Hedgehogs - MISSING. Can you help...?

I've been meaning to post this for awhile, last month, my sister spotted a hedgehog in our garden. He or she was curled up in a corner behind some wood either trying to remain warm or to just hide from us and hope we never saw him.

Naughty of us really, we brought him into the kitchen and gave the little fellow a rather large 50g portion of wet cat food, beef of course.

Hedgehogs are wild animals so bringing him into the house was the wrong thing to do but he seemed grateful for the large amount of free food!

A small booklet from the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust came through the door the other day with tips and advice on how to help our prickly friends. Since the 1950's, over 95% of Britain's hedgehogs have disappeared.

Hedgehogs need a variety of habitats:

 Woodlands and meadows to forage in.

Gardens with hedgehog sized doorways to wander through on the search for food.

Hedgerows to provide cover from predators whilst on the move.

And a plentiful supple of yummy insects and juicy slugs!

Pictures: http://campaign.justgiving.com/charity/yorkshirewildlife/hedgehog

However, these 4 simple points are now hard to come by. Slug pellets are being used more and more. Stone built garden walls and fencing have replaced the natural hedgerows dividing each garden. Woodland and meadows are being built on. Front gardens are being replaced with parking spaces and the main culprit, roads are dividing what natural habitats remain.

But how can we help? Well there is one very easy step which involves donating money to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and letting them do the rest. Of course, if there is a Wildlife Trust near to you, then chances are they'll be doing the same appeal!

Or, if you want to be more hands on like me, visit the the website for a 'Hog Hole' template to create Hedgehog Highways through your garden and your neighbour's. A small dug out hole going underneath boundaries will also do.

As a natural pest control, slug pellets and insecticides shouldn't be needed. Encouraging the spiky hogs will keep you vegetables safe!

Remember, remember at the start of November to check your bonfires. What you might see as a pile of leaves and twigs to discard and burn, is the ideal spot for a hedgehog to snooze throughout the winter.

Build a home. An old wooden crate with a 13 x 13cm doorway will do perfectly. Use dried grass and leaves as bedding and cover the outside with hedge trimmings to create a natural layer on insulation, to prevent cold drats from entering through the door and to make your visitor feel more protected.

More information on how to help can be found here:
http://www.ywt.org.uk/hedgehog

There are so many ways to make your garden hedgehog friendly. If you have a hedgehog in your garden then help it along with NONE fish cat food. They also DON'T drink milk so please avoid giving them fish and milk at all costs.
If you're from Yorkshire, then your hedgehog sightings can be entered into the iSpy a Hedgehog website.

http://hedgehogs.ywt.org.uk/

I've entered mine, have you?