What can I do about the hedgehog in the garden?

[hedgehogsos]

We have had a hedgehog that visits the garden in the evening for the last few months, which is lovely, BUT we have a small dog who thinks it is a prickly toy. Literally turns her into a slavering barking hellbeast and I’ve caught her with it in her mouth before.

As a result, been keeping her on the lead when I take her out at night for a wee at night, which she hates.

Let her out this morning around 6am, thinking it was ok, and have had to get on my hands and knees in the dark and prise the poor thing out of her mouth again. Blood and mud everywhere 😢 I’ve gone back out to check and hedgehog has gone so I hope it’s ok.

I can’t keep keeping dog on a lead, as it defeats the object of having a garden, and she hates it and refuses to go for a wee, but at the same time I don’t want the hedgehog to come to harm! Or the dog. Obviously I didn’t see the hedgehog this morning as it comes out right down the end of the garden or I wouldn’t have let dog out… its very stressful!

Can anyone help?

Muzzle the dog when you go out in the garden?

She’s got a very awkward shaped face that doesn’t fit a muzzle, I’ve tried 😫

Do you have a local wildlife charity who you could ask for advice or to help relocate the hedgehog? Particularly if it has been injured (no judgement-I had a dog who would happily cut it's mouth on prickles and worry about the pain later) it's probably in the hedgehog's best interests to find it a new home!

Surely the hedgehog will learn not to keep coming back. I’m assuming you're not leaving food out for it?

Oh goodness no, not leaving food out!!!! I would have thought it would have buggered off seeing as it has now ended up in the dog’s mouth twice, but apparently not.

I suspect it is living in the (very overgrown) bushes down the end of the garden so no idea how they would be able to find it…

I am very worried that it’s injured, due to the blood, although it could have well been the dog’s )checked her for any signs of injury and can’t see anything, so presumably she’s just been prickled), and as I said, the hedgehog was gone ten mins later when I went out to check on it after dealing with the ruined kitchen that was splattered with mud and blood.

We had this exact situation. My dog never injured the hedgehogs but loved to carry them around and bring them into the house. We relocated the hedgehog to a neighbour across the road on the advice of the local hedgehog rescue. They created a little hedgehog house and started feeding it. They now have a whole family in their garden and I’m not having to chase the dog around with a headtorch on!

Make sure your garden perimeter is blocked by fence so that hedgehogs can't get in. I too have a small dog who would see a small animal as a toy, but my garden is completely fenced, both to keep critters out and to keep my dog in.

I love hedgehogs, and would dearly love them in the garden, but I can't risk my dog hurting one. This situation is unfair to both the hedgehog (potentially getting fatally wounded) and the dog, who could also pick up a nasty injury from the spines (not to mention hedgehogs are often infested with fleas).

Call this number asap @hedgehogsos

And please take a look at this website on how to help hedgehogs generally - they are critically endangered

Find a local rescue and ask them to take it so it can be checked and released elsewhere.

@hedgehogsos my image is being reviewed still - please call this number asap

• For advice about hedgehog welfare, injuries and illness call 01584 890801

This is the Hedgehog Street website for anyone interested in helping hedgehogs - they are critically endangered

Can you move the hedgehog to somewhere safer? I had one in my garden and my dog kept going for it, so I picked the hedgehog up in a shovel and moved it to a field a 100 metres away

It’ll be hibernating soon, probably in the bushes you mention. Although it’s been quite mild. Hopefully the rescue can advise. We used to have rescue hogs in our garden. They stayed for three years and had babies. I miss them, watching them come out for food every evening was the highlight of my day.

I found out recently that hedgehogs can climb over fences (camera trap in relative’s garden). They can also climb trees!

I second the suggestion about contacting the hedgehog people for advice. But I just wanted to also mention that when we a hedgehog in the garden years ago, my dog did try to harm it but very rapidly learnt from the pain that it caused him. Subsequent attacks were just 'bark and retreat', sometimes putting his mouth on the hedgehog in a tentative exploratory way, but not worse than that. Still pretty awful for an endangered animal, but liveable with.

He was a very prey-driven little terrier, but even so he essentially admitted defeat. (He was the same with toads, which seem to have a bad taste that irritates attackers' mouths.) So you may find that your dog becomes less likely to cause harm.

Edited to add: Could the blood have been your dog's rather than the hedgehogs?

Just tried ringing, understandably as it is Sunday they are closed, so just listened to the advice. They said to pick it up and put it in a box and contact a local wildlife rescue place. Only issue is I don’t know where it’s gone!!!

I don’t think the dog will learn her lesson as she has not been blessed with brains and from this morning’s episode, the prickles don’t seem to put her off. I also think that as she’s been on the lead in the garden most of the time, it’s made the hedgehog even more attractive to her.