Prickles the yuletide hog enjoying life as an orphan

A tiny orphaned hedgehog who cheated death is enjoying all the home comforts this Christmas.

Prickles was rescued by Blenheim woman Marion Preston, after his mother drowned in her pond and his sibling was eaten by her dog.

Racked with guilt, Preston opted to bring the vulnerable hoglet indoors to die in peace.

But Prickle’s will to survive and a cosy fleece-lined bed proved to be just the medicine he needed.

Preston, a former midwife, said she was amazed to be woken by Prickle’s loud squeaking later that night, so she got up and fed him.

And he has since been joined by a smaller companion, Wobbles, who was discovered squeaking in distress near the pond. ‘‘I felt guilty because Prickles’ mum drowned in our pond and the other baby was quickly eaten by my terrier while Prickles was scooped up by my german shepherd Bono and brought to me,’’ Preston said.

‘‘I put him in a shoebox with a bit of fleece, gave him rescue remedy and skimmed milk and left him to quietly die but he had other ideas and squeaked so loudly that I got up.

‘‘I had the bright idea of giving him coconut milk every two to three hours with an eye dropper,’’ she said. ‘‘I put him on the kitchen floor in the mornings and he comes over and sits on my slipper and squeaks for food.’’

Prickles weighed less than 60 grams when he was first saved but a diet of mashed kitten food and apple to gnaw on has seen the minuscule mammal more than triple in size in three weeks.

Hedgehogs have big appetites and enjoy snacking on native weta, skinks, and the eggs and chicks of ground-nesting birds.

They were brought to New Zealand to remind settlers of their homeland before being introduced in greater numbers to control garden pests.

Preston said she planned to release Prickles and 2-week-old Wobbles once they were big enough to forage for their own food. ‘‘I wouldn’t normally rescue hedgehogs as I know they’re a pest but I couldn’t just leave the babies to die.

‘‘Wobbles and Prickles can’t live in a cage on my kitchen bench forever but it looks like we’ll have two extra guests this Christmas.’’

- Fairfax NZ