What you can do to help hedgehogs from becoming extinct, according to Emma Pickering of Terrington St Clement animal hospital
A veterinary nurse has channeled her passion for hedgehogs into helping them as a unique way of coping with her mum's death.
Emma Pickering set up Emma’s Hedgehog Hospital – based in Terrington St Clement – five years ago from a room in her house, when she was seeking a distraction after her mother passed away during the pandemic.
Five years on, the fully self-funded hospital is now being run from a shed in her driveway, assisted by 35 volunteers and 70 helpers who act as first responder drivers.
It is the third year the rescue has been running from the shed since outgrowing the house room and becoming an official charity.
For Emma, “it just made sense to do something to help them”. She has always been a very animal-focused person.
At the hospital, there are currently 23 hedgehogs in the rescue. Fifteen are out at foster homes, but the numbers will gradually increase over the next couple of months – this is their quiet time of year because of winter and hibernation.
“Rescues are definitely popping up. These guys in October were declared on the red list now for being threatened and extinction - their numbers have reduced dramatically by 30% over the last decade,” Emma says.
“If we don't all help them they will become extinct, and that is a crime. We need to be doing more to help wildlife.”
INSIDE THE HOSPITAL
Volunteers play a vital part in keeping the hospital running. They clean out, weigh, give health checks, and medicate hedgehogs which come into their care.
The facility is fully equipped with microscopes, as well as intensive care units (ICU) with oxygen and incubators.
In one of the ICU bays you will find hedgehogs with skin issues are found, while another is where they go once they have finished their treatment and are ready for the next stage – either going to an inside or outdoor foster carer or being released back into the wild.
Volunteers are able to carry out screening with microscopes by looking at a tiny piece of a hedgehog’s faeces, examining what parasites they have got and then treating them.
The small animals are treated in the hospital for internal parasites before getting released.
There is a labelling system for any new patients, which is a protocol set by their vet, with humorous emojis sometimes used.
WHAT HAPPENS ONCE THE HEDGEHOG RECOVERS?
Once a hedgehog has recovered, it will normally be put back where it came from as it is familiar with that settin.
However, if it is too dangerous for them - with a dog attack or poisoning likely - then this option would not be taken.
In these cases, Emma and the team will use Google Earth to match up a similar setting to where their original site was.
“It is very in-depth as we cannot just release a hedgehog”, Emma says.
“We have invested all of this money and time into rehabilitation for them - we need to make sure that when they are back out, there are things in place for them to survive.”
Emma explains that when a site is chosen, she aims to ensure there is proof of hedgehogs living there in the past. If they have not, there is likely a reason why.
WHAT PEOPLE CAN DO TO HELP WILDLIFE
People need to do more things in their garden to help wildlife, Emma says.
“I strongly believe that hedgehog highways and supportive feeding are going to be the only things to improve their projection going forward, increasing their numbers.”
Hedgehog highways are small gaps in a fence measuring 13cm by 13cm, around the same size as a CD case, linking gardens to each other.
“Hedgehogs have definitely come in from the more rural settings and the numbers are increasing more in towns and villages because of people feeding them - so if we have the highways, hedgehogs can have a route to link between each other's gardens and areas for nesting, food sources,” Emma adds.
“It is really important, and because of how we are with all the chemicals and people using artificial grass, we are taking away a lot of their natural food sources, so that has a real impact on them.
“That is why it is so important to supportive feed.”
People with hedgehogs in their gardens can put things out for them such as vale, hedgehog food, spikes and brambles, or even kitten or puppy biscuits that are small and do not contain milk.
Emma said she is still continuing to fight a battle on this: “It is a really old wives tale that you should put milk and bread out for hedgehogs, but that is completely wrong.
“They are lactose intolerant and it gives them horrendous diarrhea and then they become dehydrated and die.
“It is very important if you see a hedgehog out in your garden to check whether it is sunbathing, curled up in a ball in the open, or wobbly.
“If so, you do need to get help for it and get in contact with the rescue straight away,” Emma says.
“Hedgehog first responders and I will get a call to say there is a hedgehog in need and then we will send a driver out to them, and they will collect it and bring it here. Time is just so important.”
MEET MOONLIGHT
One hedgehog in the centre is Moonlight, who was found infected with an adult roundworm.
This is now being treated with medication to get her back to her normal self before she is able to be released.
With the help of Emma and the team of volunteers, “she is looking loads better” and “her skin has cleared up now”.
Her skin was originally broken and painful, so she has also received extra care by being placed in an incubator.
Other cases the hospital has seen have come after a “trimmer attack” where they have had part of a hedgehog’s head missing, road traffic incidents where the team has had to repair limbs, and bad cases of fly strikes.
‘WE CAN ONLY SURVIVE ON HAVING VOLUNTEERS’
At the hospital, there is always a need for more drivers to go out and rescue these little creatures.
With Emma’s Hedgehog Hospital being fully self-funded with no help from the Government, she relies on the hands of volunteers to get involved in the day-to-day life of the animals in the centre.
Volunteers do not just get involved inside the shed - they also help to raise funds and host events and open days.
The team visits the likes of fates and talks, including at schools and previously at factories.
“A big part of us is educating the public because, for one, we want to inspire others to help them,” says Emma.
“Inspiring future generations is really important, but also educating adults on what they can do to make those simple changes like hedgehog highways and feeding them, trying to make a little bit of their garden a little bit wilder and more natural and not so clinical.”
People and crafters can also get involved to help the hospital keep doing what it does by making anything hedgehog-themed. The hospital can buy items if volunteers can make it.
There is an Amazon wishlist, and a GoFundMe page for those who want to help in any way.
The centre in Terrington St Clement is holding its major fundraiser of the year soon – an open day on May 4 with lots of stalls.
“It’s a big part of my life. It has not only helped lots of hedgehogs each year but it also helps a lot of people, the volunteer team is growing and it’s made people make new friends,” Emma says.
“I think it’s really good for people’s mental health as well, as it does give a lot back. Animals are so rewarding and I think there is something very special about hedgehogs.”
