hedgehogs may be extict in 17 years

Hi Sandra...
Thanks for reminding us about helping hedgehogs. x

thanx for reading it Terra i was shocked at declining numbers :o(

Its very sad :-( The use of slug pellets doesnt help either :-( I'll be doing my best to help them :-), thanks Sandra

One of the reasons I don't like the modern compost bins is that hedgehogs frequently hibernate inside an open heap - I used to contain mine on three sides with chicken wire and just chuck stuff on as I got it, turn it occasionally, and leave it over winter - open access for hedgehogs, and the corner the compost was in was left deliberately a little "wild" too. So, if you have a neighbour whose garden is overgrown and unkept, just remember - we need at least one of those in every street.

hi dawn it is very sad i agree, im going to be making a litle home at the back corner of the garden behind the trees, lots of brambles there and foilage to keep hedgehog warm and sheltered :o)
bamboo your so right, my grandad had an open composs with nothing , no wire, no boards just all dumped in the far part of the garden and he just kept it turned and left over winter for wildlife, i remember i had never seen worms sooo big, more like snakes lol, was good stuff

Have you just seen the hedgehog picture Stripes just posted ?

nope, i will take a look louise thanx

I havent seen a Hedgehog since we moved into the bungalow 5yrs ago, think its mainly because my garden has fence panels on concrete slabs so dont think they can get in, Marie next door only has fencing on one side and hedges along the other boundary so she does get frequent visits from them, I do miss them as I used to put food down every night and when my grandchildren were young and used to stay over they thought it a great treat to sit in the garden cuddled up in a blanket next to me and watch them, oh Happy Days ;0 )

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yes its a shame but at least you have some in the area carole with your neighbour,we have had new gates they arent solid, those metal ones but not sure how much room a hedgehog needs to get under so we leave it ajar at night so the hedgehog and come in if it wants to, :o)) its lovely to watch them isnt it,

If you have nt got a gap at the bottom of your gate they cannot enter your garden, I have place a box with straw in but never got one I think the cats have eaten the food which I have put out over the years.

just looked at bbc site and says dont put straw in box as they like to furnish themselves lol, i also put food but like you say cats also get to it morgana

Thanks Sandra

Havent seen our hedgehogs for about a month (they came every evening for the cat food) must have hibernated by now I suppose.

Thanks for letting us know this San. I didn't realise they were in such danger and I have a lovely area down the side of my shed where I will be building a veritable hotel for them. I tried last year not to put down any slug pellets but we were overrun with the little squidgeys so first thing tomorrow ...... I feel another blog coming on! Lol

Hey San...bushes, hedgerows & unkempt gardens you say? You've just described mine!! Should be perfect habitat for hedgepigs! Next door are trying to tempt them into their garden so I let them know when both our cats are in for the night so they can put cat food out & know who ate it!!

same here Drc havent seen mine in a couple of weeks so think your right.
nice one ian, hope you get tennents in the hoghotel lol
fluff i think my neighbours cat eats the food i put out some nights to, but plenty of slugs about with the rain :o)

Sorry Morgana Hedgehogs can and do climb. The spines on Hedgehogs also act as a soft cushion to deaden their fall they can climb up to 20ft - one scaled a six foot fence to get into our garden to get to the food.

really Drc,, i never knew that, i thought they just walked on the flat, 20ft wow

I read that article in ~GN too....,its quite frightening to think we may lose one of our most loved nocturnal "friends". Ahem...if you read GN regularly San, you may be interested in my monthly "piece"...next one due 3 November.......Hope you are recovering well...:))

thanx Amblealice, its the first time ive seen it, baz got it me on his way home to cheer me up :o) whats your monthly piece please , and yes im doing well thanx

Drc's right, they do climb - they're very shortsighted, apparently, and I saw some tv footage filmed at night, where they put a width of fence across an area they knew the hedgehog used. It was only 3 feet wide, but 6 feet high - when the hedgehog came, instead of going round it, he simply climbed up and dropped down the other side!

so they must have sharpe claws then to grip when climbing bamboo, i thought they would be able to sqeeze through the rails in my gate to, surely they can even though they look chubby they must flatten down a bit, do you think

To be fair, the fencing they climbed was that diamond shaped wire stuff, not sure how they'd get up a wooden fence, probably wouldn't be able to. They're pretty strong though - when my neighbour fitted a new wood panelled gate to his back garden, he made it flush with the concrete at the base, where it had had a gap before - that night I heard this cracking, splitting and bashing noise, went on for ages. When I went out with a torch and looked, it was a hedgehog, and he'd already managed to break off a portion of the wood in the gate at the bottom.

