Gills hog blog
Tales from the palace
Love is in the Air.
Spring really is in the air it seems and nature is busy. Hedgehogs are rousing from hibernation and at this time they really benefit from some food (meaty cat food or cat biscuits) to help them to build up the fat reserves they have lost during hibernation. Also a shallow dish of water as they are very thirsty when they first wake.
Hedgehogs do not mate in their first year of life but from year two they will do so each year producing litters which should be in late Spring and Autumn . Currently they seem to breed through out the year.
If you have a feeding station (of course you do) you will hear lots of huffing and puffing and snorting as the males circle the females in an effort to attract their attention. This can be quite a protracted event and other males may be alerted and join in. Males head butt or ram each other and even occasionally fight. As you can imagine it's a tricky business for the male but a receptive female will lay her spines flat and adopt a specific position in order to avoid injury to the male. Mating's though, are often unsuccessful.
Once mating is over the male leaves and takes no part in rearing the young.
Pregnancy last four and a half weeks and a litter of hoglets averages between four and five. Their lives are precarious and only two or three of these will make it to weaning from Mum at four to five weeks old . They will go out foraging with Mum from about three weeks of age and after about ten days of this activity (learning the ropes so to speak) they will wander off on their own.
Please take care in your gardens at this time of year. Don't disturb potential nest sites (under sheds, piles of leaves, old pallets) but if you do please call your nearest rescue for advice. Help our prickly friends with some supplementary food (but NEVER cows milk).
Never touch hoglets or move them, as the mother will in all likelihood kill her young.
Gill Dixon
runs Pricklington Palace Hedgehog rescue here in Howden. Purely
voluntarily and single handedly. Please visit
www.facebook.com/pricklingtonpalace/ to support her work. Donations via
www.paypal.me/Dixon1829