Hi Bushsnuffler
It probably varies a bit from one hog to another. Some may continue using the hibernaculum for a while, especially if it’s a bit cold. But there is the external parasite issue, so they normally vacate eventually.
If a hibernaculum was built in a natural location it would have a mounded sort of effect and the hog houses we provide are really only structures within which the hogs can built their hibernacula. So it’s not completely surprising that it may have been less dense against the back.
You will probably have seen that the structure had the leaves sort of layered like tiles, so that they are waterproof. With a really well built one, you could probably pick it up without it falling apart! They are so clever! We wouldn’t be able to build one as well, I think!
But they do seem to manage to get quite a bit in their mouths. I had a hog here where the camera was right in front of the box. Quite funny to see the hog with mouthfuls of long grasses hanging out either side looking like a very long moustache! But it was as if a switch had been turned on and the hog went into more active mode and scurried backwards and forwards collecting all the material – seemingly at a much faster rate than they normally move around. It wasn’t finished the first night and the next night (actually early morning, but still dark) at exactly the same time, off the hog went again collecting more material. Fascinating to watch.
