One autumn evening in 2002 as we sat in our conservatory, a small hedgehog wandered into our back garden. Joan went out and offered him some dog food. He ate ravenously before continuing on his way.
The next morning Joan found him again. He was still in our garden; curled up but not hidden. Joan knew that that was not usual and thought something was the matter. She picked in up and brought him under cover. After ringing local pet shops and vets, eventually she found a local hedgehog carer, Sue.
Sue told us that the hedgehog was an “Autumn Juvenile”. He was born too late in the year and needed feeding up and over-wintering. This means he had to be kept warm, in a cage, and with plenty of food. That way he would stay awake, and not hibernate before he had enough body-weight. Joan decided to give it a go.
We called “our” hedgehog Spike. He survived the winter and we released him back into our garden in the spring. We had a hedgehog house in the garden and put food out each night. For some time Spike kept returning to out garden at night.
Sue kept in touch with us. When Spike was released, she asked Joan if she would like to try hand rearing some tiny, orphaned babies. They would need regular 2 hourly feeds of special milk from a syringe. Again Joan gave it a go; again the babies survived.
© Steve and Joan Lockley October 2007. All Rights Reserved
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