comes from the same mills & backyard breeders they get their pet rodents from & those animals are usually sick & have diseases so you don’t want to feed potentially sick animals to your tenrec & it make them sick. If your tenrec is really picky you can feed them freeze dried raw meat kibble toppers crumbled into their kibble, most like that.
Recommended kibble toppers:
- Instinct rawboost freeze dried raw meat kibble toppers
At Quill Valley Exotics we make a homemade frozen food “mash” of organ meat, tenders meat, eggs, berries, & some good supplements. Our mashes ingredients, preparation instructions, & feeding instructions can be found below. We feed 1 tablespoon of mash on the days we don’t feed insects.
Ingredients for mash:
1lb of chicken hearts
1lb of chicken gizzards
1lb of chicken livers
2-3 chicken tenders
3/4 cup of strawberries
3/4 cup of blueberries
2 quail eggs
1-2 chicken eggs
2 TBSP of cricket powder
1 TBSP of collagen peptide powder
1 TBSP of flaxseed meal powder
1-1.5 TBSP of bone broth powder/liquid
1 tsp of Benebac probiotic powder
1 tsp of reptile calcium with vitamin D3 powder
Cooking & mixing instructions for mash:
Boil the hearts, gizzards, & liver in water for 5 minutes.
Boil the chicken tenders in water till fully cooked.
Use a food processor or blender to blend the organs & tenders up together with the strawberries & blueberries. Do this while everything is still scalding hot, so when you add the eggs while blending they get cooked. Quail eggs can be added in whole with the shell, don’t add the shell of the chicken eggs though.
Keep the water the organs were cooked in, to add to the food processor/ blender to help add moisture so the mash comes out the right consistency. You don’t want any big clumps of pieces, blend up until everything has been chopped up into a smooth consistency.
Storing instructions for mash:
We store our mash in silicone candy molds in the freezer for easy storage & distribution. To do this just use a piping bag with no tip or a ziplock bag with a corner cut off to fill the silicone molds with the mash. Cover the molds with Saran Wrap & put in a big ziplock bag in the freezer. They will last months in the freezer.
Feeding instructions for mash:
Take out one of the pieces of mash from the silicone mold in the freezer & put them in the cage 1-3 hours before you want your animal to eat them so they thaw out enough to be eaten.
Kibble: Tenrecs should have access to kibble at all times in their cages, the kibble should be high in protein & fat, we recommend 17-22% fat & 38-45% protein. The best kibble option to feed them is a high quality, high protein, & high fat kitten or cat food that has real meat as the first few ingredients & no fillers, by products, or dyes in it. Many cat foods have kibble pieces that are too big for tenrecs to be able to chew because tenrecs have small teeth & small mouths, so kitten food is a common choice for tenrec owners to use due to it’s kibble size usually being substantially smaller than a cat kibble is. But there are cat kibbles that have small enough kibble pieces for them to chew, listed below is a good kibble option. Tenrecs don’t usually like to eat much kibble, they prefer insects & other proteins, but they will munch on it here & there. They do need to have kibble in their diet to give them important nutrients that is in the kibble which they need to be healthy.
Recommended kibble:
- Farmina Natural & Delicious Grain-Free Formula dry cat food
- *This is the food we feed our tenrecs*
TREATS:
Greater tenrecs can have small amounts of fruits, cooked unseasoned eggs, baby foods can also be given as an occasional treat just make sure they don’t contain grains or pasta. We don’t recommend feeding vegetables because they can’t digest them well.
CAGING / ENCLOSURES:
Greater Madagascar tenrecs are semi arboreal animals, this means they’re climbers, however they don’t climb as much or as high as lesser tenrecs & tend to stay lower to the ground. The definition of semi arboreal is: often inhabiting & frequenting trees but not completely arboreal. Arboreal relating to animals means, living in trees. Greater tenrecs have long curled nails & their feet are made for gripping. So greater tenrecs can climb but they’re not always amazing climbers, they tend to do best in cages with minimal low climbing branches & not a super tall cage, rather one with more floor space than climbing vertical space.
We suggest using an enclosure that is at least 36 inches long by 18 inches wide by 18 inches tall. You can use enclosures that are larger, tenrecs do best in larger cages, that is just the minimum we suggest. We recommend enclosures that provide more floor space than climbing space for greater tenrecs, but the height should be a minimum of 18 inches.
Best types of enclosures for greater tenrecs are solid walled enclosures like terrariums & vivariums, or wire cages with ½ inch or less bar spacing because they can escape through anything larger than ½ an inch, & a solid floor. A terrarium or vivarium must have a completely vented top & preferably ventilation near the bottom of the cage as well.
