Where’d they go???
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Since “discovering” we had Hogs visiting us last year we have had increasing numbers each evening with our record being 4 seen in the same night!
This has continued through the last couple of months with some younger hogs visiting from about 21:30 each night
But for the last week we’ve not seen any waiting up until 23:00
The accesses are all open and no change in food (Tesco Kitten Kibble plus some other Hedgehog specific foods) and there’s always plenty of water about.
Surely to early for Hibernation ?(we’re just north of Bristol)
anyone else had a “disappearance” of Hogs (perhaps they found better grub elsewhereHi, my regular Hog from last summer has suddenly stopped coming. Not seen him on the camera since the end of August. He’s left it 2-3 days before but never this long. Hoping he’ll return. Got a house ready for him for the winter. I still have another one coming in but that one only turned up in April (he’s got a house for the winter too by the way). They have different markings that’s how I know. All the food and some water went last night.
A lady I know had 4 hogs visiting but back about mid August all 4 have disappeared. No food or water has been had. So yes it does happen but is strange I agree. You wonder where they are.
Much celebration last night as one of the older Hoglets turned up (quiet early about 20:45) had a couple of visits to the feed and water bowls and a wonder round the back garden in between
its amazing how much we’d missed them!
no sign of the others,however, by the time we’d turned in at 23:00Hi!
GuzziV8, are they still eating the food? It may simply be that they come out after you go to bed- I often find I see most hedgehog activity between 1 and 3am. They might have been coming in earlier in recent weeks because we haven’t had much rainfall except in last couple of days, so they may have been desperate for water. It’s also not too early for some of them to go into hibernation, as apparently the males can start hibernation in September.
Keith59, I hope your hog is just on an extended roaming trip and will be back soon, although it’s possible it has gone into hibernation. Keep us posted.
Hi GuzziV8 and Keith59
If they happened to be males, it isn’t too early for hibernation for some of them. Males tend to hibernate earlier than females and hoglets and then return earlier in the Spring. They don’t have hoglet duties to worry about so can concentrate on putting on weight earlier. Then when they return earlier in the Spring, they have a bit of an opportunity to put on some weight after hibernation – before the females return and they start wasting a lot of time and energy finding them and circling them endlessly!
I would be inclined to keep offering food for a while. Apart from anything else hoglets sometimes materialise from somewhere at this time of year (and later – hoglets tend to be last to hibernate) and welcome some supplementary food. It’s a good idea to leave water available all day every day, even during winter. You never know when a hog might emerge during hiberenation desperate for a drink.
Hibernation is always a worry, but when the hogs, hopefully, return in the Spring it is such a delight!
another quick update!
One Hoglet has now started arriving early (at dusk about 7:45 being his earliest “sitting” so perhaps we were missing him because he was so early?) and along with a bigger Hog (Mum?) and another Hoglet have been with us on and off for a week (perhaps someone told them we were missing them?)
Thanks for tip re water Nic -so easily forgotten hen we are tucked up in our own houses!Hi, We’ve had a similar experience during the summer. We used to have a population of at least 7 individuals who would come to our feeding boxes. in the past they’ve mysteriously disappeared for up to two weeks at a time, and I’m told hedgehogs do appear to “go on holiday”! However this year they were gone for much longer. In the last week some have started coming again. I can’t be sure that they are the same ones, of course. We’ve not seen any small hoglets, which is disappointing because we’ve been feeding and housing them for 3 years now.
I’ve speculated that possibly in the summer, when natural food is plentiful, they disperse into the surrounding area (where there’s a lot of wild land) and have their young there. They only come back into suburbia when the food starts to dwindle and they decide they want to top up with the stuff we put out before they hibernate.
Anyhow, I hope yours come back soon.Just an update; my regular Hog has reappeared. Think he’s been back for awhile as I had trouble with my camera and it wasn’t working. Fixed now. Caught him 3 times last night. All the food and most of the water has gone this morning, as has most nights recently. So at the moment I have 2 (the same two for over a year now) visiting me. I’m in the south and it’s been like summer here lately. This weekend I’m going to setup the two houses I have for them. Hopefully they’ll decide to stay for the winter, fingers crossed.
That’s great to hear Keith59. Mine are chomping through ridiculous amounts of food as well. Are the houses new or don’t you keep them out during the summer?
Both brand new. I retired the one that was out last winter. I had a mouse problem back in the summer (a mouse ran out of the house) so I removed it. They’ve gone now. These two houses are quite expensive and bigger than the last one and also better made. Got them off Amazon. Just set them up today. Put hay inside and a pile of loose leaves next to them. They’re enclosed by a low level brick wall I’ve made for some weather protection and next to my back fence, south facing. Just see what happens now.
That sounds lovely Keith59! I’m sure the hogs will love their new houses once they get used to them.
Hello, I’m new to Hedgehog Street. I had a Mum and three hoglets nesting in my garden this spring/summer. Have so enjoyed watching them from my first-floor window. I have two bought hedgehog homes in the garden but Mum has preferred a small compost heap at the back of a border between a wall and a very large plant container.
I have been putting food out for them (Spike’s hedgehog food and mealworms) but I have recently become concerned that these are not the best for them – a bit like junk food. In fact I’ve learned that quite a lot of pet food can be bad for pets in the long run.Now found Ark Wildlife which has been developed for hedgehog rescue centres so feel happy that I can keep them fed and help safeguard them from long-term diseases. I still see the three hoglets on the odd time I go out into the garden late evening. They are still a lot smaller than their Mum.
Hi cfhenson
Welcome to the Forum!
How lucky having a Mum and 3 youngsters there!
If you are feeding hog food, the meaty ones are generally considered better, but cat or dog food or cat/kitten biscuits are also fine. If you haven’t already, I would definitely give mealworms a miss. They are junk food – not much nutritional value and also an imbalance of phosphorous and calcium so that calcium can be leached from the bones. Water is best left available, all day every day.
Glad to hear the hogs are still visiting. The hoglets will probably remain smaller than Mother hog until after hibernation.
Good luck with them and happy hog watching.
Our hedgies started eating a lot less 3 nights ago. Of course the weather has been dreadful and the 8 houses we have for them are all dry and cosy, so hopefully all is well and they’re just putting up their little tootsies.
I phoned the Hedgehog Preservation people about when was the best time to clean the houses and was told October. I wish now I’d done it a few weeks ago when they were all still very active. Because now, using the balled up newspaper in the doorway trick, I won’t really know whether the house is empty or whether someone is all cosily tucked up in there. Any suggestions?
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