Hi Nic
Thanks for the advice as always. I’ve already sited the house, built the earth up around it and covered it in branches and leaves so I think I’m going to leave it now and look at the situation in the spring. A hog has been in and out of it as some of the straw has been moved but it may just be the existing resident nicking it for his own house.
The area I live in is ok but crime has been an issue in the past and we’ve had stuff stolen from the front garden before (open driveway) so my set up there is what I would call ‘under the radar’ i.e I try and make it as discreet as possible as although I would hope no one would steal the hedgehog bowls/feeding station etc I also have my cameras and tripod there. I basically try and shield everything from view from the street and if someone comes to the door, so having the hog houses out of the way, partially covered and black coloured makes them blend in so less obvious and therefore not drawing attention to the area. I also use strategically placed plant pots and planters to shield the area from the casual observer.
I covered the original hog house I built in 2017 in pond liner and when I checked it earlier in the year there was no sign of rot but I’ll check them both in the spring and see how things are looking.
