Hedgehog Taken to Vet
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Hi-
3 nights ago I caught footage of a hedgehog with a back leg at least three times the size of his other leg. I either have 2 or 3 large adults visiting at the moment and don’t know if this is a new one or a regular with a problem. It could also be the one that was released into the garden a couple of weeks back.
Big Leg did not show on any footage the night before last but has shown up last night.
Unfortunately the other half was fiddling with the trail cam and put it onto photo rather than video. I have lots of pics of a hedgehog taking hay etc into the hedgehog house. One of the stills looked as if it was Big Leg. The other half said he was 90% sure. Big Leg was asleep in the house. I rang BHPS and we have taken hog to the vet. I REALLY hope it is Big Leg and not another hog that I have now distressed!
The vet was very busy so we have left the hoggie there and have to wait so see what happens.
I always feel I am doing the right thing disturbing them for their health and then feel incredibly guilty.
BHPS said it could be an infection and without treatment it would probably get worse.
Hey Ho for the love of hedgehogs!Hey simbo65
Well done for being so decisive and taking action so quickly.
Fingers crossed for Big legs recovery!
Best wishes xHi Hettihog,
Sadly his leg will need to be amputated. He has a puncture wound and a break! Poor little thing.
I have just spoken to BHPS who have advised that-after the op- he should probably be overwintered even though he is a big adult and released back into the garden in spring.
Not sure there will be anywhere that can take him with all the little ones that will need help too.
Just hoping he survives the op at this stage.Awe! Simbo65 that’s so sad. Keeping everything crossed and hoping for a positive result.
Bless you, at least you know you’ve done all you can for the poor little thing.
Keep us updated xHi simbo65
Well done for getting help for the hog. So glad it was the right hog you took. But how ironic that the poor hog needed to have his leg amputated. I hope all goes well and that you find someone to over-winter him. Good luck to the little chap.
Thanks Nic-
Not sure who will take him and I’m not convinced it wouldn’t be a little cruel to keep him couped up somewhere especially if it means he doesn’t hibernate.
I am absolutely gutted for the little fella and I may re think the fact we are encouraging them into the garden.
There are quite a few dogs in the area.
Not sure what to do for the best at the moment.Hi simbo65
You are bound to feel a bit ambivalent about it all when something like that has happened. But the trouble is we can’t be sure to keep them safe wherever we are. Because it’s their habit to roam so far, anything could happen anywhere in their range. All we can do is help them as best we can when they visit our part of their range. So my advice would be don’t make any decisions about that at the moment.
I know you must feel awful for the poor chap and it emphasises our powerlessness over the hogs’ lives. But you have done your best for him by getting him help. What happens after that is out of our hands to some extent. All we can do is wait and step in again, if needed.
Don’t worry about the hog not hibernating. Not hibernating won’t do him any harm. Hopefully, it will give the wound a chance to heal really well before he’s released.
I do, so, feel for you. I just hope for a good outcome.
Dear Nic and Hettihog,
Thanks for the replies. Feeling a bit better about it all this morning and now waiting to hear how Big Leg is doing after the op. I have everything crossed!
Once I know he is able to leave the vets I will speak to Brent Lodge and see what they advise. I have been told they are very knowledgeable about hedgehog care.
I will keep you posted. I hope all your hoggies are OK.Awe simbo65 my heart goes out to you. We invest so much time and love into these little creatures, it’s really difficult when something goes wrong. I have everything crossed for you and your poorly little hog.
I understand how you feel about attracting hogs to your garden and the risks the little hogs are presented with. And when they are in your garden you automatically feel a sense of responsibility and protectiveness towards them. But I’m sure your efforts have and will in the future go a long way to more hogs survival .
Best wishes xSo,
Big Leg had his op and has come round from the anaesthetic. Hoping there will be no infections and he will heal well. I will call again on Monday for a progress report.
BIG THANK YOU to Fitzalan vet group in Littlehampton for doing this work and the lovely nurses who care for the all the animals.I forgot to mention that although I have no footage of it, another HH who I think is Speckle moved into Big Leg’s nest last night. Hopefully will get footage tonight so I can see who it is.
Hi Simbo65, any news on Big Leg?
We had exactly the same situation here a few weeks ago when Pumpkin turned up with an injured leg that she could barely walk on and three times its original size. I was in complete turmoil over what to do as I strongly suspected, due to her behaviour, that she had given birth to a second litter of hoglets two weeks earlier. If I whisked her away to get help then I would be condemning any hoglets to certain death! I was fairly certain that the skin wasn’t broken, so I decided to keep a very close eye on her and only intervene if she deteriorated. It was heartbreaking to watch her stumbling around night after night, but slowly the leg started to heal. Then, on the 11th October, two healthy hoglets appeared with mum! 🙂 🙂 🙂 It’s difficult to know exactly how many there are, but there is certainly one boy and one girl. Mum is doing fine, the leg is still slightly swollen, but she can now just about manage to scratch herself with it and stand on it whilst she scratches with the other leg! The hoglets are gaining weight rapidly and the little girl has moved into the new hog house…Yippee! I strongly suspect that the leg was broken, so for her to raise happy healthy hoglets is astounding, it just goes to show how resilient these fantastic little creatures are.
Hope Big Leg is ok, keep us posted…
Hi Penny-
Such great news about Pumpkin. What a clever mummy she is. Are the hoglets a good size for hibernation?
Mixed news on Big Leg who is still at the vet. He is healing well from his amputation (he had a puncture wound,infection and break) but they say he is eating very little and has a bad smell coming from him. He has been thoroughly checked and they can’t find anything wrong. He is still on antibiotics and pain relief. When we rescued him out of our HH house he had started taking material in for nesting. I suggested to the vet nurse that maybe he isn’t eating much because he is ready to hibernate but I have no idea if that’s how they work. He is a very big boy weighing over a kilo so hopefully a little weight loss won’t do any harm as long as it is nothing untoward.
I do wonder if they could have treated Big Leg for his infection before going straight for the amputation method. Like Pumpkin sometimes nature will do its own thing and perhaps if the infection could have been sorted the break would have healed, possibly leaving him with a limp but still a much better chance of survival than as an amputee.
Here I go again….waffling.
Please keep us posted with Pumpkin and her babies. She has earned a very long and happy hibernationGet yout vets to treat for internal parasites asap. Stress causes them to get worse.
If they don’t have Levacide and Ivomectin then at least use panacur in the meantime, and get them to contact your nearest carer to get the correct drugs. Dosage charts are on the Vale wildlife website
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