Recommended cages:
- ReptiZoo 90 gallon terrarium (48”x24”x24”)
- Zen Habitat (4’x2’x2’) enclosure
- Dubia Roaches (4’x2’x2’) enclosure
- Zilla quick build terrarium (48”x18”x18”)
CAGE ACCESSORIES:
Exercise wheel:
Tenrecs need a wheel to get proper exercise, a wheel is a non-negotiable item. Tenrecs can have 2 different kinds of wheels, a solid surfaced running wheel & a wire/mesh wheel. We do suggest sticking to solid surface wheels because some tenrecs have gotten toes caught in the holes on wire ones & injured themselves. If using a wire wheel be very careful & watch them closely for any injuries. We don’t suggest using wire wheels with cross bars due to the rise of them catching a leg when getting off the wheel. The wheel must be a minimum of 12 inches in diameter & 5 inches running width.
Recommended solid surfaced wheels:
- Niteangle super silent running wheel, extra large (13”)
- Kaytee Comfort Wheel (giant, size 12”)
*(We don’t recommend wire/mesh wheels for tenrecs, we’ve had tenrecs get injured on them, & while these injuries happened once after years of use without issue, we won’t risk further injuries to our own tenrecs or others by recommending these type of wheels. We recommend solid surfaced wheels, if the tenrec is having issues with the smooth surface of the wheel then you can try adding bath tub anti slip grips on the wheels running surface & that can help, plus they’re washable. Don’t use fleece wheel covers for tenrecs wheels though, they’re fine & really great for animals like hedgehogs, but the animals nails must be kept trimmed to avoid catching nails in the fleece & ripping them & tenrecs have naturally long curled nails & need to have them long to be able to effectively climb. So it just wouldn’t be safe to give a tenrec a fleece wheel cover since their nails would get caught while running & could rip them off).*
BEDDING:
There’s a multitude of bedding options you can use for tenrecs, it’s best to use some kind of loose bedding/substrate so they can dig, burrow, build nests, & make tunnels which are natural behaviors they exhibit. Cedar & non kiln dried wood shavings are toxic to them. Popular bedding options are small pet paper bedding, aspen wood shavings, coco peat/loose coconut fiber, & reptile wood chips/mulch. Please keep in mind that all substrate should be frozen for a minimum for 24 hours & let thaw before use to kill off any possible mites in it, or you can apply kitten Revolution once a month topically to the tenrec (Revolution is an anti parasitic medicine safe for small animals). We recommend using paper bedding, it is soft, absorbent, easy for them to build tunnels with, & it’s not too expensive. We don’t recommend the use of fleece for their bedding, tenrecs aren’t domesticated animals & are still partially wild & still have the need to exhibit natural digging, burrowing, nest building behaviors & fleece won’t allow them to do these behaviors & that can be detrimental to their psychological health. Fleece can be used to cover secondary shelves in cages & cover wire ramps.
Recommended bedding:
- Small Pet Select natural paper bedding
- Small Pet Select aspen wood shavings
- Eco Earth coco peat/coconut fiber bedding
- ReptiChip compressed coconut chip substrate for reptiles (brick bedding)
- Fluker labs ReptiBark
HIDEOUTS / HOUSES:
Due to tenrecs being prey animals, they don’t like open space & prefer cluttered space so they feel more safe & secure. So, you want the cage floor to be filled ¾ the way with hides, logs, branches, tunnels, etc to provide lots of places for them to hide if they want to & so they feel covered in their cage & not exposed. Tenrecs must have at least one hiding place/house in their cage. Depending on the size of the cage you may need to add multiple hides. You can use wood hides, plastic hides, hay hides, snuggle sacks & other fleece bags, fleece made hides, etc. (NOTE: All items that are sewn must have hidden seams so the tenrecs cannot get any loose strings/threads wrapped around their feet, toes, head, nose, mouth, teeth, etc. which will easily cut off circulation and can turn into an emergency needing a vet a.s.a.p. Fabric hides should only have anti pill fleece on the inside, cotton or flannel can be used on the outside or fleece both inside & out. Felt isn’t safe to use for small animals). have
Recommended hides:
- Zilla durable den
- Lixit igloo
- Galapagos mossy dome reptile & amphibian terrarium accessory, fresh green
- Galapagos Sapa corner hideout reptile terrarium accessory, fresh green, 10
- Super Pet plastic tree trunk (Size large)
- Kaytee woodland getaway hideout (Size xlarge)
- Prevue pet products wood rabbit hut
TUNNELS:
PVC pipes make great tunnels, they’re easy to find, cheap, & easy to clean. Make sure you get 4” PVC pipes, bigger is fine but anything smaller & greater tenrecs won’t fit in them & could get stuck. Most tenrecs like the elbow & T-shape PVC pipes, they usually like when you get connector ones & make longer tunnels too. Cork & wood tunnels are great, so are pet plastic bendy tunnels & fleece tunnels can be used as well.
