Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
A helping hand for a hedgehog
It is now such a rare and precious thing to glimpse a hedgehog in the wild that, when our little band of walkers at The Paddock spotted one on the path ahead of us, there was a collective gasp and we all held our breath.
However, after a few moments, it became clear that all was not well. The hedgehog was out in the daytime which is unusual and as we came closer didn't run away but curled up.
One of our number, who is a volunteer in Regent's Park for Hedgehog Heroes, was concerned. Although the spines looked healthy and there was no evidence of parasites, its nose and eyes were crusty and it was clearly lethargic.
Gently, she picked the hedgehog up (and, frankly, our hearts melted as she cradled it) and used a cloth shopping bag to transport it to the cabin at The Paddock where Cassandra and Anna of TCV Haringey set up getting help for it.
Settled down in the cabin for the night with food and water, they called the RSPCA.
Eventually Hedgie went to a local vet and last news I got was that it was awaiting collection by the RSPCA.
Hopefully they can help make it better and release it back to the wild.
It seems that hedgehogs are still clinging on around the Lea/Haringey/Walthamstow.
Is it time for some joined up thinking by local councils, water companies and charities to survey them and protect them from any further harm? I, for one, would be willing to volunteer to help and I'm sure many others would join me.
Tags for Forum Posts: hedgehogs, nature notes, the paddock
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Shar on
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Thank you for sharing this Liz.
I'm not optimistic about the feasibility of 'joined-up thinking' and 'local councils' co-existing in the same sentence, but I do hope the best happens for these lovely little creatures.
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Permalink Reply by EMC2 on
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When we first moved here in the mid-80s it wasn't uncommon to hear the hedgehogs grunting in the night, and occasionally meet one in our back garden. Unfortunately I think the craze for tidy, hardcore gardens, with impermeable fences have done for them, and they've disappeared round here, just north of the Ladder. I used to tell my Irish country living relatives that I've seen more wildlife in North London than I ever saw growing up in the country in Co Armagh...
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Permalink Reply by paulwilliam on
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I agree that the doing up of gardens with impenetrable fences has made life hard for hedgehogs on the Ladder. We regularly had them in our garden next to New River in the 90’s ( chugging around like stem trains)but none in recent years though, due to an adjoining garden to our front garden being left overgrown, our son photographed one in the summer which made us very happy. We have on our to do list a plan to ask all our near neighbours if they’d be willing to create a small hole in their fencing and insert an s bend pipe big enough for a hedgehog to get through ( cats won’t attempt a pipe they can’t see through) so they can access more local food and garden ponds for much needed liquid. If such a scheme grew then I’m sure those New River Hedgehogs would stand a better chance of thriving
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Permalink Reply by Glenn Wallis on
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This has left me somewhat concerned. A hedgehog out in daylight is seriously ill and dying. The RSPCA is not really interested in hedgehogs, so it is to be hoped that a good hedgehog rescue was found. If you find a hedgehog out in the day, it needs to taken to a rescue centre asap. There is a vast amount of plain wrong information about hedgehogs on the web and it is difficult to be sure you are accessing the correct info. Hedgehog Cabin is one of many rescues that know what they are talking about. Pauly's website has a vast amount of reliable information about hedgehogs. They do not eat slugs, snails or mealworms. They are dangerous to them. They need clean water and kitten biscuits containing meat.
#betheirambulance
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Permalink Reply by Liz on
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Thanks Glenn, the hedgehog was taken to a local vet but I'm not certain what happened next.
We had an expert used to handling hedgehogs including sick ones with us who advised on what to do. As you can see from the picture, appropriate food and water was provided.
If you have the info or contact details for a London based hedgehog rescue I'd be happy to pass the information on for future reference.
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You can find your nearest wildlife rescue here:
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Hi Glenn, just to say that I worked for several years at one of the RSPCAs wildlife hospitals. At the hospital I worked at we’d get around 100+ hedgehogs over the Winter months, bought to the centre by RSPCA animal collection officers from all over the country. They were fed tinned dog food (no fish).
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There’s definitely hedgehogs in the ladder area, Tottenham Hale & Regent’s Park areas. It would be really lovely for Ladder Residents to sign up to Hedgehog Street
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