Now that's a prickly start to life: Tiny two-day-old hedgehog in care after her mother is injured in lawnmower accident

•Honey is in safe hands at Withington Hedgehog Hospital Trust in Manchester

By Graham Smith


This two-day-old baby hedgehog is in a prickly situation as she waits for her mother to recover from a gardening accident.

The newborn, called Honey, is in safe hands as she is looked after by animal welfare officers at Withington Hedgehog Hospital Trust in Manchester.

Her mother was injured when a lawnmower accidentally ran her over.

Newborn: Two-day-old hedgehog Honey is being looked after by animal welfare officers at Withington Hedgehog Hospital Trust in Manchester after her mother was injured in a lawnmower accident

She is now being nursed back to health alongside 22 hedgehogs others left injured in gardening accidents.

In the last two weeks the trust has seen a surge in new admissions, including several amputees, thanks to strimming accidents.

Owner Barbara Roberts, 60, has now issued a plea to householders tackling their summer lawns.

She said: 'A lot of us haven't mowed our lawns because of the weather and people don't look.

'I've got 23 babies that are all here because of people not looking. I want people to be aware because they are an endangered animal.

'By 2025 we might not have hedgehogs any more thanks to the dangers of roads, lawnmowers and pesticides. People must look in the garden.


Honey is now being nursed back to health alongside 22 hedgehogs others left injured in gardening accidents


Sanctuary: In the last two weeks the hedgehog trust has seen a surge in new admissions, including several amputees, thanks to strimming accidents

Making friends: The trust names each creature that comes in and recent intakes include Willow, Charlotte, Basil, Brad and Roger

Some of Ms Roberts' patients have been rescued after being abandoned by terrified mothers, while 11 of them are amputees.

The trust names each creature that comes in and recent intakes include Willow, Charlotte, Basil, Brad and Roger.

All of them, including the amputees, will eventually be released back into the wild.

Mrs Roberts, who opened the hospital in 2001, said none of the hedgehogs will be released until they have been gradually weaned off human contact.

She said: 'When they roll into a ball on contact we know they are ready to go.'


source:dailymail