Hedgehog Conservation in Gardens: Practical Welfare Guide
West European hedgehogs have declined by over 50% since the 1950s. Gardens play an essential role in hedgehog survival. This page provides practical welfare guidance for garden hedgehog conservation.
Hedgehog Ecology and Garden Use
Hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) are omnivorous insectivores that range widely—males may travel 2-3km per night. Gardens provide: foraging habitat (invertebrates including earthworms, beetles, slugs); nesting sites (log piles, leaf heaps, under sheds); daytime resting cover; and corridor connectivity between larger habitat patches. Garden hedgehogs are typically part of wider urban/suburban populations using multiple gardens and green spaces.
Hedgehog Highways
Garden boundary impermeability is a primary hedgehog welfare problem in urban areas: solid fencing and walls prevent hedgehog movement between gardens, fragmenting habitat and isolating populations. Hedgehog highways—13cm x 13cm holes cut at the base of fence panels—allow hedgehog passage while maintaining garden security. The British Hedgehog Preservation Society's Hedgehog Street campaign has enrolled hundreds of thousands of households in creating connected hedgehog corridors. Even a single connected corridor through a street block substantially improves hedgehog welfare and survival.
Garden Hazards to Hedgehogs
Common garden hazards causing hedgehog injury and death include: netting (strawberry nets, pond nets, football nets—hedgehogs become entangled and die of stress/starvation); garden machinery (strimmers, mowers—hedgehogs roll into a ball rather than fleeing and are catastrophically injured); bonfires (hedgehogs nest in bonfire material before it is lit); garden chemicals (slug pellets containing metaldehyde—highly toxic; pesticides reducing invertebrate prey); ponds without exit ramps (hedgehogs drown); and litter (cans, elastic bands).
Feeding Hedgehogs Appropriately
Supplementary feeding provides welfare support particularly in autumn when hedgehog need to accumulate fat reserves for hibernation. Welfare-appropriate foods: cat or dog meat (wet or dry); specialist hedgehog food; or meal worms in moderation. Foods to avoid: cow's milk (causes diarrhoea—hedgehogs are lactose intolerant); bread (nutritional inadequacy); peanuts and sunflower seeds (associated with bone disease at high levels). Water should always be provided alongside food. Feeding stations with restricted access prevent cats and foxes consuming food intended for hedgehogs.
Recognising a Hedgehog in Need
Hedgehogs active during the day are almost invariably in difficulty—they are strictly nocturnal and daytime activity indicates illness, injury, starvation, or distress. Any hedgehog found in difficulty should be: placed in a high-sided box with ventilation holes; kept warm (wrapped in a towel, avoid direct heat); offered water and food; and taken to a local hedgehog rehabilitator or wildlife rescue as soon as possible. Attempting to care for hedgehogs without specialist knowledge risks delaying appropriate care.
Garden Habitat Creation
Creating good hedgehog habitat includes: log piles (providing invertebrate food, shelter, and nesting material); compost heaps (warmth for nesting, invertebrate food); native plant areas supporting insect diversity; reducing pesticide use; leaving leaf litter in corners for nesting and foraging; and installing purpose-built hedgehog houses in quiet, sheltered areas. Wildflower patches, native hedgerows, and pond margins with gradual entry and exit slopes increase garden biodiversity supporting hedgehog food availability.
Monitoring and Citizen Science
Hedgehog monitoring supports population assessment: footprint tunnels (ink-pad tunnels recording footprints) detect hedgehog presence; camera traps provide observation without disturbance; and citizen science sightings recorded via PTES's 'Big Hedgehog Map' contribute to national distribution data. Neighbourhood-level hedgehog monitoring through street-based connected garden schemes enables local population trends to be detected, informing targeted conservation action.
Summary
Garden hedgehog welfare depends on: connected habitat through hedgehog highways; removal of lethal hazards (netting, strimmers, bonfire material, toxic pesticides); appropriate supplementary feeding in autumn; creation of foraging and nesting habitat; and recognition of and rapid response to hedgehogs in difficulty. The cumulative impact of millions of individual householders taking simple welfare actions creates meaningful population-level conservation benefit for this declining species.