Our hedgehogs hogitat

[123Deb321]

We got a hogitat for Christmas (ie a straw shop-bought hedgehog home), as we had a hedgehog in our garden on a number of occasions before Christmas. But where is the best place to locate it? I know they usually burrow under leaves etc, but do they prefer a dark woody/moist area, or part shade, and doe I stuff leaves into the hogitat? Our garden backs onto other gardens, so I want the hedgehog to choose ours, so how do I make it more desirable for it? Also, is there anything I can plant to make it more appealing for them, or is there any food I can leave out for them (as I know milk is a no-go for them)?

[Aberdeenplotter]

Funny beasties hedgehogs but charming. In the dim and distant past, I was renovating a bit of fence with a sheet of corrugated iron at the bottom. There was a pile of detritus including old compost bags up against the Iron. As I was clearing that with my fork, I discovered a dozy hedgehog underneath. I put him back and covered him up again but he must have thought he had received an eviction notice because he moved out and was never seen again. I think what I'm trying to say is that provided they can find a dry cosy sheltered bit, it doesn't need to be fancy and they don't like being disturbed so a quiet out of the way bit would be ideal

[Aberdeenplotter]

whoops, I think cat food or dog food suits their diet but maybe have a look at a hedgehog website

Feeding a wild hedgehog in your garden | Prickles

[123Deb321]

I've heard of the dog/cat food thing before (although I'd forgot it, until you mentioned it). We've got quite a few undisturbed areas, so that shouldn't be a problem.

[Nicos]

Dry and quiet, and yes, I'd put some dried leaves in if you can.

One thing to be aware of is foxes.
They can easily get their heads inside or flip the houses over, depending on the design of the house.
If you can hide it under stones etc to make it harder to dig out then that'd make it much safer.

A constant supply of water would be very attractive to hedgehogs too....you just need to make your garden more attractive/ inviting/ safer than your neighbours'

[Mark Lottie]

Looking up hedgehog houses last year and building a few, I found the same general advice for making it as attractive as possible:

-Place entrance so it doesnt face the oncoming wind.
-Put an insulating layer around it of straw or trigs or leaves
-Above that layer put a tarp or something that keeps the rain out. Weigh this down with bricks or something heavy
-Use a tunnel thats about 12x12cm in width/height and about 20cm+ long so foxes cant reach in and pull them out. Something like a single wine box is perfect
-Put a hose exhaust through the back of it to allow air to circulate as they hibernate with the outside facing downwards so it doesnt catch rain water. Wrap some mesh over the end of the pipe to keep
-Dont put water or food in. Put it nearby, possible using a hedgehog feeder to make sure foxes/cats dont eat it all (basically a box with a hole in).
-Dont fill it with anything, just leave some bedding material nearby for them to make their own nest.
-Depending on the design of the house (i.e. if it has a bottom) try to lift it off the floor a few inches so it doesnt rot down or have a damp floor.

Of course, Hedgehogs could make anything their home and you dont have to do all this, but these are considered the perfect conditions by many natural societies/hedgehog people and my two houses were populated very quickly