Plenty of news this week for you all. Firstly the British Hedgehog Preservation Society are welcoming calls from members of the public on 01584 890801.
Viv and I were blessed with another admission on Sunday and our finder is a shining example of what to do when we see a little hedgehog that could be poorly or in distress. Tara took this little boy, only 400grams, that was cold and hungry, into her home, fed him and kept him warm overnight till our help was sought.
Also, thanks to Viv and Roy’s daughter Sarah who saw Tara’s post on the Anything Aycliffe Facebook page, not forgetting Irene as well. He is very small, too small to survive this winter. We hope you like our pictures, these are our littlest hoggies, enjoying being spoilt.
The welcome mat was immediately rolled out to him with a new cage, heat pad and some lovely food, he was a little bit distressed early hours Monday morning because he was heard weeping, of course Viv helped him settle with a cuddle, he has been ok since.
Can I mention that despite them being wild animals they do get frightened and upset. They feel pain too. These are mammals, protected under the wildlife act, not vermin. They don’t carry fleas, we as rehabbers have Johnson’s flea spray which never gets used, if a hedgehog has fleas they are hedgehog specific, they don’t jump onto dogs, cats or carpets etc.
I would like to mention that if you are in a position to have to take a little hog in, please do not give them Milk, Bread, Nuts and more importantly Meal Worms! They are all bad for our prickly pals but mealworms are a definite no because they deplete their calcium causing metabolic bone disease for which there is no cure, euthanasia is the only outcome. Mothers can also pass this on to their hoglets, if mum doesn’t have calcium neither will the hoglet and it will soon be baby season.
January is a month when most hedgehogs should be hibernating, what is causing concern is the very small ones, like Tara’s, that are still coming into rescue centres, I hope that this settles down now but the weather is proving to be a little confusing, spring flowers are breaking the surface a bit earlier than expected.
Viv and I are also fundraising, we have a table booked for 12th March Community Spirit Fair, if anybody can help us with this we would be very grateful.
Maxine and Viv
Aycliffe Rescue Centre
