Prospect is excited to welcome a new spiky friend to the building! Nick Delboccio, who runs Zoo Club, recently adopted a hedgehog -a new addition to the many creatures kept in room 322. Delboccio is very passionate about animals and has been interested in getting a hedgehog for years. Other species kept at Prospect include snakes, lizards, and even a chinchilla.

“I’ve been this way since I was a little kid, always interested in animals,” Delboccio said. “It’s just natural, I love animals, it doesn’t matter what kind.”

The recent addition, Penelope “Poppie” Quinn, was born September 6, 2025. She is an African Pygmy hedgehog, also known as a four-toed hedgehog, or more scientifically as Atelerix Albiventris. In the wild these little mammals can be found in parts of Africa, but Poppie herself hails from Morning Star Hedgehogs, a breeding location in the suburbs of Chicago, operating since 2011. 

Delboccio first became interested in owning a hedgehog two years ago. His reasons were simple: “They’re just so cute,” Delboccio said.

Delboccio describes Poppie as being curious and investigative, since in the wild hedgehogs are constantly looking for potential food sources. Due to her young age Poppie is also very cautious and easily becomes anxious. Their sense of sight is very poor as opposed to their hearing, so any sudden movements and sounds may cause Poppie to throw up her spikes while she becomes accustomed to her new environment.

Hedgehogs require a very specific care regime, leading Delboccio to purchase the gerbil Steve instead a few years back. Unfortunately Steve passed in March 2025, after living a long gerbil life, which reopened the possibility of a quilled creature at Prospect. Due to the specific needs of hedgehogs, Morning Star was initially hesitant to adopt one out as a classroom pet. 

“They’re obviously pretty protective of hedgehogs, but I’m not the kind of teacher who’s just going to throw one into an [unsafe] environment,” said Delboccio. “I knew myself, and decided ‘let’s go with it’”

One extremely important aspect of hedgehog care is maintaining a small temperature range of about 75-80 degrees Fahrenheit. Although they can live outside that range for short periods of time, it can potentially induce a hibernation cycle, which is almost always fatal in pet hedgehogs. To combat this, Delboccio established an elaborate system using heating coils, a thermostat set to 77 degrees, and an alarm that goes off whenever the temperature exceeds the proper range. So far this system has been successful. 

When transporting her from school to home, Delboccio uses a small carrying bag in the car and a second enclosure at his house. After turning on the heated seats and burying her in blankets, Poppie is toasty and ready for the car ride. 

The other consideration when owning a hedgehog is that they’re nocturnal animals, and will also try to hibernate if they don’t get enough rest. For this reason Poppie is likely going to have a very strict schedule of when she’ll be allowed outside her enclosure to ensure she gets her beauty sleep. 

Poppie is currently staying at Delboccio’s house until after winter break, when she’ll hopefully be kept at school from Tuesday through Thursday. In the meantime, students are welcome to donate small toys and dried crickets to welcome her. It is imperative that these toys don’t have any loops or rings attached, since her teeth can get stuck while chewing, and the only way to free her is by literally breaking those teeth! Instead, Delboccio recommends soft toys made of felt or baby bird cloths, since she loves to burrow. 

“I’ll find her in the morning, and instead of sleeping in her tent I just see a bump under the blankets,” Delboccio said. 

What does a day in the life of Poppie look like? While staying at Delboccio’s home, she sleeps all day and is left alone until about 7 PM. She is taken out and held for half an hour to get used to human scent, and then runs around in a large playpen until she tries to climb out herself. At that time she is placed back inside her enclosure and runs on her hamster-like wheel for hours. Despite her cute looks, Poppie is almost completely carnivorous, eating a mixture of cat food and insects. Hedgehogs are also known to enjoy water, and once Poppie is better adjusted she’ll get plenty of baths. 

“Supposedly they only need to bathe every few months, but they’re pretty cute in water, so we’ll probably do that more often,” said Delboccio. 

Poppie is unique among other hedgehogs due to a special mutation causing white spots on her fur and quills. There are a variety of looks each hedgehog can have, but it’s difficult to know what they’ll look like exactly until they’re fully grown. Poppie is estimated to double in her current size, comparable to a guinea pig. 

Students will likely be able to hold Poppie later in the school year, depending on how long it takes for her to adjust. Although spiky, there are no risks to holding a hedgehog beyond a mild prickly feeling. Most likely kids will hold her while she’s wrapped in a blanket for everyone’s comfort. Delboccio has planned a rotating schedule of when she’ll be taken out to ensure all students get to see her, but that she won’t be disturbed too much during the day. 

If you’re interested in the other animals Prospect has to offer, Zoo Club meets the first and third Monday of each month, resuming in January after finals. 

WATCH A VIDEO OF POPPIE: