FOR THE LOVE OF LIBERTY one year on.

One year ago I took on the sponsorship of lovely Liberty. A friend was sponsoring three children in the village where liberty lives (Kisseka in Uganda) and she  took the plunge and went out to visit the people there, say hello to the children she was supporting and see if there is anything she could do help these beleaguered people to improve their lot.  She has been busy with projects and ideas and you can follow Julies journey with this community at her Charity Facebook page Donnez de l'espoir à l'Ouganda DEO   https://www.facebook.com/FrDEO/  

Julie and her husband are back in Uganda as i write looking at the projects that are up and running (thanks to your generosity) and to see the children and work with Doreen who runs the community project, hoping to make everything easier to access and be completely transparent for us sponsors. They have managed to raise the money needed to fit a huge water tank at the local school and one project that was genuinely heart rending was to raise the money for one young woman  who lived with this cancer riddled leg, unable to afford the surgery.   Her leg has since been amputated and recently the money was raised to fit a prosthetic leg  allowing Judith to work and hopefully   to be reunited with her son  very soon.

Christs grace ministry - cgm (also on Facebook) is a relatively small community project run by one woman (and her faith) Doreen Kanyunyuzi. https://www.facebook.com/www.careforthem.org/

She visits the village regularly and helps to support many needy elderly and sick people as well as the children.

You may remember little Suzanne who I was concerned about because she has a huge umbilical hernia. the costs of a consultants appointment was akin to a months wages but Suzanne has now been seen by a doctor and her condition can be monitored. 

Liberty was found sleeping on a doormat on the floor and at four years old she had never done anything else. Her father is gone and her mother is absent with mental health issues and Liberty is being raised by her grandmother in a small mud hut, with no running water or sanitation.
Liberty was a shy, withdrawn and sombre girl, rather frightened of this grey haired white woman who arrived bearing gifts poor Julie).  
I have over the year sent something to her each month and Doreen duly delivers it and sends me photos of the packages in Liberty's hands.

This doll was her first personal gift. Yesterday Julie a caught up with Liberty who, still clinging to this doll. ran to her and gave her a hug.The second photo shows her with her Christmas box. I was rather concerned about one child receiving regular gifts but the other children and families are genuinely pleased for her. I do send stickers and small items for all the children and much fun was had with an inflatable ball which cost me £1.50!

Liberty has settled well into school and is making good progress. I LOVE receiving updates from Doreen and hearing the stories of the village and what is happening for the children and families there. The village is largely devoid of men and the woman do what they can to grow food and provide for their families. Children have to walk some 4 kilometres to fetch (dirty) water to be used for all functions in the home.
As a result of my plea last year a number of my friends and family joined me and took on the sponsorship of children. Thank you to them, it really lifted my heart.

Liberty's sponsorship costs each week, about the same as a decent cup of coffee but I get a much longer lasting enjoyment out of it. I look forward to seeing how she progresses and what she becomes and hope that in some small way i can help to raise her from her extremely poor routes to become a brave, happy and strong woman who can make some really positive changes to her community.

There is lots to do and sometimes I have more questions than answers. There is no flashy website, no glossy brochures or certificates of sponsorship but there are the pictures, the stories and the contact that enable me to continue to love Liberty. 
There are many more children desperate to go to school, needing a mattress to lay on, some clothes or food. You don't have to be a sponsor but could perhaps send some clothes that your own children no longer wear or make a one off donation to buy a mattress or a soft toy for one child. 

Julie and Jez are busy networking and trying to find ways to enable these people to help themselves and make some real progress in improving their lives. They would like to see a clinic erected, a water supply installed and sanitary products provided amongst many other things.

Kisseka is one little community in a mad, bad world where corruption is rife and life itself is extremely cheap, rape a continual concern and where birth control does not exist. 
One little community where children smile and are truly grateful for the opportunities given to them by people they will probably never meet.

I'm so pleased I got on board and that  Liberty chose me.

If you would like to help in any way visit Julies  Charity facebook page https://www.facebook.com/FrDEO/  

or Doreens community page https://www.facebook.com/www.careforthem.org/

or drop me a message. 

So you want to volunteer...

