General Chat

She was in the garden this morning searching for what the birds had dropped, in daylight. Now she is in my hedgehog hutch on the kitchen floor eating cat meat and sultanas like they are going out of fashion.

I've wintered them before.She knew where to come.

awe thats sweet
so you got hedgehog hotel sign up have you outside

they are so cute arent they
wheres mammy

She's too big for Mammy now. If you find one that weighs less than a pound and a half at this time of the year it will not make it through hibernation.

I hope Mammy didn't drop a big late litter, I only have one hutch.

bless hedgehogs are so cute used to have a couple that came to feed they lived under my shed but not had any for a while

Niether have i, lol

Still have a couple coming to feed sometimes, which they will do all winter if they can be sure food is about, they only hibernate if times are hard and no food around.

The Hedgehog lady I mentioned a while back is apparently being inundated with hedgehogs and needs help shredding paper for bedding and cleaning out hutches, washing bowls, all sorts of jobs. She is asking if there are people who can help her overwinter hedgehogs inside sheds and places but I can't offer, o.h. would have a fit if I put anything in his garage etc.
She is a childminder too so a busy lady with her own young family too. I must pop round and see what I can do another afternoon.

Hope your little one will be fine Sharron, they are so cute aren't they?

Lizx

Just noticed one of mine out there, he/she eats so fast like it's starving but there is always food down and it looks healthy enough, bigger than a large pineapple is the best description. The hedgehog woman always says she uses fruits to describe what size is likely to be a safe size to leave a hedgehog to hibernate. Anything like an apple size is far too small to survive alone in winter.

'Mine' has just pigged down a load of catbiscuits and sunflower seeds and then had a drink and scuttled off. I tossed out half a banana and blow me, he came back and scoffed that while I was making myself a drink, then he was back at the seeds etc
I will have to get another bag of peanuts and seeds, the woman told me that's the best for them as it has more fats that they need to survive and the cat biscuits are good for them too.

I think mine ate something approaching her own weight yesterday and, in my experience of hedgehogs, more comes out than goes in,as if by magic.
Mucho shovelling for the duration I think.

But she has got the loveliest little round bum!

Spent a fortune on special hedgehog food last winter in the cold weather and it kept disappearing - it was only when I noticed my cat was getting a real podge that I realised ................ (and by the way my cat is always well fed!)

Oh dear,I think she has died. I have given her the benefit of the doubt tonight as she was out of her hay and was very cold but not stiff.

It could be torpor so I have put in a jar of hot water wrapped in newspaper to warm her up. If she still doesn't wake up she is yet another one for the reaper.

oh bless hope she hasnt died that would be so sad

That would be a shame Sharron, hope she is ok.

I stocked up on more peanuts yesterday and two of mine have been and tucked in earlier.

Lizx

Sadly she has died. At least she was fed when she went..

That's sad Sharron. The hedgehog woman told me that if they are about during the day it means they aren't well which is why she is getting so many being brought to her, as people are finding them out and about in daytime or just sitting up a corner somewhere.

At this time of year they need more fats than protein so peanuts and sunflower seeds are best she told me, and only cat meat without fish, their stomachs can't cope with fish oils. My lot like a bit of banana too and tiny pieces of cheese but not too much of it in one go. One of my hedgehogs is like a vacuum cleaner, the food just whizzes into it's mouth and his/her jaw is going nineteen to the dozen lol

Lizx

We have a wildlife hospital down the road which I used to poke about in. Strangel, the first one I picked up went through the learning process with me, filling her box bottom with wee before I found out about using cat litter, getting out and drinking the cat milk and getting the squitters. She lived in a plastic box, having wee-ed her way out of a cardboard one and she went off to make lots more scrubbing brushes.

Now I have had more practice and had an old cupboard converted for their accomodation they die on me.

Had this one lasted a couple of days she would have been down the vet's for a look at. I really impress them because I can unroll them, not vets!

awe thats so sad to hear hotchy never made it,

your good makeing cupboard as a room for them,
they must feel like its hotel,
bless um, havent seen one for year aroudn here,
they used to be out front on grass , we would see um when we let molly out at night,
but seems like they left wen molly went