Hedgehogs, aren't we lucky


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We once found a hedge hog in our garden and it had fallen down a hole that my husband had dug ,we had been away and when we found it the poor thing was quite weak,we asked around and we were told to give it pet food but not milk and bread as we first thought,it soon recovered and left the garden one night never to be seen again,Don't get to Close Mick2me as they are full of fleas, that is how we knew we had one, our dog came in with her nose covered in jumping fleas.LOL

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Yes you are lucky, they seem to be very scarce these days. During the winter we saw a couple around where we live in Mapperley Park, just wandering about on the pavements, it was our dog on his late night walk that sniffed them out. Not seen them again for quite a while. Before that it had been years since we'd spotted one, even though we used to live in the countryside. I remember my younger brother bringing one home when he was a kid and putting it down on the kitchen floor and masses of fleas jumped out of it. Mum went mad!

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I was walking through Kirkby on Monday night, well after midnight (don't ask) and saw a hedgehog gradually working its way along Lowmoor Road, sniffing at everything it passed.

We had one in the garden every night for several months a few years ago. It had a regular round, patrolling my garden and others along the street. You could almost time it by when dusk arrived. One lunchtime, I saw it in the back garden in broad daylight, in the summer.

Then all of a sudden, it just never turned up again - run over or died, I guess :(

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If a hedgehog is out and about in the daytime it's usually a sign that there is something wrong with it, as they are nocturnal creatures, which is probably why you didn't see it again notty ash.

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I suspect it was just hungry - not much darkness in the summer to gather food! It was just sniffing around the back garden like at night. It was around for a while after that.

It was pretty safe in my back garden - the cats found it difficult to get in.

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My mum regularly had them in her back garden, in Woodthorpe up till she died in 2005, even had families of young one's she used to put food out for.

Remember as a kid, finding one and my dad thought he was doing it a favour by trying to rid it of fleas with powder, but sadly it died.

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we had one in our garden when we lived in cliftonone night we were woken up by our dog barking like mad something he very really did so i get up to go to investigatelokked out bedroom into front before i went downno sighn of anything nobody about when i get down stairs my do a small cross jack russlewas at the patio door stillbarking like mad looked out could not see anythingso opened the patio windoes to let him out just under the window step yes you guessed it a bloody hedgehog first thing dog does puts his nose on it covered in fleas got hold of his collor bats off as many as i could with my handof runs the hedgehog i spent the next hour bathing the dog with flea shampoo combing him and drying him before i could go to bed myself. the next 2 weeks or so was spraying flea killer on carpets curtains and furniture to make sure all the flas are gone but we were lucky and we never saw any so it must have done the trick.

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I know what you mean about the fleas Babs,it was quite funny really our dog didn't know what to do,there was fleas jumping all over her nose when we found the hedgehog,we soon got rid of the fleas no probs,

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Can you flea a hedghog?

Put some food down last night but not touched?

You can feed them cat food dry or tinned chicken but not fish.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Ah yes, the Hedgehog..... A flat creature that lives on roads. I know it well.

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Don't put bread & milk out for hedgepigs:

1) Milk is very bad for the teeth; bread and milk is especially bad, as it is too soft for
proper dental care.
2) Many animals are intolerant of the lactose in milk which can lead to diarrhoea,
dehydration and death.
3) Milk is iron deficient so in excess can cause dietary imbalance.
4) Milk will readily curdle if left for any length of time.
5) Milks that have been skimmed or semi-skimmed have had beneficial fat soluble
vitamins removed.
6) In drought conditions animals may drink milk rather than water, to their detriment.
7) Milk is an ideal medium for the proliferation of harmful bacteria in the stomach and
intestines.
[source: www.sttiggywinkles.org.uk]
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How can we help our garden hedgehogs?

1) By providing a compost heap or overgrown area of garden for sleeping in.

2) By providing tinned dog or cat food as a dietary supplement


[source: www.sttiggywinkles.org.uk]

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He's been out and about daily recently.

The dogs particularly the Springer is aware he sleeps under the shed during the day.

She crouches for hours with nose under the shed looking back at me from time to time and barking.

He has taken food from a dish now as recommended by that site.

Dried cat food (not fish). and i have given him a treat, Live mealworms.

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I had three a couple years back (When we had the cats) all of them were different sizes, I even went so far as to build a bit of hibernation place for them in the corner of the garden, i put a tin or so of cat food down in the spring but I'v not seen one this year.

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It's a well known misconception that hedgehogs hibernate. In fact they live to be just three seasons old and then curl up somehwere warm and die.

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I can tell we aren't having our little prickly friends visiting us this year, loads of effing slug trails every where!!

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Something just made my day! It's gone 1am... And I was just outside getting a hedgehog! I had been watching it for a while, then I saw a fox do its 'im gonna get you and eat you' watch/walk, so I grabbed an old bath mat and got the poor little thing, and popped him in my back garden with slugs and catfood & a few morio worms (similar to meal worms just fatter) I do want to keep him now, but I know I can't, I had to fight the temptation in putting him into my empty 6ft hutch!!

(Copied from the made my day thread)
Pixie
Thanks for that, I will look into them.
I am currently at the beetle stage of breeding some meal worms, hoping to get some fresh stock for the birds and Spiky if he is still around.
Anyone else tried breading their own?
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Your nearest fishing tackle shop should be able to supply you with some, or at least tell you where to get some from. (You could always try half a pint of maggots).

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Apparently one of the reasons for the decline in hedgehogs is the rise in the number of badgers, they predate on them. Seems we may be stuck between a rock and a hard place. Cull the badgers or watch the decline of hedgehogs?

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Pixie: I used to breed mealworms for a while. All you need is a bran tub and a slice of apple for moisture. On a small scale it can be done in a large Tupperware box or similar. Top up bran and replace apple slice when needed.

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oh i wish we had hedgehogs,no more slugs in the garden and all our plants would survive i do know you have to feed them dried cat or dog buiscuits to encourage them to come visiting,nothing fish flavoured,and then a nice little hideaway for them to hibernate when it gets really cold

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