How can I help the hogs?
don't ask yourself what the wildlife can do for you, ask yourself what you can do for the wildlife
People sometimes ask this online so let's look. This is mostly centred on European Hedgehogs as I'm in the UK.
Always check around your garden before using dangerous tools like strimmers and discourage pets or children from interacting with wildlife (for their sake too, wild hedgehogs carry communicable diseases). Don't litter and pick up any litter you see as hogs can get stuck in it.
1. Safety first!
hurt my wild cousins and face my wrath
Habit segmentation is a big problem for hedgehogs who roam several kilometres a night foraging. Giving them an easy way in and out of your property is one of the best things you can do for them.
2. Hedgehog Highways
im on the hiiighhhwayyyy to HOG
A source of water can benefit many animals in your local environment. And whilst leaving out food is fine, the best way to help is by promoting a source of natural food. Having an insect friendly garden or 'wild' area of your garden (preferably with native plants!) will help more than just the hedgehogs.
3. Food and water
If you want to leave food, make it grain free cat or dog kibble. Hedgehogs only use these as supplimentry so you don't have to worry about dependency but do be mindful of other local species in your area. If one type of food may harm another, keep it out of reach. Mealworms are bad for hedgehogs but good for birds, so keep them off the ground.
If you're leaving water that isn't part of a habit like a pond, change it regularly to keep it safe and replace any old food before it moulds.
Hedgehogs will use a hedgehog house, but this isn't necessary as they won't always use them. Providing a home just means having somewhere they can build a nest, leaving nesting materials lying around and not disturbing nests. This doesn't mean your garden has to be a complete mess, just leaving the bottom of the hedge a little messier and brushing some of the leaves under it instead of throwing them away would work fine.
4. Providing a home
If you want to set up a house, make sure it's suitable - sturdy with no sharp edges and not so small they could get stuck. Some people even set up wildlife cameras.
Keep an eye out for hedgehogs that look unwell and know about your local rescues. As a general rule a hedgehog out during the day is probably unwell, though there are exceptions. If you're not sure then you can always ask someone. I'll try to do a health post that won't get flagged at some point.
5 - Keeping an eye out
Extra - Getting Involved
Getting involved with charities, welfare groups and local rescues is obviously another way to help, though it isn't feasible to everyone. Even for free there are ways you can spread the word about and join in with conservation efforts though.
the earth is for all my hoglets, treat it well ❤️🩹