lol little monkey, he wasnt letting anything stop him getting his supper :o)

They grip on things like Ivy on a fence to get up and over Sanbaz.

well lots of ivy on my back fence so thats good, thanx for all this info Drc and bamboo :o))

Interesting blog Sanbaz, I didn't know they could climb either Drc.
Made me think back to when kids were little they came running in from the garden as they'd found a baby hedgehog , only very tiny didn't look well,I phoned the vet who gave me a number of a lady who looked after rescue hedgehogs, she came out but said she didn't think he'd survive as he was too young to leave his mother but took him anyway, phoned later in the day after she'd had him checked over at the vets, a fly had laid eggs in his eye luckily the vet managed to clean them out, poor little thing, anyway phoned back several months later to say he was ready to release and wanted to bring him back and let him loose in our garden were he was found, lovely to see him scuttling off into bushes.

aww what a sad story but a happy ending simbad, thanx, glad you liked my blog to :o)

I read that article today and like you I willbe making the garden as hedgehog friendly as is possible with all my dogs. In fact the new place has a strip of land outside of the back garden fence which is part of the property so I will plant up etc so they don't have a problem with the fencing. I have one that regularly comes across this front garden at night and there are plenty of slugs and snails around for them

thats great pip thanx for helping them, sounds a good spot for them, lots of foilage about to cover the house from other preditors like fox`s etc, :o)

Ok, perfect excuse to let my grass grow!
Great blog, San! Well done! We've had the odd mild night lately & Iggle Piggle & Hetty come out when its warm enough! I think I'll open the 'door of my compost bin too, as its not TOO full, so theyd fit in there ok!

Aww thats sad Sandra, I have a hedgehog house at the very back of my shed, and it does get residents from time to time, I am not sure if there is one in at the moment as I have seen tracks across my lawn the last day or two, I just bought some hedgehog food from Wilkies today.

What's in it, Bob?

hedgehog food? Never heard of it. Don't you worry about attracting rats when you feed them, Bob?

I always feed mine, Bamboo! Iggle Piggle even brings his girlfriend to dinner now!

great idea opening up composs bin mari, just dont forget they may be in there, so no turning the composs through winter ;o)
it is very sad bob and thanx for looking, glad you are doing your bit to,and yes ive heard of hedgehog food to,
the thing is rats are about anyway and its not like we are leaving piles of rubbish and waste food laying around, so dont think its going to do anything bad, there are rats where you wouldnt believe, even can come up through the toilet, so watch ya bums lol

Good morning all.
Marie I just read the ingredients and it says dried fruits, berries and nuts made into crunchy nuggets, they seem to like it 'coz what I put out last night has gone, unless it is the wood pigeons thats had it away.
Not seen any rats as yet Bamboo, but I don't put too much out.
Your right Sandra, rats get where water cannot.

Just read your blog how sad it is about them i think they are lovely, have'nt seen one in my garden for about 10yrs now, but wrote down phone number and will give them a ring later, going for lunch with one of my daughters

Please remember to leave out water but no milk it gives them the trots. The official hedgehog sites also asks that if you leave out food for them that you continue even when your on holiday! We had to get a quiet bowl because when its empty they played with it.

hi carol, thanx for taking an interest and have a lovely time with daughter :o))
yes your right about milk Drc, ive read that, surprising how many leave bread and milk but not good at all, thanx for pointing that out , lol about the bowl change :o)

Getting hedgehogs here in the "chocolate garden", with high fences, busy roads, and 10mins walk from large town centre. But - Many Thanks for relaying this, Sandra - I never even thought about it!! In the Western Isles of Scotland, they were culling hedgehogs because they were eating the eggs of endangered bird species!!! Shouldn't they have just "re-located" these wonderful friends of ours?

thanx david for looking here, glad you get some in the chocolate garden, and yes your right about relocating them, but guess that wouldnt be cost affective would it:o( thats the usual excuse from council officalls and goverment people,,anyway hope you enjoy your sprickly friends david, keep up the good work :o)

Somehow, I think that it would be cost-effective (not sure, though). Anyway, something like this should not be weighed as to "cost". Where are the so-called "green" people, from all bodies, when we so obviously think that they have got their collective heads together?? I don't think that one group remotely corresponds with another, at all! (and at great expense)! Waste of taxpayers' money!! - and, to the detriment of our garden friends!!

May have to go eat, myself. Recent things here making "my blood boil"!! LOL!!!

