Rescued hoglet – 240g

[SteveReed]

Just taken in a hog from the back garden. Pretty healthy looking but only 240g. Looks like he has two small ticks. Wondering whether to try and foster him over the winter or whether better to take him to a rescue centre.

I have an attached unheated garage. Currently he is in a large plastic box. Have set up a small cardboard box within it with bedding material. He has water and food. Will he be ok in an unheated garage? Should I remove the ticks?

I suspect there is another baby in the garden yet to be rescued. Can two be kept together if we find another one?

Thanks

Steve

[simbo65]

Hi,
I’m not an expert but found this on BHPS website

If you have found a hedgehog you are concerned about please use gardening gloves to collect it up, bring it indoors and put it in a high sided cardboard box with an old towel or fleece in the bottom for the hedgehog to hide under. Fill a hot water bottle so that when it is wrapped in a towel there is a nice gentle heat coming through and put that in the bottom of the box with the hedgehog, ensuring it has room to get off the bottle should it get too warm. Make sure the bottle is always kept warm (if allowed to go cold it will chill the hedgehog and do more harm than good). If the hedgehog is bleeding please do not add a hot water bottle as this will make it bleed more quickly. Put the box somewhere quiet. Offer meaty cat or dog food and fresh water then call us as soon as possible on 01584 890 801 for further advice and the numbers of local contacts.

Note that out of office hours there is an answerphone, if you have a hedgehog, please press option 1 and listen to the emergency numbers, these volunteers are not representatives of BHPS, but they will be able to give you advice and numbers of local contacts. Please note as volunteers they are sometimes busy (and need to sleep) so if there is no immediate answer, please leave a message or try later. In the meantime, keep the hedgehog safe indoors as described above, or if in obvious pain and in need of urgent help take it to a local vet as soon as possible.

Personally I would find out my local carer from BHPS and take the little ones there. They will do with the Tics too. However they might be full but should be able to advise you. I don’t know for sure but I think it would be OK to keep 2 little ones together. Is there any sign of their mum or do you know of a nest in your garden?
Please let us know how they get on.

[simbo65]

Hi- As you have found the hog during the evening it’s possible mum is still around. It’s important not to take them away from her if you think she could be about. Have you seen a mum previously?

[SteveReed]

Thanks for the quick reply. There are quite a few hogs of various sizes that visit our garden. There was an adult around this evening. Do you think I should release the young one? It has been eating the food we put out in the garden so I guess it is weaned. A bit confused about what to do!

Steve

[SteveReed]

Forgot to mention that it was also around in daylight earlier today.

Steve

[Sian27tydu]

I’ve got a similar dilemma. Hoglet in the garden this evening, feeding well but clearly 300g or less. I rescued one a few weeks ago and released it in my garden because I have several houses, and have had hedgehogs visiting for over a year now. It may be the same one that’s returned, but it doesn’t seem large enough to survive the winter. Wondering whether to bring it in or see if it uses one of the houses overnight?

[Nic]

Hi Steve

You need to contact the BHPS to find your nearest carer as soon as you can. 01584 890801 They are sometimes contactable late. They will be able to give you the number of your nearest carer and then you can explain everything better to them and take their advice.

My feeling is that if the hoglet has been eating it will be weaned. If it has been out during the day, it may be very hungry or dehydrated, but almost certainly needs to be checked out, so don’t let it go. Mother may have already gone off to hibernate.

If you need to keep the hoglet over-night, which you probably will need to now, I normally keep any hogs which I need to keep in overnight in an unheated kitchen. (but still reasonably warm compared to a garage). It might be a bit cold in the garage – I understand it’s going to be pretty cold tonight. I would put a newspaper in the bottom of any box, as they nearly always spill the water. If you use a hot water bottle make sure it isn’t too hot and make sure the hoglet has room to get away from it if it gets too hot. I don’t normally use one if the hoglets are inside a reasonably warm room and there is plenty of bedding they can snuggle into.

Good luck. Let us know how you get on.

[Nic]

P.S. Don’t worry about the ticks for now, if the hoglet is going to be checked by a carer they will be able to deal with any ticks.

[SteveReed]

Hi Nic

Took the decision to release it before I read your post. He went straight back to the feeding bowl and seemed pretty happy. There was definitely an adult around in the garden tonight so hopefully that was Mum. When I went into the garden there was another little one feeding and he weighed 265g. Will ring the local rescue tomorrow. I suspect it will be easy to round them up tomorrow if the advice is to get them into a foster home.

Cheers

Steve

[Nic]

Hi Steve

If the hoglets are weaned Mother will probably be trying to have as little to do with them as possible. When her job is done, she will have nothing to do with them, other than by chance. She will be needing to get herself prepared for hibernation, so they have probably been left to fend for themselves. I don’t know where you are in the country, but 240-265g sounds too light for them to survive hibernation. The one being out during the day is particularly worrying. It is a warning sign that all is not well.

If it was me, I would be inclined to try to catch them tonight, if you get the chance, so that they can go to be checked over tomorrow. Otherwise you are putting it off for another day, and with a cold night tonight. If you can’t, then please do contact a carer tomorrow and take advice.

Good luck.

[simbo65]

Hi Steve.
Nic is a real expert on here. Ring BHPS and find your local carer for advise. Hopefully they will come back to feed tomorrow and you can be ready to catch them if necessary.
I hope I haven’t been instrumental in bringing the little ones to any harm.
It’s just I read something on here on how we as humans sometimes intervene too quickly where the little ones are concerned.
Sorry
Please let us know what happens.

[Nic]

Hi simbo65

Don’t worry too much. Hopefully Steve will get another chance to catch the little ones.

I have to say, I also sometimes think we humans intervene too soon, which might be why you have found all the carers round you are full already. Maybe some of those have been ‘rescued’ a bit too soon? But these two do sound quite small and being out during the day is a worrying sign for any hog.

Fingers crossed it all works out well in the end. (Fingers crossed for BigLeg, too).

[simbo65]

Thanks Nic-
I am struggling with the worry of him in the garage. He doesn’t seem to be eating and always asleep- I think he is asleep anyway. I am wondering if he just wants to hibernate and wants everyone to leave him alone.
We will weigh and check him tomorrow and if all OK I am putting him back in the garden. I think he needs to be a hog again.
Is Siili still around?

[Nic]

Hi simbo65

They are all such a worry! I would be worried if he was here! I suppose you can’t blame him for wanting to sleep after major surgery. But you have taken all the advice and then sometimes we just have to hope that the fates will treat them kindly. It’s always a worry. I know how worrying it was releasing Siili. (Siili’s still visiting – or was last night).

[Nic]

Hi simbo65

I should probably clarify that I was meaning with underweight hoglets, when I said above about maybe sometimes humans intervening too soon. (although these two are very small and so probably do need rescuing) (But, I shouldn’t write posts late at night!) With sick/injured hogs, it’s a bit different and then to get help quickly is important.

I would always take hogs to a carer/wildlife hospital rather than a vet, in the first instance and if at all possible – I think they are more likely to try to save the hog. (and they would take them to a vet if necessary). I have a feeling that if Siili had gone straight to a vet, they might have euthanased her as they did with another one with a similar injury a while back. But the dedicated people at the wildlife hospital nursed her back to health, which of course takes up a lot of time.

P.S. No Siili last night. Maybe she really is going to hibernate this year.

[Author]

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