We love British wildlife but there is one animal who captures our hearts and that is the hedgehog.British Hedgehog Design The population of hedgehogs in the UK has dropped dramatically and has declined by a third in urban areas and by half in more rural ones since 2000.

Have you ever seen a hedgehog in your garden?

Sadly, many people have not and this is down to the limited access that the hedgehog have into gardens and are unable to move about. You can help by ensuring that there are 13cm x 13cm gaps at the bottom of boundary fences and walls.  We have listed a simple guide to helping hedgehogs and encouraging them to come to your garden:

  • Avoid pesticides and slug pellets. They harm hedgehogs and damage their food chain. Use organic methods instead.

  • Create 13cm x 13cm gaps in boundary fences and walls. Keep a corner of your garden wild which offers shelter, protection and natural food for hedgehogs and other wildlife.

  • Provide a shallow dish of fresh water for all wildlife and food such as meat based pet food for the hedgehogs.

  • Make or buy a hedgehog home. The BHPS provides an excellent leaflet on how to build a hedgehog home.

  • Check areas before strimming and mowing .

  • Dispose of litter responsibly. Every year hedgehogs get trapped in litter and they sadly starve to death.

  • Bonfires are best built then lit as they are perfect homes for a hedgehog, if this is not possible then use poles or a broom handle (not a fork!) to lift up and shine a torch to check for any wildlife before it is lit.

  • Hedgehogs are good swimmers but can get trapped in ponds or pools with sheer sides. Keep the water levels topped up and provide a gentle sloping edge or place half submerged rocks in the water so they can escape.

  • Take care when driving on roads, hedgehogs are nocturnal so are often out at night. A hedgehogs natural defence mechanism is to roll into a ball – this is no match for a motor vehicle.

Every year the British Hedgehog Preservation Society runs a Hedgehog Awareness week which takes place from 1st – 7th May in a aim to raise the profile of the hedgehog, what problems and dangers they face and how we can help.  Anyone can get involved and this year the focus is on the use of strimmers and cutting machines to encourage people to check the area that they are about to cut for any hedgehogs first.  The British Hedgehog Preservation Society  was founded in 1982 and has 8 patrons which include Ben Fogle and Twiggy Lawson . This amazing society’s does so much fantastic work for the hedgehog and their mission is to encourage and give advice to the public concerning the care of hedgehogs which includes injured, sick, treated cruelly, orphaned or in any other danger. Educate and encourage children to respect our natural wildlife, thus fostering a interest in hedgehogs. To fund research into the behavioural habits of hedgehogs and to finds the best methods of assisting their survival.

We love the hedgehog and see the importance of nurturing and caring for them in our environment for now and for future generations to enjoy so, we will be donating 25% of our sales when any of our hedgehog products are purchased direct from our website between 1st – 14th May 2016 to the British Hedgehog Preservation Society. Choose from short or long sleeve tees, baby gift sets or A4 prints perfect for any wall in the house.

 

 

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