🐾 Animal Welfare Hub

Key Facts

• UK hedgehog populations have halved in the past 20 years due to habitat loss and intensification
• Gardens now represent important hedgehog habitat where agricultural habitat has declined
• Hedgehogs need connected networks of gardens to find food, mates, and hibernation sites
• Garden hazards including slug pellets, netting, and bonfires kill thousands of hedgehogs annually
• Simple garden changes can make a significant difference to local hedgehog welfare

Welfare Considerations

Garden hedgehog welfare centers on three needs: food access, movement connectivity, and freedom from hazards. Hedgehogs range up to 3km per night and require connected habitat networks to survive. A single impenetrable garden wall or fence can fragment their range. Slug pellets containing metaldehyde and brodifacoum poison hedgehogs directly and through their invertebrate prey. Garden bonfires, ponds without escape ramps, and netting all cause hedgehog injuries and deaths. The cumulative effect of millions of gardens making small changes for hedgehog welfare could have enormous population-level impact.

What You Can Do

• Create a 13cm hole in your fence or wall to connect gardens
• Remove or replace metaldehyde slug pellets with hedgehog-safe alternatives
• Provide a shallow escape ramp in garden ponds
• Leave areas of longer grass and leaf litter for foraging and nesting
• Check bonfires for hedgehogs before lighting and avoid netting close to ground