News from Stroud's Help a Hedgehog Hospital.

Autumn is here! Along with the colder nights and shorter days, the autumn juveniles are coming in.

There has been quite an influx over the last couple of weeks, including some still small enough to need syringe feeding.

Hedgehogs will carry on breeding until the weather gets cold but whereas the adults can go into hibernation safely at this time, these little ones lack the body fat to tide them over the winter.

Their natural food of worms, beetles and larvae disappears underground as it gets colder, so they will struggle to find enough to eat.

Please keep an eye out for little ones, pop them on the scales, using an old pair of gloves, and call us on 0787 037 8207 or 01453 823871 for advice if any are lighter than 500gms.

A quick phone call can save a life.

Another problem hedgehogs face in the autumn is the annual garden tidy-up.

Bonfires, strimmers, and plastic netting left lying around can all be lethal to hedgehogs.

So please be careful and look out for our spikey friends and do all you can to keep your garden hedgehog -friendly, by keeping a pile of fallen leaves for nest-building, making sure hogs can move from one garden to another via a small hole in the fence, keep feeding until the food is no longer taken and look out for hogs in trouble.

On the fundraising front we have recently received some generous donations.

Long-term supporters Leonard Stanley Primary School once again donated the proceeds of their summer fundraiser - a wonderful £228.

Our friends at All Pulling Together in Stonehouse paid a visit to the hospital bringing a cheque for £89 - part of the tombola money from the Fun Day event in July.

Also Will from Ecclesiastical Insurance chose Help a Hedgehog Hospital as his Charity of Choice and doubled the amount offered by the company by volunteering for a day’s work.

Will did a fantastic job of painting the interior of the new overwintering house and this resulted in a cheque for £250.

Our grateful thanks to all these supporters – the money will make a big difference to our ability to feed and care for the hogs this winter.

For more information please see helpahedgehog.org