Date/Time
Date(s) - 15/09/2023
7:30 pm
Location
Kilmington Village Hall
Categories
Our speaker on 15th September was Alison Foxcroft on the subject of ‘Hedgehogs in your Garden’. Alison set up and runs the Hedgehog Hut, a home-based first-aid and rehabilitation centre for sick or injured hedgehogs, and she is partly responsible for Kilmington’s large hedgehog community. Of the 775 hedgehogs cared for at the hospital, 70-75% have been released back into the wild but 150 have come in since April alone. Alison stressed that she could not do what she does without helpers like Lesley (Rew), who look after recovering hedgehogs until they can be released. They are usually released back to the area where they were found.
Although the subject of Alison’s talk was Hedgehogs in Your Garden, she freely admitted that she knows nothing about gardening! Instead, she shared her knowledge of hedgehogs to help gardeners be more aware of them and their habits and needs.
Hedgehogs have been around for 150 million years. They are insectivores and their diet consists mostly of beetles, caterpillars, grubs, earthworms, birds’ eggs, baby mice, froglets, carrion, slugs and snails (but both of these carry lungworm, a common health problem for hedgehogs). They have suffered persecution for many centuries but the Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981 now protects hedgehogs and further protection came in the Protection of Wildlife Mammals Act, 1996.
The main mating period is April-June and sometimes in late summer. Hedgehogs usually give birth in June and July, though the hoglet season can begin in early spring following a mild winter and stretch until autumn. The average litter size is four or five young, though can be as many as seven. However, they usually only wean two or three successfully.
The hoglets are born with their first spines, which are white, covered by skin. As soon as they are born, the spines start to come through.
The hedgehog’s natural predators are badgers, but Alison stressed that that is only if the balance of food changes, for example during a drought. Cats tend to avoid hedgehogs; foxes play with them. Their un-natural predators are human beings! There are only 800,000 hedgehogs left in this country largely but Alison gave us some useful tips on what we can do to help/encourage hedgehogs in our gardens.
Hedgehogs can travel up to 2km. at night so connectivity between gardens is essential. A small hole (CD size) in your fence or hedge will help your garden be accessible. Provide an environment that encourages their food such as log piles and ensure that you have plants such as dense shrubs that encourage insects in your garden. Be aware that bonfires and piles of leaves can be hiding places for hedgehogs and be careful where you use the lawn mower!
They are good swimmers but be sure to provide a slope in your pond so that they can escape. If your garden has steps, provide a brick in each corner so that the hedgehogs can climb more easily. Do remember that they need water so if you are feeding them, put out a shallow bowl with water alongside the food. Do not feed hedgehogs with bread and milk, as they are lactose intolerant. Moist cat or dog food goes down well as do dry cat/kitten/hog biscuits.
One common misconception is that hedgehogs are flea-bound and will pass them on to our pets and us, but fear not, their fleas are host-specific!
If you see a hedgehog staggering about during the day, it is unlikely that it is healthy, unless it is a female preparing a nest or feeding while her babies are asleep. If you find one wandering about, use gardening gloves or a towel to pick it up and put it in a high-sided box and keep it warm with a hot-water bottle under a blanket. If a hedgehog is unwell, it is often suffering from flystrike or tics.
Hoglets go off on their own when they weigh about 250g, but they need to be up to 500/600g to survive the winter. Alison recommends feeding hedgehogs throughout the year to help them survive. We need to do everything we can to protect them – if we do nothing it is predicted that they will be extinct by 2035. Alison asked that we do not use patio cleaner – which is left on overnight – as hedgehogs can ingest it.
Practical tips: Create a feeding station – a plastic storage box upside-down works well – cut holes for air and provide an entrance big enough for a hedgehog. To prevent rats, hang strips of black plastic at the entrance which seem to deter them. If you have a hedgehog house, place it in a quiet, sheltered spot. Put a ball of newspaper in the entrance and it will be moved if the house is being used. It is not necessary to clean the house more than once a year.
If you would like to support Alison’s hospital and her care for these very individual creatures, contact her on 07305-129160.