Any hedgehogs out yet?

Pross

Saw another squashed one this morning - it's either a good sign that there are more around or a bad sign that traffic is getting worse and making it more likely they'll get killed.

First.Aspect

We still have coexisting hedgehog and badger visiting our garden.

Our younger cats are fascinated.

shortfall

First.Aspect said:

We still have coexisting hedgehog and badger visiting our garden.

Our younger cats are fascinated.

Not sure what Frank Wilson would make of that.

First.Aspect

shortfall said:

First.Aspect said:

We still have coexisting hedgehog and badger visiting our garden.

Our younger cats are fascinated.

Not sure what Frank Wilson would make of that.

It would make an interesting therapy session for someone.

mrb123

First.Aspect said:

We still have coexisting hedgehog and badger visiting our garden.

Our younger cats are fascinated.

Do you put any food out for the badger?

me-109

Yes ... the hedgehogs!

First.Aspect

mrb123 said:

First.Aspect said:

We still have coexisting hedgehog and badger visiting our garden.

Our younger cats are fascinated.

Do you put any food out for the badger?

mrb123 said:

First.Aspect said:

We still have coexisting hedgehog and badger visiting our garden.

Our younger cats are fascinated.

Do you put any food out for the badger?

Well they eat some of the same things, so yes.

First.Aspect

me-109 said:

Yes ... the hedgehogs!

It's overstated.

womack

Is anybody looking after the hedgehogs?

Some years back I had two gay hedgehogs on my rear lawn.

Having a right good time they were.

pinno

Yep. Belatedly built 3 Hog houses under the midden last winter and will check them out periodically when it gets chillier.

@orraloon has a couple pf characters who visit. Perhaps we'll get an update.

orraloon

Piggies still visiting for evening meals, looks like several visits per night. Daughter kept the feeds going while I was away for a week, dish emptied again last night.

Looks like accidentally kicking one of them in the dark a while back didn't bother her/him, or if it did then others have taken over.

Think my max at one time is 3, difficult to be certain in the dark as they scuttle about.

mrb123

Our two regulars still visiting nightly. Generally see one or the other but sometimes both.

As mentioned before, they really don't seem to get on. If they turn up at the same time the big one does a lot of hissing and puffing itself up. On a couple of occasions it has got so enraged that it has done a dirty protest in the entrance to the feeding box.

Mrs B bought a bag of hedgehog food from the pet shop but they don't seem too keen on it. The stuff they really like are Dreamies (or the supermarket own brand equivalent) which are little crunchy cat treat biscuits. If we put a mixture of the two in the bowl they will pick out the Dreamies and leave the other stuff. They also don't seem too keen on ordinary 'wet' cat food.

surrey_commuter

how are you lot ensuring you feed hedgehogs and not other unwanted wildlife?

mrb123

surrey_commuter said:

how are you lot ensuring you feed hedgehogs and not other unwanted wildlife?

Hedgehog feeding station we've made has a 5 inch square entrance hole, plus put a brick 5 inches from the entrance and one on top. That seems to keep the cats out.

TBH the hogs are usually in pretty much as soon as it gets dark so doesn't leave much chance for anything else to get a look in!

We do have a particularly bold blackbird that goes in the box during the day to clear up the crumbs but not too bothered about that.

pangolin

How do you find out whether there are any nearby hedgehogs who would benefit from some feeding?

mrb123

mrb123

mrb123

pangolin said:

How do you find out whether there are any nearby hedgehogs who would benefit from some feeding?

Do you see any squashed ones on the roads nearby to you?

Only way to find out is to give it a go with some food I suppose. You could try a motion sensitive wildlife camera. The turds are fairly distinctive too.

pangolin

mrb123 said:

pangolin said:

How do you find out whether there are any nearby hedgehogs who would benefit from some feeding?

Do you see any squashed ones on the roads nearby to you?

Only way to find out is to give it a go with some food I suppose. You could try a motion sensitive wildlife camera. The turds are fairly distinctive too.

Hmm no dead ones. We have a cemetery right behind us so some might live there.I think I'd need to cut a hole in the bottom of our rear fence though, but I'm not averse to that.

surrey_commuter

mrb123 said:

I am guessing you don’t have foxes

mrb123

surrey_commuter said:

mrb123 said:

I am guessing you don’t have foxes

No, we don't.

surrey_commuter

mrb123 said:

surrey_commuter said:

mrb123 said:

I am guessing you don’t have foxes

No, we don't.

I guess I need to anchor the box and have it deep enough that the fox can't reach the food

orraloon

I have an enclosed garden, no foxes and v few cats ever seen. There are small gaps under the closeboard fencing at the rear, piggies happy to squeeze through and roam the neighbouring gardens. Not sure where they are based, but must be rel close.

Feeding for me is simple, just put out in a terracotta dish type planter base. Haven't had to construct such feeder as mrb123 above, but good info for just in case.

Used Spike's Dinner brand, was given it by some friends. Replaced with an alt brand, of similar dry crunchy pellet style. Useful to hear the crunching if one is sitting outside in a warm weather (remember those times?) dusk, will hear some rustling then hear them eating so can focus the eyes to make them out in the low light / dark.

orraloon

Whichever of the hedgepig community has got in first tonight and is currently munching away, yeah thanks for poohing on the doormat. Que sera.

mrb123

orraloon said:

Whichever of the hedgepig community has got in first tonight and is currently munching away, yeah thanks for poohing on the doormat. Que sera.

We seem to be getting dead patches of grass where the turds have been. It's certainly no fertiliser.

rick_chasey

Almost trod on Ramon today.

Decided to hide behind a door which I use to take the bins out.

rjsterry

surrey_commuter said:

mrb123 said:

surrey_commuter said:

mrb123 said:

I am guessing you don’t have foxes

No, we don't.

I guess I need to anchor the box and have it deep enough that the fox can't reach the food

Half a dozen bricks and a 2' square paving slab would do it and be fox proof. Quite a work out lifting the 'lid' to put new food in though.

pinno

Paving slabs. Meh. Mind your fingers.

Employee came back to work after 2 weeks off. He had a serious black eye and a bash to the cheek bone. Was laying a slab, it slipped hitting the pinch bar he was using and the bar smacked him in the cheek bone. The bone had to be re-set.

pinno

As a suggestion: wooden box with a sliding lid.

rjsterry

pinno said:

Paving slabs. Meh. Mind your fingers.

Employee came back to work after 2 weeks off. He had a serious black eye and a bash to the cheek bone. Was laying a slab, it slipped hitting the pinch bar he was using and the bar smacked him in the cheek bone. The bone had to be re-set.

Ow. Yes, do take all H&S precautions when constructing your feeding station. Just that our local foxes will break through a wooden fence, so you would need something quite substantial.