Hedgehogs avoiding food
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Hello,
First time poster, so apologies if this is the wrong place to ask the question.
We are very fortunate to be in a pro-hedgehog area. We recently needed to rescue a sick hedgehog (further to recommendation from BHPS) and he is now in safe hands making a recovery. However, in order to rescue him, we had to remove him from our hedgehog feeding shelter.
He is not my concern. However, since he was rescued, no hedgehogs have been interested in eating in our hedgehog feeding shelter. We have put food out every day, but until now it has all disappeared – now, nothing is being eaten.
We have hedgehogs in the garden, they go to the house, but take one look and then walk away.
Is there anything we can do to encourage them back, please?
Many thanks 🙂
Hi KEFarrell
Welcome to the Forum! It’s fine to ask the question here. I am assuming you are feeding exactly the same food as usual? If so, I can’t really answer the question as to why they aren’t eating the food any more. But if it was me, I would give the feeding house a good clean out. I don’t know why the hog needed rescuing, but maybe there is a smell of illness or fear in the box. Hedgehogs have much more sensitive sense of smell than we do. Or the other hogs may have been around and aware that the hog was caught – making them wary. Trying to think myself into the mind of a hedgehog!
They may start eating again anyway, but I would still give it a clean out. The best thing to use is boiling water (assuming it isn’t a plastic container) which should also kill any parasite eggs which may be in there.
Well done rescuing the hog – I hope it is continuing to do well and hopefully soon all will return to normal with the others.
Good luck and happy hog watching.
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