Having a hedgehog in your garden is like winning the lottery. It is the best natural “biocide” – one family of hedgehogs can eliminate hundreds of snails, caterpillars and other insects that destroy your crops in one night.
Here are 7 ways to turn your garden into a five-star hedgehog resort:
- Create a “hedgehog highway”
This is the most common mistake. A hedgehog can travel up to 2 kilometers in a night, but if you have a concrete base or a mesh all the way to the ground around your garden, it simply won’t get to you.
Solution: A small hole in the fence measuring 13 x 13 cm is enough. It is enough for a hedgehog, but not enough for most dogs.
- Leave one corner “wild”
Hedgehogs love mess. A pile of leaves, branches or old wood in a secluded corner of the garden is an ideal hotel for them.
Tip: If you have a pile of wood that you want to burn, it is better to rearrange it before lighting it – hedgehogs often sleep in it and do not have time to escape.
- Water is essential (not milk!)
A bowl of clean water is a lifesaver in the hot summer.
Warning: Never give hedgehogs milk. It causes severe diarrhea, which can be fatal for them. They are insectivores, not cats.
- Cat food buffet
If you want to attract and keep a hedgehog, you can give it treats. They like cat granules (ideally chicken) or wet food from pouches the most.
Warning: Avoid food containing fish.
- Chemical-free safe zone
If you use blue snail pellets (metaldehyde), the hedgehog can eat them directly, or eat the poisoned snail. Both options end tragically for the hedgehog.
Solution: Switch to ecological methods or leave the work to the hedgehog.
- Beware of lawnmowers and trimmers
Most hedgehog injuries occur when mowing tall grass under bushes and in corners.
Rule: Before you start mowing the “thickness”, check it with a stick or foot to see if anyone is resting there.
- Build them a “Hedgehog Mansion”
You can buy or make a house for the hedgehog. It should be in the shade, protected from the wind and lined with dry leaves or straw. The entrance should be in the shape of a corridor so that cats or foxes cannot get in.
💡 A little warning
Hedgehogs are wild animals and can host fleas and ticks. Although they are adorable, do not pick them up or try to keep them as pets at home. They are happiest when you only notice them from a distance.
Fun fact: If you see a hedgehog spitting on its back, don’t worry – it is not rabid. This is called “self-perfuming”, where they apply a new scent to their quills.
Would you like to see a simple diagram of how to build a hedgehog house from scrap wood from making a Hugel bed?