Hedgehog Decline and Urban Garden Welfare Support

British hedgehog populations have declined by approximately 50% since 2000, making garden-level welfare support increasingly important for this beloved wild species.

Key Facts

UK hedgehog populations have fallen from an estimated 30 million in the 1950s to approximately 870,000 in 2018
Urban hedgehogs have declined less severely than rural populations, with gardens increasingly important as refugia
Road mortality, garden chemical use, loss of connected green space, and loss of invertebrate prey are primary decline drivers
Hedgehogs travel 1-2 km each night requiring connected garden networks through boundary gaps to access sufficient territory
Garden chemical use including metaldehyde slug pellets (now banned in the UK) killed hedgehogs directly through prey poisoning
State of the Hedgehog reports published annually by the People Trust for Endangered Species track population trends

Welfare Considerations

Hedgehog welfare in urban environments is directly affected by individual householder decisions at a scale where collective action makes measurable population-level differences. A connected network of gardens with hedgehog-friendly management provides foraging habitat, reduces road mortality by enabling hedgehogs to access their range without crossing roads, and supports the invertebrate prey base on which hedgehogs depend. Individual hedgehogs that are thin, injured, or out in daylight are experiencing welfare problems and benefit from intervention. The connection between domestic garden management and wild animal welfare is unusually direct for hedgehogs, making individual consumer behaviour change particularly impactful.

What You Can Do

Create a 13cm gap in garden boundary fences to allow hedgehog movement between gardens
Stop using pesticides and chemical slug controls that reduce hedgehog prey and cause secondary poisoning
Provide a shallow water dish and supplementary feeding of wet cat food or specialist hedgehog food during dry periods
Check garden areas before using strimmers or disturbing leaf piles where hedgehogs may be resting