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Original poster

Giant hedgehog living in my garden

243 replies

SinkGirl · 09/09/2019 21:07

A few times I’ve heard rustling in the hops plant by my kitchen and now I’ve seen it - a whopping great hedgehog.

I’m worried for the little guy - there’s so many cats in this area, will he get attacked? How’s he getting enough to eat?

Can’t put cat food out, the cats will eat it. What should I do? He’s so cute.

OP posts:
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39
MontStMichel · 12/09/2019 10:32

I always put the food out at 8.15 pm, and those pictures were taken mid summer, when it was going dark around 9.30 pm. Even so, the pictures came out lighter than the reality. I guess the camera used a long exposure, or maybe flash? That hedgehog was very tame - we had a BBQ one evening, and still she came out to eat and drink from the bowls for 45 minutes, six feet from us!

We are not the only people to feed hedgehogs round here. We also feed a lot of birds. The birds make quite a mess, chucking food off the feeders. I think it was the seed and fat on the ground that attracted the hedgehogs initially. Once I realised hedgehogs were eating it too, I thought hedgehog food would be better and safer for them, so put that out at night with water.

hogshonour · 12/09/2019 11:22

So they do come out in daylight, thats what it looked like. Having been told hogs that come out in daylight hours are ill, I was surprised to see those pics. They are wonderful. Would love to have that set up!

I keep being tempted to out out food, but do not want to draw other creatures that could cause problems, like other cats, or foxes, etc.

greathat · 12/09/2019 11:45

Caught these two having an argument over the food I'd put out the other evening. I give them a combo of chicken flavour cat biscuits and the dry Wilko hedgehog food. Lots are dying from dehydration this year so I've got several water dishes around the garden

Giant hedgehog living in my garden
greathat · 12/09/2019 11:48

We have at least one every day and there were two babies earlier in the year

userxx · 12/09/2019 13:45

@ MontStMichel Yep the hudding and puffing is usually mating. The problem is you will get little ones born too late in the year (Autumn Juveniles) too small to hibernate and need taking to a rescue to be over-wintered. Keep on the look out for them.

MrMeSeeks · 12/09/2019 13:48

FeelUselesss
Is that in your garden?????thats a pet hog!!! Should not be in the garden!!!

AlwaysOnAbloodyDiet · 12/09/2019 13:57

@MontStMichel I'd love to
see a picture of your hedgehog house

Where did you get it?

Dodger2 · 12/09/2019 14:42

Here are my six babies...sat for two hours watching mum take each one out to forage and walk back with them! So blessed...I live on a council estate in Liverpool so anyone can get them! I've put a small square hole in gate and fence so they can come and go ...this will help if you want to attract hogs .

dontpanicmrmainwaring · 12/09/2019 14:46

we have 4 we know of visit. watching them get in a tiff over the bowl is fascinating!

ArthurtheCatsHumanSlave · 12/09/2019 15:01

We've always had hedge pigs - very lucky, but we are semi-rural. We even had a nest with hog babies last year. Sadly they had to be rescued as they were very little, and they came out in late September looking for food, they went to be looked after at the local hog rescue as the mummy hog left them.

No-one mentions poo - but my goodness, our garden is full of it at the moment. Either we have a very large hog, or several running around fattening up for winter.

hogshonour · 12/09/2019 15:03

The ickle baby hog!

How sweeet!

Bit concerning that it has a sizeable tick and is so small, will it survive the winter this way?

StudentHelp · 12/09/2019 15:24

So jealous of all the hogs Sad

LaBelleSauvage123 · 12/09/2019 16:44

Do hibernating hedgehogs share hedgehog houses or should I get DH to make two?

MontStMichel · 12/09/2019 17:09

Here is the first one - I had to move a lot of the bushes out the way to take the photo, so normally it’s well hidden:

Giant hedgehog living in my garden
MontStMichel · 12/09/2019 17:10

Photo did not upload properly! Try again

Giant hedgehog living in my garden
MontStMichel · 12/09/2019 17:13

Here is where I got it from! DH laughed at me when I ordered it, saying it was a waste of money! Now we have 2 hedgehogs, he told me to get another one!

Giant hedgehog living in my garden
StoatofDisarray · 12/09/2019 17:20

This is the best thread on mumsnet today!

PurpleDaisies · 12/09/2019 17:20

Agreed. This should go in classics.

ILikeyourHairyHands · 12/09/2019 17:22

Here's mine! I may get him a house after reading this thread, he's currently inhabiting a couple of cut- down trees by the hedge.

Giant hedgehog living in my garden
hogshonour · 12/09/2019 17:26

I need to know how to make one not spend over £100 on ordering. How can I reuse wood that I have, for example, or any repurpose a container, for example.

I know others on the thread have been making them. How have you done it please?

AlwaysOnAbloodyDiet · 12/09/2019 18:39

I'm laughing at the idea of 2 @MontStMichel
I can just imagine an entire 'street' of hedgehog houses, or a circular housing estate of them in a corner of the garden

LaBelleSauvage123 · 12/09/2019 18:50

Hogshonour have a look at this
www.hedgehogstreet.org/help-hedgehogs/hedgehog-homes/

Ormally · 12/09/2019 18:51

There's a Hedgehog Watch website which has a map where you can report sightings and that's been quite fascinating, wondering whether they are the same ones that are moving between hedgehoggy habitat. We added a few visits over a short period and then have not seen the hog again so we think he somehow knew the cover was blown!

DMCWelshcakes · 12/09/2019 18:52

I want a hedgehog in my garden!

We have a fox & lots of bats in our back garden. I assume that the fox goes out around the front too but I've not seen it there.

I still want a hedgehog!

hogshonour · 12/09/2019 19:01

The best way to provide a nesting option for hedgehogs is by creating a natural feature, such as a compost heap or log pile, as this has the added benefit of encouraging insect prey to (extract from www.hedgehogstreet.org)

Thank you belle they look great. Wonderful humanity making little houses for our wildlife creatures. A piece of pipe and the top of a water butt! So inventive Grin