Hedgehog rescued...

[andyoxon]

While I was out at a curry night - the family rescued a wandering, smallish hedgehog that was found on the grass outside.  They've looked on various websites and apparently Hedgies should be hibernating; if under 600g one is supposed to give them warmth etc. (it's below freezing outside).  So at the moment it's in my large plastic tub with lots of rabbit hay and a ramekin of water.   Actually it's standing up on it's hind limbs and pawing up at the sides of the tub trying to get out....

Any advice on what more to do?

[Fab Foodie]

Click here ....
http://www.sttiggywinkles.org.uk/

[andyoxon]

Thanks FF. 

[Feline]

There's some good advice on what you can feed it on this site:
http://thehedgehog.co.uk/diet.htm

[andyoxon]

Thanks Feline.  Article said it likes chicken flavours - so leftover roast in fridge to the rescue....  For the moment we've given it some Burgess Excel Rabbit pellets and small bits of the roast chicken.   It loves the chicken,  is eating the pellets too, and has also had a good drink of water from the ramekin. 

[Woofage]

Ask local animal charities, eg RSPCA. They may know of rescue centres that will look after little hedgie over the winter.

[andyoxon]

Yes will investigate centres...

Piccie.


P1150634 by ao, on Flickr

[Peter]

This is noble stuff, Andy.  I'm off to thaw out the bird-bath  (-5 here - what's it like there?).

Peter

[andyoxon]

This is noble stuff, Andy.  I'm off to thaw out the bird-bath  (-5 here - what's it like there?).

Peter

-1C-ish here; yes, I need to do our b-b too.

Spoke to Tiggywinkles (nr Thame) and they said if over 600g it will have enough fat to survive the winter when it does hibernate.  If less than 600g, they can take and look after it.   

[andyoxon]

So it was weighed in at 525-550g.  Mini ao wants to look after it, so we may do this for a while...and then take it to tiggywinkles.  We have an indoor rabbit hutch we could use.  I was wondering whether it would hibernate indoors or if low temperatures are required?

[Wombat]

I thought that if they were under a certain weight (not sure what, though) you must not allow them to hibernate, as they will run out of fuel whilst asleep, and wake up dead, IYSWIM.  We overwintered a pair for a local rescue place many years ago, and we didn't twig that one of them was eating all the food, and the other went without, and died.  I hated the other one after that, and was glad when spring came.

[andyoxon]

Apparently they don't hibernate indoors, as the temperature is not low enough; so if under 600g, they need to be protected from winter cold.  I measured the hedgehog myself and it was ~300g (miniao had not subtracted the towel weight). 

Update is that we decided to take Hedgie to Tiggywinkles rescue centre yesterday, so it could be looked after properly. One thing I hadn't quite realised is that hhgs do kind of pong in a way that indoor rabbits don't; protein content of diet I guess. Younger miniao came with, and was a bit upset; she's fine now.

[Jacomus]

Apparently they don't hibernate indoors, as the temperature is not low enough; so if under 600g, they need to be protected from winter cold.  I measured the hedgehog myself and it was ~300g (miniao had not subtracted the towel weight). 

Update is that we decided to take Hedgie to Tiggywinkles rescue centre yesterday, so it could be looked after properly. One thing I hadn't quite realised is that hhgs do kind of pong in a way that indoor rabbits don't; protein content of diet I guess. Younger miniao came with, and was a bit upset; she's fine now.

Nice work ao, you've gone above and beyond