Make plans for garden guests
It isn’t only birds that need your help in the garden – we can all do our bit to help save the ever-popular Hedgehog, too.
As winter approaches, your garden will probably be full of birds making the most of the seasonal bounty and feeding up ahead of the lean months. But there is other wildlife that, although less visible, is equally, if not more, in need of your help at this time of year. Hedgehogs, for example, which are now on the UK Mammals Red List after catastrophic declines.
Carol Palmer, of Alton, Hampshire, wrote to recommend that, if you want to feed Hedgehogs in your garden, you read up on the subject first, and don’t immediately turn to what is marketed as Hedgehog food.
She said: “I have been a member of the British Hedgehog Preservation Society since 1985, and am a member of Hedgehog Highways on Facebook, as well as other Hedgehog groups which all discuss best practice regarding feeding. More recently, since 2019, I have had the privilege of feeding Hedgehogs in my garden.”
She explained the problems with some Hedgehog foods. Firstly, Hedgehogs do not have a caecum and are unable to digest carbohydrates properly, although they do benefit in other ways from the fibre found in insects they eat. Secondly, they are prone to Metabolic Bone Disease, which is caused by an imbalance in the ratio of calcium to phosphorus (Ca:P), and these imbalances are found in oats, nuts, sunflower hearts, peanuts, maize as well as other things. For example, peanuts have a Ca:P of 1: 6 and sunflower hearts Ca:P of 1:7.
The British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS) has said: “The calcium to phosphorus ratios are a cause for concern. For every milligram of phosphorus a Hedgehog consumes, it must consume another milligram of calcium, otherwise the calcium gets taken from the calcium stores in the body (teeth and bones) to balance the phosphorus out.
Mealworms have a high amount of phosphorus in them, for example, meaning that if the Hedgehog eats too many, it causes calcium to be stripped from the body.
“Mealworms (and other single ingredient foods like sunflower hearts and nuts) may cause problems when eaten in large quantities, so should only ever be offered in moderation as a special treat.
“To be on the safe side, offer other foods, such as a good quality Hedgehog food, meaty cat or dog food and cat biscuits (chicken, rabbit and turkey being easiest for them to digest), and only ever water to drink.”
The key is ‘good quality’ Hedgehog food – avoid those that have lots of carbs, and/or a high phosphorous to calcium ratio. Cat food is regulated, so you can be sure it’s safe and hygienically produced, and the biscuit size of cat/kitten food is generally smaller than dog food, and so suits Hedgehogs’ small mouths. Tesco Complete Kitten dry food, Sainsbury’s own Kitten Complete, and Purina One Kitten are perfect for all ages.