11/09/2026
🦔 Hedgehog HQ is getting ready for autumn! 🍂
I’ve been busy making a new feeding station for our little prickly visitors — and they certainly seem to appreciate it because they are really piling on the pounds at the moment! 😂🦔
There was just one tiny problem with the new restaurant… I seem to have put the doors in a slightly different place this time! 🤦♀️😂
This caused a little initial confusion, with a few very puzzled hedgehogs wondering where on earth their dinner had gone! But they are such clever little creatures and it didn’t take them long to work it out. 🥰🦔
This is the time of year when hedgehogs are eating as much as they can to build up their fat reserves ready for hibernation.
Did you know that hedgehog hibernation is actually called torpor? Although they are fast asleep for long periods, they can — and do — wake up occasionally for a drink and a little snack.
And not every hedgehog will hibernate. Smaller youngsters may simply stay awake and keep feeding through the winter if they haven’t reached a safe weight.
That was exactly what happened with our hedgehogs last winter. Most of them carried on visiting throughout the colder months, but two poorly little hoglets we discovered — Hugo and Harvey — were taken into rescue. They fattened up beautifully and then had a lovely long nap at the rescue, waking just a couple of weeks before they were released back into the wild in spring. ❤️
Hugo and Harvey are still around and visiting nightly for their support feed, along with a smaller but steadily growing youngster called Felix. 🦔🦔🦔
Over the next 4–6 weeks, we’ll probably start to see some of our regular visitors disappearing as they settle down for their winter sleep.
They’ve got plenty of cosy options here too — we have three comfy, rescue-approved hedgehog houses ready and waiting, plus a lovely supply of dust-extracted straw for them to collect and turn into warm, snuggly nests. 🏡🍂
So while we humans are thinking about jumpers, blankets and cosy nights in, the hedgehogs are busy eating, nesting and getting themselves winter-ready!
And apparently, they’re also keeping a very close eye on my DIY skills. 😂🦔
Enjoy your dinners, little prickles. ❤️
Have a lovely day x