Pricklington Palace is a small but seasonally very busy hedgehog rescue caring for up to 20 sick or abandoned hedgehogs. Last year some 260 hogs came through the door and at times   I was in the rescue constantly . I would like to avoid a repeat of that if possible and I am looking for a volunteer to help me out with general duties which include, cleaning out hutches and weighing and feeding the hogs. This has to be done every day. 

When the season is at its peak one hedgehog may need a huge amount of input and this can be difficult to give when there are many others to tend to .

This role is voluntarily and people need to be aware that it is important to be reliable and turn up when expected. Most of the work is done between 0800 and 10.00hrs but there are times when hoglets require feeding outside of those times. It would, therefore be sensible if you are local and you must be able to travel to and from the rescue independently. I am situated just outside Howden.

The role would suit someone:

• Who is interested in wild animals.
• Wants to learn.
• Is happy to take instruction.
• Can work on their own once they are comfortable with the routine.
• Is happy to be called upon when the rescue is very busy for extra help if needed.

I am more than willing to mentor someone who eventually might consider setting up their own small rescue. If you make it clear that this is your intention you will be viewed positively for this role. 

You should be aware that their are certain zoonotic conditions (ie spread between hedgehogs and humans) and so you must always take sensible precautions. Hedgehogs must never be handled without protective gloves and i will not be held liable for injury or illness in relation to the handling of these animals. 

You should not apply if you are receiving chemo therapy or your immune system is compromised in any way.

The rescue can only house one volunteer at a time.

Thank you for your interest. please email me at gilldix@talktalk.net and use hedgehog volunteer in the subject header. It would be great to know  a little about you. 

Hog Blog 22 or Gills Post from Pricklington Palace.

Gills Hog blog number 22 or Tales from the Pricklington palace.

Dispelling myths.

I am still quite often confronted with certain issues whereby humans with the very best of intentions do further harm to an already ailing hedgehog.

For the record...
It is NOT alright to give hedgehogs cows milk and bread. Hedgehogs are lactose intolerant and they do not digest starch, so both at best will make them ill, at worst will kill them. Rescues use lactose free puppy milk. Goats milk is fine.



Please DO NOT keep a hedgehog believing you can care for it at home unless you have a microscope and a reasonable understanding of endoparasites. The most common ailments are intestinal parasites and unless you can look at a faecal specimen this cannot be diagnosed and the correct treatment given. I am always happy to return a hog to its finder when it is well but it is soul destroying trying to put right damage that could have been treated so much sooner.

IT is NOT alright to give hedgehog mealworms. They cause a terrible bone weakening and death.

Please DO NOT  go gathering slugs and snails for hedgehogs. These are the very things that host the parasites that kill hedgehogs. Meaty cat food or kitten biscuits are just fine.

Please DO NOT keep a European hedgehog as a pet. This is both cruel and absolutely illegal. They are wild animals. African pygmy hedgehogs are available to buy as pets (but are quite tricky to keep).

Please DO NOT  watch a hedgehog in your garden in daylight for days on ends. A hedgehog out in daylight is in trouble with one exception and that is an expectorant or lactating female. She will be gathering bedding or finding extra food and will be moving at speed and with purpose.
Baby hoglets out on their own in daylight are in trouble.

If you find a please  nest do NOT disturb it. Disturbance and certainly handling of hoglets will result in the mother killing her young. If you disturb a nest by accident do your best to repair it and walk away. The hog will only need it for a couple of weeks.

Please DO NOT worry about fleas. Not many hedgehogs have them and if they do they are species specific. They will not trouble you or your domestic pets.

Please DO NOT set fire to piles of leaves or logs before checking them out. They are favourite nesting places.

Please feel free to call your nearest rescue for help or advice  or contact the British hedgehog preservation society ( on  01584 890801) 

Hog blog number 21 or tales from Pricklington Palace.

A big shout out to my supporters.

Its a funny old time in the country and world, with so much disquiet it seems.
In my work at Pricklington Palace, I come across many fabulous people. My Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pricklingtonpalace/ has over 750 supporters and they really do me proud.

When I am short of supplies I publish a wish list and almost before I have finished it, items begin arriving. I recently needed to finance the amputation of a hogs hind leg and put out a call, and the funds came pouring in and  covered the cost of that surgery plus several subsequent vet bills. There are regular donors and occasional donors, and visitors with gifts of food and papers, every single donation is appreciated. Then there are those who keep me company on messenger through long nights or traumatic cases and the fosterers who step in when I have no space. 

