Vets may believe they are doing the right thing by amputating broken and damaged limbs because hedgehogs are hardy enough to survive such procedures, but once the animal is back in the wild it needs to be able to dig for food, and scratch and groom effectively.
Hedgehogs pick up a lot if ticks and lice, and over the years we have seen many cases where hedgehogs with missing and injured limbs get completely infested. The bites become infected and they die very slow and painful deaths.
As hedgehogs released back into the wild after amputation or losing a foot or leg are likely to suffer and unlikely to survive, the kindest course of action, if a limb cannot be saved, is to euthanise.”
