General Chat

Yesterday I thought I would treat the new visitor to the garden, a hedgehog who has turned up every night this last week or so, to some meaty catfood instead of the scraps I have been putting out for him/her. I duly arranged some in the usual place and waited and waited and am still flippin waiting! No sign of him, now have I overfed him already so he is too fat to squeeze through where ever it was he came through, or has some dire fate befallen him, or is he just fed up with this particular restaurant. I know the starlings and blackbirds will clear up the stuff I put out, but there is almost a full tin left, wonder if o.h. would like it in sarnies next week for work lol Oh that's so tempting.....

Lizx

Had to chuckle when I read the last part Liz. We have a hedgehog who regularly visits our garden, gave me quite a fright the first time I saw him, I thought he was a rat, lol.

Hi Ladies, re the wildlife, I think that you will find that if you have seen one hedgehog in your garden, you have more than one.

I have a whole family of them visit me every night in summer, also a family of foxes.

I always have a selection of dried and tinned cat food out to feed stray cats'and some just greedy. Just last week we hopeful


ly snapped a photo of a fox, hegehog, cat and slugs, all happily troughing out of the same dish.

All this only one mile from Sheffield city centre!!

Thought I would give him another chance and went outside about 12.15am to put out the food, he doesn't usually come till 2ish. Stepped outside patio doors and automatic light came on and he was coming up the garden towards me, he took one look and scuttled off! I am not sure whether it was the same one, looked smaller but I put the food down and hope one will come back and eat it. Maybe word is spreading...

Frances, I did a double take the first time I saw it there as we have had a resident rat before, luckily it seems to have gone now as we haven't seen it for months.

Lizx

Just been out an hour later and some of the food has gone so someone's been in lol

I added some more food earlier and then looked out later on and saw two hedgehogs enjoying their supper, all food gone now from the grass so two nicely full hedgehogs I think, snoozing the day away. I got some photos of them altho a bit on the skew as I was shooting into the dark, one was the larger hedgehog who has been coming all week and the other was the smaller one I saw earlier.
Will word get round I wonder and I get three visit tonight? I must put the food out a bit earlier this time and lots of it.

Lizx

Hope they don't share the info of a good feed with the rats. We have had them in our garden recently, so now only put food for the birds on the garage roof.

Hi all, Nina again, if you are really interested in your garden nightlife, do as we did and change your security light for one that stays on all the time.

The wildlife soon get used to it, and are not startled when a light suddenly comes on.

We get so much pleasue out of watching them that we rarely switch the telly on.

I keep going out and shining a torch around to help them get used to me and light, they didn't seem to mind the other night, the light comes on and off when moths fly near the one at the end of the garden and sometimes the top one too so it is intermittent. I don't think o.h. would be happy if I wanted the light on all the time, if it's really windy and the tree blows a bit in front of the second one, he will switch it off till the wind has died down lol

Don't know if a cat pinched the food last night or the hedgehogs came, I didn't see them when I looked out but I was watching tv for a while so forgot to check. I think it was them tho as the cat usually makes the light come on, there are five cats round here and they often sneak in at night, one of them sits on the shed roof so making the light come on, and basks in the warmth when it's cold outside.

Lizx

And then there were three!!!

I haven't been out to the shops to get more food so there wasn't much left to put out last night, went out around 11.15am, a bit earlier than usual and could hear a lot of snuffling going on. I could see two hedgehogs near the garden bench which is covered over because of the rain. they were sort of circling each other and rooting about. I put the food down as near as I could to them and took some photos, have to shoot blind as it is so dark, o.h. has switched off the end light as a spider keeps making webs round it and making it switch on and off! Not very good pics but then I spotted a third hedgehog and it was braver, started coming towards me but then beetled off back to the bench again. A little later I peeked out again and this time there was just one hedgehog devouring what was left of the food. I would imagine as there has been lots of rain there were several worms and such about so the others didn't go away hungry. I will have to stock up later today, methinks this could become an expensive hobby lol

Lizx

Oooooh Liz, you wouldn't.........would you?.........nooooo.......you are too nice, and anyway he might start meowing.....

Glad to see the hedgehogs in your garden are multiplying......the first one must have put the word out......:0)

It was tempting Sally lol but now I have more mouths to feed there won't be any left over!
I do wonder how the word spreads between hedgehogs, do they leave signs as gypsies are supposed to do at people's gateposts?

Lizx

Well I don't think there have been three hedgehogs together any more, but I think one has been most nights as the food disappears. Got some brilliant photos this evening, went out and one was coming towards the dish of food, didn't seem bothered by me or the light and stayed several minutes scoffing most of the catfood I got especially before realising I was snapping away, and scuttled off. I have left the food down in case the others come, I take it away and put any remaining on the bird table once it starts to get light, but there isn't usually very much left for the birds.
I have enjoyed them visiting but once you start feeding you really have to continue so they don't waste time and energy coming for nothing. I want to try and persuade o.h. to make a hedgehog house and leave it somewhere safe and undisturbed so they can bed down when the time comes. Would be satisfying to think I had helped keep a hedgehog alive throughout the winter time - off to look on line and send instructions to o.h. as if he hasn't enough to do in the garden lol

Lizxx

Just a little update to say at least one very large hedgehog is still popping in some nights to eat the food I put out, | got some more great photos the other night and he ate while ignoring me for a while, then scarpered very fast. I went out and put out more bits of ham fat and stale stinky cheese and almost as soon as I closed the patio doors, he was back again tucking in so I got more pics.

I am trying to persuade o.h. to make a hedgehog house for at least one of them, for the winter. There are lots of instructions on line.

Lizx

n

Shouldn't he finish the shower before starting on a new house???? LOL
Mary

lol Mary, he can play with a new house out in the garage or shed, out of my way lol

Can't see the shower/bathroom ever getting done, unless we hear for sure that his son will be bringing the new American wife to visit at Christmas which seems to be the plan, heaven help us! At the mo tho they have no internet or phone as they are so hard up so can't see them finding the airfare etc

Lizx

Two different hedgehogs visited this evening, well I think so anyway. One looked larger than the other but he did have his back to me so might have been the same one which I normally see from the front lol They/It loves the bits of smelly old cheese and other titbits I put out for them and I put them close to the patio doors on a small polystyrene meat tray so it's easy to pick up any left overs later on and put on the bird table. It's very wet out as it's rained almost all night but I feel happy I have helped them have a feed. The slugs and snails come to the food tray too so they are there for the taking if hedgie wants them lol

Lizx