top of page

Encouraging hedgehogs to stay in your garden

I've seen a hedgehog in the garden how can I help it?

How to make hedgehog friendly gardens

Among the various dangers that threaten hedgehogs,

there are ponds and swimming pools in our gardens.

Always put gently sloping exit routes to save the lives of these animals

and other species. The hedgehog is a good swimmer but,

if they cannot easily walk out of the water on all sides, they will be drowned.

Even if you like keeping your garden nice and cared for, you may want to keep a part of it untended where the hedgehogs can hide away and will feel more comfortable.

 

Leave areas wild and uncultivated with lots of greenery and plenty of deep hedges and bushes. 

​

Remove dangers such as netting, sharp objects, anything that hedgehogs can get stuck or trapped in and, above all, never use poisons. 

​

Slug Pellets and any poisoned pellets are extremely dangerous. In fact, in addition to poison, they contain tasty and attractive ingredients to entice animals and slugs to eat them.

 

They are called "bait" for this reason. Not only will hedgehogs feed on these poisons, but they can be indirectly poisoned by eating a poisoned slug or tiny mouse.

 

Keeping wild animals is prohibited by law in Italy and many other countries.

 

This also means there should always be an escape route for the hedgehog. 

​

Make places welcoming so they will want to stay, but hedgehogs should always be able to choose where they want to live.

Aiutare un riccio in giardino 1. Progetto Riccio Europeo. Italia. Making gardens hedgehog friendly.

Click on the photo on the right to see the video

​

Leaving out cat biscuits and low sided bowls of water save hedgehog  lives

Ricci: Ciotole con crocchette per gatti e sottovasi con acqua salvano i ricci.
Making gardens hedgehog friendly. Aiutare un riccio in giardino. 2. Progetto Riccio Europeo. Italia.

Help save Britain’s hedgehogs with ‘hedgehog highways’!

Click on the red link!

Hedgehog Highways Petition. 

In addition to creating "natural areas", we can help by leaving shelters (houses with an L shaped corridor leading to the sleeping space). 

​

As with many wild animals, hedgehogs prefer shelters that they can hide away in and never be seen from outside.

​

Leave piles of wood and garden waste plus feeding stations with food (cat biscuits) and water.

 

Food should be as far away from the house as possible and never out in the open (in the middle of a lawn or meadow).

 

It's far better to leave shelters tucked away hidden beneath bushes or shrubs since hedgehogs tend not to use hideaways unless they are secluded and concealed.
 

Hedgehogs are nocturnal animals, so they shouldn't be disturbed.

​

A hedgehog must be able to choose whether to live in our garden. It's wild and must be free, so entry and exit routes and gaps about 12/15 cm wide should be created around the perimeter.

 

These will prevent hedgehogs from getting stuck in fences or walls and allow them to come and go as they please.

Make a feeding station with a nice long corridor away from any sleeping places.

Ricci, come aiutarli in inverno? Progetto Riccio Europeo Italia. Helping hedgehogs.
Attenzione! Presenza di ricci! Progetto Riccio Europeo Treviso.
bottom of page