Recommended tunnels:
- Elbow 4” PVC pipe-
- Tee shape 4” PVC pipe
- Full cork round XL
- Wood tunnel
- Bendy tunnel
CLIMBING ACCESSORIES:
You want to make sure that the tenrec has some climbing accessories so that they can get the exercise they need since greater tenrecs are semi-arboreal animals. Semi-arboreal means that they’re somewhat climbers. Items like wood logs & branches (both real wood & fake are okay) are needed throughout the cage. Make sure the wood you use is untreated & is pet safe, it’s best to stick to pet store bought wood for reptiles & birds/ wood labeled for reptiles & birds because that is pet safe. It’s quite a process to clean & sterilize wood from outside, it can be done but you have to boil, scrub, & bake it. Also, not all wood is safe for them, please research small pet safe woods before using any outdoor wood. If you use fake branches make sure they’re thick enough to hold a tenrecs weight, many are sold to use for lighter weight reptiles.
Recommended branches & logs:
- Large grapevine log
- Zoo Med Mopani driftwood, large & jumbo
CAGE WALL & FLOOR ACCESSORIES:
Optional but recommended, we suggest using fake vines & fake plants to add clutter to the cage walls & floor & help make the tenrec feel more secure in their cage.
Recommended cage wall accessories:
- Fluker’s pothos repta vines
- Fluker’s red coleus repta vines
- Fake monstera leaf vine
- Fake Boston fern bush vines (2 pack)
Recommended cage floor accessories:
- Fake ficus plant
- Exo Terra rainforest ground plant
- Fake orchid grass
- Araceae fake plant
- Fake fern plant (2 pack)
- Exo Terra fake Boston fern plant
FOOD / WATER BOWL & INSECT DISHES:
Tenrecs don’t drink out of water bottles & need to always have access to fresh water in their cage. If you have a multi-level cage we recommend putting food & water on each level in case they don’t want to go all the way up or down the cage daily to get to food & water, that way they’ll never be far from it. For food & water bowls we suggest using ceramic or porcelain bowls that can hold at least a few ounces of water/ is at least approximately 4”Lx4”Wx2-3”H (for water bowl we suggest they be no more than 2.5”H), we suggest ceramic or porcelain because it’s less likely for them to tip them over. Tenrecs tend to put their paws on the edge of the bowl while eating & drinking & will tip over light weight bowls like plastic bowls.
For an insect dish you want to use a smooth sided dish with at least 3”H sides to the insect cant climb out. Ceramic or porcelain dishes are preferred so the tenrecs don’t tip over the dish while eating, when eating insects most try to climb inside the bowl. The bowl should be at least 4”Lx4”W. If feeding insects like roaches & some worms it’s best to use a curved lip dish because they can climb out of most other dishes even if taller.
Recommended food & water bowls:
- 6oz porcelain square dip bowl
- 4oz porcelain square dip bowl
- Living World ergonomic small pet ceramic dish
Recommended insect dishes:
- 7oz porcelain ramekin bowl
- Full Cheeks ceramic bowl
- Living World ergonomic small pet dish
BATHING & NAILS:
Tenrecs shouldn’t get water baths with soap, they don’t bathe in water in the wild & bathing them in water with soap will just remove the natural oils from their skin & dry it out. However, unlike lesser tenrecs who take sand baths because they’re from an arid desert environment with mainly sand, greater tenrecs don’t take sand baths because they’re instead from the forests where sand isn’t found. If given sand they will just use it as their restroom. Greater tenrecs don’t seem to bathe themselves.
As for their nails, tenrec nails are long & need to be in order for them to be able to grip & climb. They don’t usually need their nails trimmed unless they’re not able to wear their nails down on wood while climbing, this is how they would wear their nails down in the wild. Only if you notice their nails starting to flop over when they walk or they’re getting close to curling into their feet, then do they need their nails trimmed a little. Don’t cut their nails short because then they’ll be unable to climb properly & may injure themselves if they tried to. If you need to trim their nails, use regular human nail clippers, baby nail clippers, or cuticle clippers.
Recommended nail clippers:
- Regular human nail clippers
- Baby nail clippers
- Cuticle clippers