The Palace has been visited by youngsters from a lifestyle team who have come along to learn more about what people can do to help these beleaguered small mammals and have then gone on to have awareness stands  at local shows.

Recently I received a card and a beautiful silver hedgehog pin to say thank you for helping to save three hoglets that they had brought to me from Leeds.

And then there is this shield, designed and made and donated to me by  Brenda and Terry Taylor just because they wanted to.

So amongst the madness and sadness, the strife, tumultuous politics, and general unrest, one thing running a rescue has taught me is to recognise and remember that there are many acts of quiet, unheralded human kindness going on all the time. 
Sometimes it would do us all good to hold on to that.

Rescue, rehabilitate, release. 

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

Fostering hedgehogs.

At certain times of the year rescues become overwhelmed by the numbers of hogs they admit. Many of these can be orphaned or abandoned hoglets who are treated and raised successfully but simply too small to release.This means that hutches meant for sick and injured hogs become full of well but small hogs and this is when fosterers are a huge  help to rescues.
Some need to be overwintered as they are simply too small to risk hibernation.

Here at Pricklington Palace I have a network of lovely people who foster healthy hogs under my supervision and they feed, water, weigh and clean the hogs out to ensure that they are kept in a comfortable and clean environment. The hogs are then returned to me for release or are released with the fosterers if the environment is suitable.

What do you need and what is expected of you?

• A love of hedgehogs/wildlife.
• A suitable environment. The more space the better, but a rabbit hutch ot large plastic box can be enough. This should be placed in a quiet, sheltered spot and the hedgehog be submitted to as little disturbance as possible. Hogs are good climbers and diggers so the environment should be resistant to their escape attempts.
• 
• To monitor the hog I ask that they are weighed regularly (timings can vary) so you will need the facilities to do this. Any changes of behaviour, loss of appetite or changes in the appearance or consistency of droppings are reported to me ASAP.
• 
• You do need to check the hog daily.
• The hog may be with you for a few weeks to a few months so be sure to ask as many questions as you want to before committing.
• You will need newspapers and suitable bedding (Torn or shredded paper and/or dust free hay). Hogs like to create a nest which is warm, safe and private and so they need bedding to do this.
• The hog should have access to clean drinking water and kitten biscuits at all times. Wet food can be added at night when the risk of fly infestation has reduced. You will need at least a couple of shallow heavy bottomed bowls.
• They should not be introduced to family pets or shown to every visitor that comes to the house. Hedgehogs are shy, nocturnal mammals, hard wired to be wild and they do not enjoy being handled or stroked. 
• You should be able to recognise flystrike, ticks and fleas and this should be reported to the rescue without delay.
• Hogs should not be fed anything but meaty cat food, or hedgehog food, biscuits and semi moist hedgehog food. Occasional banana and scrambled egg (without milk) can be offered.
• Hedgehogs should not be out and about in the day. If they are I would like to know.
• You should always wear gloves when handling hedgehogs. they carry a number of zoonotic conditions (conditions that can be passed to humans)., and you must wash your hands thoroughly after attending to them, using a nailbrush.
• You should not offer to be a fosterer if you are in any way immunosuppressed, pregnant or vulnerable.
• Children should not attend to hedgehogs unsupervised but it is a great opportunity to educate them to be the carers of the future.
• The environment will need to be warm or a heat pad offered in winter months if the hog is too small to hibernate.

It is not just a matter of feeding and cleaning, these hogs need to be moitored. A loss of appetite, weight loss or unusual faeces can be signs of a serious problem and time is of the essence.

Offering a secure garden.

From time to time hedgehogs are admitted that are discovered to be blind, may have had  a limb amputated or have scarred lungs or other disabilities which makes it impossible to be returned to the wild. These can still live a good life in a suitable garden. Such gardens have to be absolutely  secure. If there is a way of escaping the hogs will find it.

Gardens should  

• Be Pond free. (Some ponds may be acceptable but these must have suitable escape ramps).
• Be as large as possible.
• Be Free of dogs.
• Not be constantly in use, so busy family gardens may not be the best.
• Have a mixture of foliage and some long grass or wild areas for the hog to forage in.
• A shallow bowl of water must be available at all times.
• A suitable hedgehog house should be available.
• The hedgehog should be allowed to live as wild a life as possible but monitored to ensure it is safe and well.
• They need support feeding every day of the year so if you go away you will need to make arrangements for someone to do that for you.

