To ask you to please help hedgehogs and other wildlife prepare for winter

[Pricklesinperil]

It is literally a lifeline for them as the weather gets warmer.

if you’d like to know about other ways to help, please go to Help hedgehogs

thank you

Note from MNHQ - please do read the Op's latest update (October 2022) before responding.

I haven't seen any sign of my hog for a few days now 😢😢- no poo, no food being eaten, no noises. I'm hoping she''s just gone visiting and will be back soon. Garden had a tidy up over the bank holiday so it's not quite as hedgehog friendly as it was but I'm planning to plant lots of ground cover plants and a few more bushes to replace the horrible hawthorn that was pulled out!

Hoping your hog returns Blobby. Sounds like you had a battle with ripping out the hawthorn!

Not a hedgehog - what can we do to help a scruffy looking young robin? We've got the bowl of water out and that gets changed and cleaned twice a day as its most often used as a sparrow bath. I've also got a worm patch that I keep damp, and I dig it over in the late afternoon for him.

TheInebriati thank you for caring. Sounds like you’re already helping him/her. Have a look at these links from the RSPB to see if they answer your question - please post back if they don’t

RSPB - found a young bird

RSPB - helping birds

Here’s the 2021 Annual Review from the PTES (People’s Trust for Endangered Species) which includes hedgehogs. PTES, together with the British Hedgehog Preservation Society created Hedgehog Street

You can follow PTES on facebook.com/ptes.org
twitter.com/PTES
instagram.com/ptes_org

PTES 2021 Review

Thank you for the links, I think we are pretty much doing everything we can. I worry about him because he seems very tame, I can get quite close and throw worms to him, but all the neighbours have cats.

You’re welcome TheInebriati. Hoping your little robin has a happy outcome. If you haven’t already, please chat to your neighbours about how they can help prevent their beloved pets killing wildlife. It may seem obvious but some owners are genuinely unaware. RSPB - stop cats killing wildlife

Early evening bump- it’s still so dry here on the south coast

Still no rain here on the south coast!

Interesting read from the RSPB about how a community in Essex came together to help wildlife Making a town buzz again

It still hasn’t rained here on the South Coast! The weather forecast keeps promising rain but then updates to say it will be tomorrow and so on

Pic of my regular hog tonight! Still really dry here since leave water out for wildlife if you can.

Ooooh what a sweet photo Lonely!

thank you for posting - I was wondering if I’d committed some faux-pas by the way I was handling the thread as no-one has posted for ages.

if you’re reading this and I’ve done something wrong, please tell me! I only want to help hedgehogs and other wildlife

Thanks Prickles, never seen a hog drinking before! I don’t think you did anything wrong btw, it’s probably more because a fair bit of the country has had a little bit of rain recently (came down here quite heavily last night) and the heatwaves gone now, so it’s less obvious that wildlife needs help. Am sure over there coming weeks we’ll get more rain, so I’m now concentrating more on putting food out, to give the hedgehogs a bit of a boost before they hibernate.

I’ve been leaving water out thanks to your suggestion (you advised me what dish to buy). And last night we had a hedgehog visit. I don’t know how long he’s been coming, but just ordered another dish and some food. My challenge will be keeping the Labrador away from the food!

My challenge will be keeping the Labrador away from the food!

Yes it’s tricky making sure it gets eaten by the right creature! Local mogs are my problem, hopping over the fence for second dinner. And the magpies.

I put my food out really late on, around 9 onwards, sure enough, that’s around when my hog appears.

Here was last nights visitor

Ahhh bless!🥰

Not a hedgehog - what can we do to help a scruffy looking young robin? We've got the bowl of water out and that gets changed and cleaned twice a day as its most often used as a sparrow bath. I've also got a worm patch that I keep damp, and I dig it over in the late afternoon for him.

Its probably in the post breeding moult, unless you know for sure its a juvenile from this year. Put up a bird feeder; or scatter seed on the ground. Ime, robins can use our bird feeders, but generally they prefer to feed on the ground? We have a small bird cover (like a cage that sits on the ground), which allows small birds through the bars, but not larger birds like wood pigeons, magpies, sparrowhawks, etc. Sparrowhawks do a swoop around sometimes, and at least the small birds are safe, feeding on the ground.

We put out for the birds (in either the feeders or on the ground) sunflower hearts, a robin and songbird seed mix, peanuts (not that the robins go for them usually), suet blocks, suet balls and occasionally meal worms or suet pellets. Most food goes in the feeders, and we only put enough food on the ground, so that it is all gone by tea time, as we don't want the hedgehogs eating mealworms, peanuts or sunflower hearts in the evening!

I still haven't seen a hedgehog in our garden recently; but they run under our side gate, and along the side of the house - I saw four fresh hedgehog droppings there yesterday.

You’ve done marvellously by providing water - as you can see from your lovely photo, they do get so thirsty.

good point about the food, the hot weather has made the ground difficult for the hedgehogs to dig in so they are likely not to have found as much food as usual.

hedgehog street says this about September /Hedgehog lifecycle
^^
September
Some mature females may have mated for a second time and thus repeating the events of the last couple of months, however, with their natural diet becoming scarcer in the autumn, late litters will struggle to gain the fat reserves necessary for hibernation and need our help.

😀Clova

so happy to hear you’ve had a visitor! If you haven’t already, please log your visitor on The big hedgehog map

lol at your Labrador! Lots of other posters have experienced the same problem with dogs, cats and foxes. You could try making a hedgehog feeding station

That is a lovely photo Always! There have been so many lovely pictures shred on this thread - everyone is so good at taking hedgehog photos!

if you haven’t already, please log your hedgehog visitor on the big hedgehog map

Thanks for updating the thread title for me MNHQ - forward into Autumn

Prickles I have just been busy - no faux pas that I can see!!

our hog is coming every night. Drinking absolutely loads and nibbling some good too. We’ve also ended up feeding a stray cat that the rescue is trying to trap and rehome. So if anyone in SE wants a beautiful neutered Tom DM me!

A bit fuzzy as a I zoomed in so as not to startle it.

I see then every night. My garden is a giant Hoggy litter tray. I care not one jot. They bring me so much joy.