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I’ve had hedgehogs in my garden for some time, and the grunting and snorting of amorous goings-on are not unusual, sitting outside as it’s getting dark watching one of them snuffling around has become a regular evening thing. I put suet pellets out for the birds, and the ‘hogs seem to have taken a liking to those, and I’ve put out a couple of dishes of water as well, and two or three minutes of little lapping noises show they appreciate it.
Anyway, yesterday I was sat outside reading, and I saw something moving nearby, this was about 8.30, and it was a hedgehog, but not the usual one...
Today I came home from collecting a bunch of stones and ferns to go under my Acer, and started to water the garden, and noticed a bunch of feathers, one of the local cats had nailed a wood pigeon, then I noticed the hedgehog curled up in the grass nearby. I was worried the cat had got hold of it, but looking closely I could see it breathing! It had just got hot and gone to sleep out in the open. The hose is for scale, it’s just too cute for words, and it’s wandering around in front of me while I’m writing this.
I was woken a few nights ago by activity in the garden by our patio. It was loud, so I thought someone had climbed the fence. I squinted out into the early dawn light to see 3 hedgehogs cruising around on the patio. It needs repointing so has weed growth, I think they were hunting slugs and snails.
Awesome.
Hedgehogs are brilliant. Wish some would come and stay in my garden 😕
also love hogs, took a couple of underweight hogs to the care home last winter, hoping to see more this year.
borrowed a mates infra-red camera to see how much activity i had through the night. not a great deal but im hoping to be luckier this year.
Sorry to be negative but a hedgehog out in the daytime may not be a great sign, especially if not moving.
Give the old tiggwinkles a call.
https://www.sttiggywinkles.org.uk/top-navigation/wildlife-advice/hedgehog-fact-sheet.html
Amorous Hedgehogs used to get under the house we lived in New Zealand, it was up on low stilts, keeping us up at night with their grunty ruttings.
Yes really cute.
Was reading that there are many hoglets in trouble, mainly because the mothers are dehydrated in this heat, thus not feeding properly.
As written above check if this behaviour is ok?
I found one in our garden path early one morning, excitedly I bought some dog food and left a dish of food and a bowl of water for each of the following nights. It didn't come back 🙁
I really like hedgehogs!
[url= https://farm1.staticflickr.com/921/43152047031_b20183b3a9_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm1.staticflickr.com/921/43152047031_b20183b3a9_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/28KcwbT ]Hedgehog[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/sandwicheater/ ]Phil Dalton[/url], on Flickr
I had to remove a dead hedgehog from my garden this morning
Circle of life
I flipping LOVE hedgehogs!
Go hodgehegs!
Acers are also ace :).
Sorry to be negative but a hedgehog out in the daytime may not be a great sign, especially if not moving.
He wasn’t moving because he was fast asleep! I think he was a bit hot, really. (Gender is indeterminate, but ‘he’s’ been called George. There’s a good reason why...). When I started spraying water nearby, a few drops splashed him and he woke up, and toddled off.
Anyway, I didn’t see him around Monday or Tuesday, and I started to get a bit concerned, after all, a much larger ‘hog got run over a few yards down the road. The regular ‘hog came for lunch and a drink, when nearly dark, but last night, one turned up, munching on suet pellets, then another one, there was a fair amount of snorting and grunting going on, nose to nose, I’m sitting about four or five feet away, and I think there was a third one a bit further away, I couldn’t see clearly. They all went their separate ways after a bit, so I sat quiet for a bit longer to see if any of them came back, and to my delight George turned up! It was getting on for 11pm, so I guess he’s learning to find somewhere cool and quiet during the day, now.
Sat outside earlier tonight, and the regular adult was about, she, I think it’s a female, possibly George’s parent, spent nearly two minutes drinking, so the little dishes of water are proving their worth, then George practically walked between my feet! I’ll swear he’s getting bigger, not surprising with a regular diet of berry and mealworm infused suet pellets available.
Oddly enough, those little dishes of water, (there are three now), seem to be popular with the birds as well, when they’re on the ground going after the pellets - I guess it saves them having to fly up to the big birdbath.
These warm evenings mean I’ve been outside in my garden more than I ever have before, so I’m seeing activity that I would have missed before, plus starting to use suet pellets for the birds means the ‘hogs have found a food source that’s easier to get at than slugs when things are as dry as they are now.
More pics of George please?
I've never seen one in the flesh that wasn't flat. 🙁
I definitely have hog envy. More photos needed please count
Please keep us up to date on George's progress.
Much more difficult to photograph now, he’s started behaving like a hedgehog should, and coming round after about 10pm, like the others do. He was around last night, and I’m still sat outside at 1.12am, he was pottering around behind me snuffing around the plant pots and long planters, looking for stuff to eat. We’ve got some small glass globes with LED’s in hanging across the back of the house which give some faint light, and I could just see him, and another big ‘hog that ran past my feet. All’s quiet at the moment, and I think photos are no longer possible without flash, and that would disturb them too much. Nightime IR cameras are too expensive to consider at the moment, but he, and the other ‘hogs in the area seem to be doing fine at the moment.
One of my friends has a pet hedgehog. Constantly putting photos of it on facebook..
Update time. My g/f was woken up at 3am by noisy drunks nearby, so went outside for a smoke, and felt something prickly with her foot by the back door, there were four hedgehogs out in the garden, which confirmed my suspicions. And now, it’s possible there’s five, because George has a sibling, I’ve just been watching the two of them munching the suet pellets together and drinking from the water dishes!
It just gets better. 😁
A few years ago, I was awoken by some strange rustling and grunting sounds coming from the front garden.
I nipped out with a torch to investigate. I could see our hebe moving in time with the noise. I parted the bush (ahem) and there they were, plugging away with such fervour. Randy little sods!
Baby hedgehogs are the cutest things in the whole wide world.