Wildlife

Wild Hedgehog Garden Corridor Welfare

Hedgehog populations in fragmented gardens require connectivity through 13cm holes in fences, and the Hedgehog Street campaign has created thousands of linked garden networks.

Key Facts

The average hedgehog needs to travel 1-2 km per night to meet nutritional needs
Garden fences and walls create impassable barriers that fragment hedgehog territories
A 13cm hole at the bottom of each fence panel connects an entire neighbourhood for hedgehogs
Hedgehog Street has enrolled over 100,000 UK households in creating connected garden habitats
Connected garden networks show significantly higher hedgehog detection rates than isolated gardens

Welfare Considerations

Garden connectivity is one of the simplest and highest-impact welfare interventions for hedgehogs. Creating 13cm holes in fences directly enables hedgehogs to meet their nightly territorial and nutritional needs.

What You Can Do

Create a hedgehog hole in your garden fence and encourage neighbours to do the same
Register your garden on Hedgehog Street to connect your neighbourhood's hedgehog habitat
Advocate for hedgehog connectivity requirements in new housing development planning