It’s that time of year when the days are getting shorter and shorter, the weather is getting worse and worse, and some animals are ready to spend the next chilly months buried in their burrows hibernating.
Still, these days the wildlife rescue centers are full of hedgehogs. Some of them needed help, but some, and it’s not a tiny amount, were picked unnecessarily.
When does a hedgehog need our help?
Suppose you find it in the daytime. Hedgehogs are nocturnal creatures. They sleep during the day and find their food when the sun goes down. If you see one during the day, it usually means it is ill, weak, injured, or starving (e.g., orphans). There is NO such thing as a healthy hedgehog snacking in the middle of a day in your backyard!
It is obviously struggling, shaking, spinning around, or lethargic. All these are the signs of an injury or an illness.
It is not big enough to hibernate successfully. What does that mean? Before it gets chilly outside, the hedgehog needs to gain enough weight. Its body temperature then drops to match its surroundings and enters a state of torpor (slows metabolism rate and all bodily functions to conserve energy). The energy needed is stored in the brown fat tissue on its back. But the term ‘enough weight’ might be tricky. We need to differentiate an adult and juvenile animals. An adult needs before hibernation 800–1000 g, but a juvenile needs only 500–600 g.
Points 1 and 2 are applicable all year round.
In any case, call a wildlife rescue center in your area. They will help you take care of it or guide you on what to do next.
How can we help them otherwise?
It is good to have a hedgehog in your neighbourhood as they prey on many common garden pests (insects, slimes, voles, or frogs). So even when they are not in dire need of our help, we can do small things to keep them around.
Ensure a safe passage to/from your garden. Just a big enough hole (13x13 cm; 5’1” x 5’1”) in your fence so it can go on or out of your garden as it pleases. One backyard is not enough for one hedgehog.
Diversity is key. To make your garden more appealing (and not only to the hedgehog), try planting different herbs, flowers, shrubs, and trees to lure more insects. Reduce the use of chemicals to a minimum (or preferably none).
Leave them a place where they can safely make their nest. It can be a pile of fallen leaves, logs, rocks, or compost. You can also build a shelter. Be careful when making a bonfire! Build one right before its lighting. Otherwise, you may accidentally kill an unsuspecting occupant.
Make sure your garden is safe. Do you have a pond? Great! But is it safe for animals to access it? What about holes or any other dangerous places? Also, some dogs love to catch anything that’s moving. They can also dig up already hibernating hedgehogs. If this happens, please get in touch with a wildlife rescue center.
Feed them. Hedgehogs are carnivores, and there is food for hedgehogs (dry and canned) available on the market, or you can feed them with high-quality cat food. If you don’t want to provide for the cats but want to feed the hedgehog, you can buy or make a hedgehog feeding station (yes, that’s a thing, Google it). Please don’t feed them biscuits, milk, apples, etc., as these are highly unsuitable food items for hedgehogs.
Provide water. During hot summer days or when it doesn’t rain much, it may be a real struggle for all critters in your neighbourhood to find water. A simple plate with fresh water will suffice. A large bowl might be dangerous as small animals may fall into it and drown if not adequately secured (e.g., putting stones inside to create an island to climb, levelling its edge with the terrain, etc.).
As you can see, making your garden a perfect home for the hedgehog is not as hard. In return, your garden will be healthy heaven for all animals, and you will help the biodiversity in your area.
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