How long to hedgehogs sleep for???

[Pumpkin Becki]

Found a hedgehog hibernating in the autumn in the middle of my flower bed. He wasn't very well protected, so I piled loads of fern leaves over him and propped a small sheet of plywood over the top to keep the worst of the weather off.

My helebores have been trying to flower up through the middle of this nest for some time, so this weekend I thought 'he must have moved on by now', so I carefully dismantled the top of the nest. Looked promising, so I kept going...

and there he was, sound asleep, still breathing, prickles flexing as I moved the leaves off him...

Surely he should be up and about by now?? Does any one know how late they hibernate?

[FB.]

If you've made it a nice home, why would it want to move somewhere else?
Our hedgehog comes out of it's nest around or a little after 9pm at the moment, but hides in the nest all day.
Perhaps go out a little after 10pm tonight and see if your hedgehog is still hiding in the nest.
I suspect you'll find it to be gone after dusk - it'll be out looking for food - and will probably return before dawn breaks.

[Pumpkin Becki]

When hedgies have hibernated with us in the past, they've seemed to make a temporary hibernating nest, and then moved on to another nest site for the rest of the year. Do you think he's set up home permanently then?

I wonder if I can carefully relocate him?

[FB.]

I think that you've been too kind to your hedgehog!
I think that your hedgehog is sufficiently impressed by the local facilities that it plans to stay.
Relocating could be a problem because it knows where the nest should be and will probably search for it.
I reckon that you'll either have to let it stay where it is, or make it homeless.
If it's a male, making it homeless is not too much of an issue, but if it's a female that's about to have young, then making it homeless will mean that the babies will not have a nest, so will probably die, unless the female can very quickly find a new nest site.
Therefore, unless you really can't leave the nest where it is, I would wait until the autumn before removing the nest (when breeding season is over). Before removing the nest, you could try creating a nest somewhere else in your garden/veg plot that they can live in next year.



Apparently, hedgehogs have several types of nest.
Females like a hidden, secure and substantial nest for summer, in which to raise a family.
Males (and over-wintering females) will live almost anywhere and are often happy withy a pile of old leaves in the base of a hedgerow, or to hide under garden rubbish. Apparently, male hedgehogs are happy to move their nest almost from week to week and don't bother with a fancy nest, since they have no "family commitments" to worry about.

[shirlthegirl43]

I would love to find a hoghedge in our garden. Can you please post piccies of yours?

[Pumpkin Becki]

Fascinating. I wouldn't want to make him or her homeless, so I guess my helebores will just have to suffer instead!! Thank you for your help F.B. I'd better reconstruct the top of the nest when I get home.

[Pumpkin Becki]

I would love to find a hoghedge in our garden. Can you please post piccies of yours?

He's asleep!! The flash might wake him up...I'm thinking hedgehogs can be quite prickly when rudely awakened. I don't want a grumpy hedgie on my hands!!