All the above information is for guidance only and is not meant to be prescriptive. Some hedgehogs are better in smaller gardens and some may need more monitoring than others depending on their condition/circumstances. I would urge potential fosterers to read up a little or attend a talk to learn a bit about how hedgehogs choose to live and replicate that as far as is possible. They are not pets, they do not want or need lots of interaction. They are lovely and often quite comical to watch and it is very satisfying to know that you are helping one (or more) survive. I am always available to ask questions, or offer advice and if your circumstances change the hog can be returned to me. Fostered hedgehogs should never be moved on without my permission.

Foster carers are very much appreciated (even if i forget to tell them that often enough). By taking a healthy hog you make room for a sick one to be admitted .

Hog blog 19 Raising Awareness

Hog blog 19

Tales from the Palace.

Raising awareness.

Did you know that I am available to give talks to raise awareness of the plight of hedgehogs and how we can help them?

Indeed in May I have spoken at a gardening club, twice at York University, once to staff in  a business and given a whole school assembly at Eastrington School.

I am always really heartened by people's interest in hedgehogs, who I believe have a special place in many people's hearts.

The children at Eastrington School were so full of enthusiasm and excitement when i went to speak to them. One hundred little faces listening intently and bursting to ask questions. ...

Miss, miss, miss......

'How do the babies get out of their mummy's tummy when they are so prickly?'

'Are baby hedgehogs furry?'

'How do hedgehogs wee?'

'How long do hedgehogs live?'

'Would a hedgehog like it on my trampoline?'

'How can I make a hedgehog house?'

One Mum very kindly took the trouble to message me to tell me her son was absolutely brimming with excitement after the session and all the children were tasked with ensuring there was a gap in the garden fence for the hedgehogs to get through.

I left feeling that an interest was sparked and in those little heads were the seeds of change for these little spikey friends of ours. 

If you would like to learn more about these creatures and how you can help them, please get in touch.

Rescue, rehabilitate, release.

Gill Dixon runs Pricklington Palace Hedgehog rescue here in Howden. Purely voluntarily and single handily. Please visit  www.facebook.com/pricklingtonpalace/ to support her work. Donations via www.paypal.me/Dixon1829

Hog blog 18
Tales from the Palace.

The news is full of the doom and gloom of our destruction of habitat and the loss of so many beautiful species and as populations increase we will inevitably  experience increased conflict between ourselves and the creatures that share our land.

I have been watching the new development in Howden and wonder how many hedgehogs (and other wild creatures) have been displaced as the land is excavated for the building work. The development is on what was such beautiful and undisturbed land.
Unlike most mammals hedgehogs do not have a fight or flight reflex. When faced with danger they simply curl into a tight ball, and so many will have perished, at the time when they should be raising families. Much as I understand that housing is necessary it makes me sad that there is no opportunity or requirement for builders to consider the needs of this important and helpful little mammal.

Did you know that hedgehogs are currently being lost from the parks and gardens of Britain at a rate of around 5% per year. That’s the same rate as tigers are being lost globally. They are listed as a priority species and some wildlife organisations have them categorised as critically endangered and yet they are afforded very little protection in reality.

It would seem to me that our only indigenous spiky mammal, which we know for certain were firmly established in Britain by the middle Pleistocene period about 2 million years ago have earned their place on our shores, and yet we are rapidly forcing them towards extinction.

I am not a hedgehog nutter, I love all wildlife and care deeply about our countryside and its biodiversity. However I can and do rehabilitate hedgehogs, and feel lucky to be able to do that, but I am asking you, the people of Howden to please make our town hedgehog friendly. Create those hedgehog highways that these mammals so desperately need to source adequate food, leave out a shallow bowl of water and some cat biscuits and share your intentions with your neighbours. You can find out more information here about becoming a hedgehog champion https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/

How sad it will be when we will only see hedgehogs in books and the tales of Beatrix Potter. Only we can stop that happening.

Rescue, rehabilitate, release.

Gill Dixon runs Pricklingon 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