Hedgehog Garden Welfare: Practical Help for Urban Populations

Urban and suburban gardens are important hedgehog habitats, and simple changes by householders can dramatically improve individual welfare and population health.

Key Facts

UK hedgehog populations have declined by around 50% in rural areas since the year 2000
Urban populations show more stability than rural ones in some areas
Hedgehogs are territorial and travel up to 2 km per night through multiple gardens
Garden netting, strimmers, ponds without ramps, and bonfires cause significant deaths annually
Hedgehogs benefit from community-level garden connectivity through access holes in fences

Welfare Considerations

Hedgehogs entangled in garden netting suffer from restriction injuries, lacerations, and slow starvation if not discovered quickly. Animals trapped in garden ponds without a ramp to escape drown after exhaustion. Hedgehogs run over by strimmers in long grass suffer severe lacerations that require emergency veterinary treatment. Woken from hibernation in bonfires die from hypothermia or burns. These are entirely preventable with simple awareness changes. The welfare impact of multiple garden hazards on a declining species is significant at population level.

What You Can Do

Cut a 13cm x 13cm hole in fence panels to create hedgehog highways with neighbours
Install a pond ramp in any garden pond
Never light bonfires without first dismantling and checking the pile
Check long grass with a stick before using strimmers or rotary mowers
Register your garden with Hedgehog Street to join the community connectivity network