Hal's Urban Hedgehogs

31/05/2026

We've had 24 donations in the last 30 days, thanks to our supporters using when they make online purchases!

Please support us on easyfundraising if you're not already. Over 8,000 retailers will donate to us for free - at no extra cost to you.

Plus, join before midnight 31st May and we could win one of ten £100 donations:

Help us when you shop with 7,000+ brands. Join now.

31/05/2026

Brian was found staggering along Vian Way yesterday by a member of the public and brought into our Hogspital.

His Body Condition is very poor, he was dehydrated and starting to become covered in Flystrike.

Currently in intensive care and under regular observation we're keeping everything crossed for him 🤞🦔🙏

Please leave out shallow bowls of fresh, clean water in your gardens as this spell of hot weather is killing lots of different Wildlife species 🙏

Try not to use a plastic bowl because as soon as they stand on the edge it will flip over, ceramic plant saucers are perfect 👌

Nothing deep and nothing with steep sides please.

30/05/2026

Yesterday we had a call about a disturbed nest, this is extremely common at this time of year.

⚠️ Please be EXTREMELY CAREFUL when cutting long grass ⚠️

What looks like messy long grass to you can often reveal a nursing Mother and her Hoglets (they don't all 'Hog Hedges' or nest under Garden Sheds and Compost Heaps).

Luna and her three as yet unnamed Hoglets came from literally a few hundred yards away which means she's (probably) one of our regular Feeding Station Hogs.

They have gone straight into a quiet, outside Hutch and will be totally left alone for a while as not to risk her abandoning or killing her Litter.

(She has of course got fresh water and food available).

30/05/2026

**Warning ⚠️ - DO NOT read if you are easily upset by graphic descriptions ⚠️ **

Juicy Lucy surprised everyone who thought she wasn't pregnant actually turned out to be pregnant and gave birth to four Hoglets.

Unfortunately (and this isn't uncommon) she rejected them, killed the entire litter and was in the process of eating them when we came home from work the other day.

This behaviour can happen for a number of reasons, she could have been stressed, felt threatened or knew instinctively there was an underlying issue with her babies.

To learn more about this complex subject please research 'Wildlife Infanticide'.

She is currently doing well and responding to her Treatment Plan for the huge Capillaria burden she was suffering from.

28/05/2026

We had our annual Wildlife Care Badge Veterinary Inspection last week and am pleased to say it went well so we have successfully renewed our certification 🎇🎆🎂🎁🎈🥳

Thanks to Oakham Veterinary Hospital Small Animal for their continued support for our little Micro Rescue 👏👏👏👏🦔

27/05/2026

Following on from the previous 'Good News' post we have some sad news...

Little Gary from the Lloyd's Estate suddenly crashed after being stable for some time and was rushed back into intensive care but sadly crossed the Rainbow Bridge 🌈🦔

We do not fully understand what happened so he's been sent to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (part of DEFRA) to assist with a major study they are working on with Wild Hedgehogs.

Another Hedgehog who went directly to Oakham Veterinary Hospital Small Animal was found to have a badly broken rear leg so the decision was made to euthanise. 🌈🦔

This is the reality of Wildlife Rehabilitation so we'll pick ourselves up and carry on ✅

25/05/2026

Have you watered your Wildlife today?

24/05/2026

And this is why it's important to do Lab Work on every single Hedgehog that gets admitted 👀

What you are looking at is a tiny portion of a slide using a tiny piece of poo smaller than a match head and this is a very high burden of Capillaria 🦠🪱

Had this Hedgehog stayed longer in the care of Oakham Veterinary Hospital Small Animal they would have extremely quickly established the same thing but what we wanted from them was the x-ray and Ultrasound.

We can hopefully treat this successfully as Juicy Lucy is a big strong girl 🙏🦔

P.S Mrs Hal already called this just by the smell and look of the poo, plus the demeanor of the Hedgehog but the microscope provides the evidence behind the theory 👌✅

24/05/2026

With the weather warm across much of the UK, don't forget about the hedgehogs living in your garden!
🌡️ 💧 🦔
Provide shallow dishes of fresh water for & other garden wildlife to drink 🐦 🦔 🐞
Add a few pebbles so thirsty insects can safely drink too 🐝

24/05/2026

Some 'Feel Good' news before some bad news...

Spike v18 gained his freedom a week or so ago and went back into a fantastic Hog Friendly garden in Brigstock which had multiple Hedgehog Highways, fresh water, two Compost Heaps as well as lots of shaded areas and borders ✅✅✅✅✅✅

Not only that, neighbours were getting together to ensure as many gardens as possible were linked up, as well as supplying food/water 🏆🦔

He passed all his Poo Tests with flying colours and weighed in at a respectable 940g

Note:
Despite the light levels this release took late (21:20 at night) with dusk rapidly approaching - This task was NOT completed in normal daylight.