:-)) (Hope your recovery is going well!)

thanx david, i know what you mean certain things get the blood boiling,
im doing great thanx , alot better each day ;o)

awww so sweet
such a shame isnt it, our neighbours said they have regular hedghogs snuffling round and Ive noticed there poop in our garden too
so we always get a tin of cat food and put some out.

remember to check all piles of leaves or areas where you are planning on having bonfires as this is where they like to curl up!!

x xx x

thanx jen and yes another good reminder for bonefires, i bet half the ones for public display dont do checks as the bonefires are so high, makes you think doesnt it jen xx

they probably dont San which is very sad as lots could have snuggled up inside.
Horrible horrible thought

x x x

doesnt bare thinking about :o( x

San is a sprickly friend the same as a prickly one? Lol I just had to get that in. :~)))))

lmso ian, touch`e if ive spelt that right to hehehe, you got me back then

I'll try to remember not to turn my compost, San! LOL! As if I ever do, anyway!

At this link there is a hedgehog climbing a full flight of stairs www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zn1gnzaq-jI at the end you seeit little face.

lol mari,, well you never know mari :o))
thanx Drc will take a look :o)

LMSS San, just thought I would :~)))

:o)~~

:~))

thats so cool Drc lol bless

LOL! Cute! Healerwitch tells me you can only get hedgehogs in the petshops where she lives!

aww how sweet mari, bit hard to cuddle though lol

I suppose if you get them young, they'd let you cuddle them!

You wouldn't want to though, they're usually chock full of fleas and ticks...

I think those ones are bred in captivity, its in America, & theyre not wild there!

If you delouse them Madperth they die as their blood is geared to the large numbers of fleas that live on each of them.

Very handy to know that, as I was tempted, cos of Smudge!

Good blog Sanbaz. We really must look after them. I have not seen mine for a while but I spotted some droppings earlier this week so I have started putting out Loozies reject food again. (She’s a fussy little beggar sometimes.) Something is eating it – hope it’s the Tiggies.
They have plenty of good hiding places in my orchard-cum-jungle which I am gradually clearing, though. (It’s probably THE unkempt one in my street, Bamboo!). I also have a large compost heap hidden in a back corner – never less than 4 feet high, so there’s a place for them there. My bin is just for convenience.
You will find an interesting item on a “Hegehog Friendly Garden” at www.igel.de/english/garden.
Seems the Germans are fond of them as well!

thanx for your input ponty i will take a look at the hedgehog link thankyou, seems you have lots of places for them to shelter over winter so good for you :o))

Ooo Oooo San, I forgot to tell you! ! ! ! !
I have made a tiggie house out of an old black water tank. The ones you have in your loft, A neighbour of ours has had one of them 'hot water on demand' type of systems put in and did away with these tanks so I cut a hole in one and made a 'tunnel' out of some timber and nailed it on and now some of the straw I put down has been dragged inside so I think it's already been 'let out'! ! ! :~)))))))))))))))

wow thats great news ian, bet they are well pleased with their new home,im still waiting for baz to make mine, but think i my hedgehog maybe under shed, apparently they do that if your shed is slightly raised which ours is :o)

Sorry San, I do get carried away. Lol.
I think it's perfect, waterproof and dark and out of the way! I put it down the side of the shed where no one can get at it (and I didn't tell Holly where it is! ! !) Lol :~))

sounds great ian and yes out of the way, holly may disturb them if she knows, a child thing but best left alone once you have tennents,:o))

Thanks San. ;~)))

:o)) hope you get babys next year if you have a tennent ian ;

Do you think we will?

dont see why not ian if you get a pair of hoggys with you, time will tell ;o))

Well I ain't sticking a video camera in there to find out. But it does begger the question. HOW?
Answers on a post card please! Lol

Well I ain't sticking a video camera in there to find out. But it does begger the question. HOW?
Answers on a post card please! Lol

I think I've overdone it with the medicine, I'm seeing double? ? ?

i wouldnt put anything inside ian now you may have residents, think that should have been placed before. so next option would be one close to it so to see if any hoggies about, going in or out :o)

Good idea, the only trouble is we have two camera's but they are on constant alert for naughty neighbours! :~((

:o(( of well maybe some time when the naughty neighbours grow up ian

I wish San, I wish!

i always think it will come back and hit them in the face one day ian, what goes around comes around,,, so they say ;o))

Oh yes definitely San, what goes around! :~))

Good job on the Tiggy house, Digger!

I'm over the moon, and we might get babies! :~)))))))))))))

I'm hoping my two have babies as well! They're so cute!

You've got yours house trained almost haven't you?

By the way, I've succummed and bought herself a lappy!

LMAO!! Knewyou would! My pc has gone loopy, everything's too big on it!!

Don't be bragging on here! Lol

LOL! I'm a girl, I'm not bragging, I'm complaining! Its driving me nuts, & I'm already within walking distance!!

LMSO ;~)))