Did you know hedgehogs might be extinct by 2025?

[WTCT]

I became an accidental hedgehog fosterer this time last year.

I found a hedgehog in my garden that looked a bit small (tennis ball sized). I contacted a local wildlife rescue who confirmed it wouldn’t survive hibernation, but told me they were full.

They asked if I’d be prepared to foster it over winter (keep it inside, and warm so it didn’t hibernate... at that weight, she wouldn’t wake up from hibernation). I said yes, with their support.

What followed was a roller coaster 6 months. She was very poorly and needed lots of looking after. But, in April this year we released her. We saw her most nights for about 3 weeks, but then she vanished and we haven’t seen her again.

She may have found new territory. She may have come to an untimely end. We don’t know. But we do know she would never have survived her first winter.

Fast forward to this year... we now have 2 which we will ‘over winter’, and another one we found tonight (250g) who will go to the vet tomorrow as she’s poorly... making 3! 🦔🦔🦔

Anyway... the point of my post.

In the 1950’s there were around 30 million hedgehogs in the uk. Now there are less than 1m. Current projections show they may be extinct by 2025...

Can I ask you all to look out for them in your area? If they are less than grapefruit sized, please weigh them.

If they are under 600g, please take them indoors, get them warm, give them access to water and take them to a vet (who will pass them to a wildlife rescue) or contact a rescue direct?

Also... they survive by walking from garden to garden (up to 2 miles a night). Please consider putting CD sized holes in your fences to make their passage easier.

It would be such a shame to lose them all!

Thank you! 🦔

‘Splat’... found her at180g, now 575g and doing ok.

That photo doesn’t appear for me. Will post again if it doesn’t post for others.

It's there!

I don't see them at all, it makes me so sad.

I'd love to foster a hedgehog, but haven't been able to find out how.

I can see it! She’s beautiful.

How sad that they are so threatened. I remember them coming into my surburban garden when I was a child, but now nearly 40 years later it is years since I saw one. We have no chance of seeing any where I live, as we have a tiny walled garden in an inner London suburb. I wish I could do more.

Thanks for all you are doing for them, Op.

Oh no...
I'm glad you're looking out for these little guys though.

Elfie (originally Alfie!) rescued from our Cornish garden weighing only 50g, currently overwintering with a foster family. Mum Hazel had vanished but then returned, so we had some explaining to do!

That's so sad to think of. DS loves hedgehogs and they have been seen in our garden. How best can we attract them, OP? I've been thinking about one of the hedgehog shelters you can buy.

Unfortunately saw one got by a fox just a few weeks ago. Putting shelter out (lengths of guttering along fence Nicely weighted down) plus getting a shelter. Love them - thanks op for your work and for thread.

50g 😳😳😳

Wow! I thought 180g was low!

@picklemepopcorn if you have local wildlife rescues, contact them. They’re likely inundated at this time of year. 🦔

@Tolleshunt ... not everyone can he,o, but so good that people are conscious and looking out for them. If everyone did the same, so many would be rescued! 😍🦔

@NotBatman we do our best! We feed lots of garden visitors and keep an eye on them, which is how we found our latest!

@Tolleshunt help

I've had a family come all summer for their cat biscuits and then I've had at least one keep coming. I'd planned to weigh it at the end of Oct, not seen it since though

I love hedgehogs.... Haven't seen any here (SE) in 35 years. The problem mainly lies with the huge badger population and not being allowed to keep their numbers under control.

@ScouseQueen... put food out every night. It might take a while but why’re likely to find it eventually and when they do, they’ll keep coming back.

They like chicken/beef cat or dog food or you can get special hedgehog food. If you have other animals in the area who would steal the food, you can make a hedgehog feeding station quickly and easily... google it!

Also, you can buy a hedgehog house and pop it in the garden. If they’re about, chances are one of them will use it to hibernate.

Use shallow dishes for food and put down water too...

Good luck!

Yes, @orangeicecream.. badgers are their only normal natural predators.

Unusual (although not unheard of) for foxes to get them as @HeronLanyon saw 😢

We’re lucky here in that there aren’t any badgers.

We used to get hedgehogs in our garden. It's been quite a few years since we've seen one though, not since our neighbours got a dog that sleeps outside.

My aunt fostered a couple of hedgehogs when I was a child. They were babies and we helped look after them by syringing special milk into their mouths. She released them the following spring and they came back to her garden for many years (they had a distinctive marking that she recognised), possibly because she left food out for them.

The idea of hedgehogs becoming extinct makes me feel really sad. Me, my friend and my late nan are all hedgehog lovers (my friend even has a pet hedgehog!) I'll keep an eye out for any, they're so cute.

Also I once accidentally kicked one while walking home one night. I felt wretchedly guilty but the little thing seemed okay and pootled off quite happily. (I seem to have some weird run-ins with wildlife.)

This might be of interest:

www.hedgehogstreet.org/about-hedgehogs/hibernation/

I live in suburban London and never see them

This is so sad, I love them. Seen 2 in my garden over the past few weeks or so and found one out walking my dog a couple of months ago who looked like it'd been attacked or something 🥺 brought it home and got it to drink but sadly the poor little thing didn't survive the short journey to the vets. My local vets are fab with wildlife 🦔

Out of interest why are they becoming extinct?

If your garden is enclosed please make sure there is a gap that hoggies can fit through and make gardens friendly by putting covers on drains/ steps in ponds so they can climb out. I have a few visiting hogs and one that doesn’t hibernate so food gets put out all the year round!

I was looking at hedgehog houses in a garden centre yesterday, we haven't seen any for a while but they are around. We had a hole put in when we replaced our fence this summer. I bought some food but need to think of a sheltered spot to put it as it is raining so much at the moment.

Hollybolly.... Traffic running them over isn't great but it is mainly due to the laws now protecting badgers. Badgers love to eat hedgehogs. Where I am, rural farmland, the badgers were monitored in the past and selectively culled to prevent overpopulation but now the badgers are everywhere and...... No more hedgehogs. You could say survival of the fittest but I'd prefer hedgehogs to be around and not extinct. Contentious subject as you can imagine.

@HollyBollyBooBoo ... different problems for urban and rural hedgehogs...

More info here

Our garden is completely secure as we have an escape-artist tortoise, but a hedgehog has moved in. If there was a CD sized hole anywhere the tortoise would be a speck on the horizon, so hedgehogs must be able to climb six foot fences!

It was a good size so we didn't need to bring it in the house, which is just as well as it stank to high heaven.