Last Tuesday evening my neighbour, Jackie brought her Scottie and Jack Russell for a walk up the lane past my house as she often did. She walked a few yards up the lane to make a phone call leaving the two rips on their own for a few minutes. All of a sudden, Jack Russell dived into the hedge and brought out a brown ball in his mouth, dropping it smartly and then brought out another and another. They were little baby hedgehogs. Neither of us knew what to do. I found a cardboard box, lined it with dry grasses and straw and brought them in. I knew that if we popped them back into the hedge their mother would reject them because of the scent of the dogs. I looked up the RSPCA site on the web. The advice - take them to an animal welfare site, which is fine if you don't live 2 miles from the middle of nowhere, it's not 8pm and the nearest site probably around 50 miles away. I found an old fleece hat, made a nest for them and fed them with warmed up semi skimmed milk through a small syringe. One didn't make it through the night but the other two are doing OK. Hopefully they'll make it and live and eat eat all the slugs munching on my cabbage and lettuce.
I was just talking to my brother about hedgehogs. We both have them residents in and around our gardens. I have a hedgehog highway across my lawn as they go between properties. Good luck with your babies. We don't feed them, they live wild so can't give you any help.
ReplyDeleteI don't know a lot about them either but looked up everything I could find on their care. It's very important to keep them warm and the milk, although not ideal seems to be suiting them OK. Have to warm that up to blood heat as well and feed them with a small syringe.
DeleteGood luck Moll.
ReplyDeleteOne week and they're still doing well. Fingers crossed.
DeleteYes, good luck with the kids.
ReplyDeleteThank you. So far so good.
DeleteHow cute - hope they are doing well.
ReplyDeleteHello Sue. Yes they are. Been busy clearing up and all that and now they're my priority.
DeleteGood luck Molly.
ReplyDeleteWe are lucky enough to have a hedgehog hospital just along the road, the woman who runs it is kept very busy!
Elaine that's really good. Don't know where our nearest rescue centre is. They're doing OK at the moment. I can see how that lady loves them and looks after them.
DeleteHedgehogs are extinct in North America and can only be found in zoos. I do wish we had them as they are so adorable. Molly, I hope you can save them but what will you do with them later?
ReplyDeleteThat's really sad that they're only in the zoos. If I can get them big enough and strong enough, the aim is to gradually get them back into the garden and back into their own natural habitat.
ReplyDeleteHow darling, I hope they survive. Hedgehogs are among my favorite animals. We don't have them in the USA, so you are fortunate where you live.
ReplyDeleteWe attempted to raise an abandoned baby Hedgehog a few years ago, it survived for about two weeks or so, then died. We were quite upset that all our attempts had come to nothing; we'd failed.
ReplyDeleteSo adorable! I hope they survive!
ReplyDeleteSandra xXx
Dear Molly,
ReplyDeleteI WISH YOU AND YOURS
A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS
FULL OF JOY AND HAPPINESS
BLESSINGS, KISSES, HUGS