A volunteer who runs a rescue centre for sick and injured hedgehogs out of a spare room in her house says she is being flooded by the animals as they struggle to hibernate this winter.
Two rare albinos, King and Jay Jay, are among the prickly creatures being cared for by Sue Kidger at her home in Twickenham, west London.
Sue believes the humble urban hedgehog is in danger of being wiped out as city-dwellers pave and deck their gardens, leaving less places for them to nest.
More hedgehogs are also being attacked by foxes, whose numbers are continuing to rise in towns.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]Jay-Jay the baby albino and Reese, two of the hedgehogs under Sue Kidger's care
Sue said: 'I currently have a hedgehog called Henry the Face who was attacked by a fox. We call him that because his mouth, nose and eyes are horribly disfigured.
'He's doing well now - but he had a very narrow escape. It was lucky someone found him and brought him to us.
'Another of our hedgehogs Reese has been injured too badly to return to the wild, along with Jackie, who has been brain-damaged and cannot care for herself.
'These hedgehogs will always remain with me, especially the two albino hogs, who wouldn't last five minutes in the wild because of their colour.'
Conservationists warn that unless action is taken hedgehogs could die out in town and cities within 15 years.
There has been a 40 percent drop in hedgehog numbers in built up areas in the past ten years.
'At the moment I currently have 44 hedgehogs which I am caring for on a full time basis,' said Sue.
'And last year alone 140 hedgehogs passed through my doors, of which 36 unfortunately died.
Sue, a volunteer for the British Hedgehog Preservation Society, runs the centre out of a spare room in her house.
'I started small and learnt how to care for these incredible creatures,' she said.
'The RSPCA back me up on all medical issues with the animals. Without them I would not be able to offer the care I do.
'We have a lot of infants who have been abandoned because of a disturbed nest, or tragically because the mother has been killed in an accident or by a fox.
'We call these babies "autumn orphans" and this year has been particularly busy with regards to the number of new admissions we have had.
'The littlest ones need their special milk formula every two hours if they are to stand any chance of surviving.'
The average time a hedgehog spends with Sue is around two months.
'I keep them probably for a week or two longer than is strictly necessary, so I can send them back into the wild with a bit extra strength and weight to cope, especially at this time of year,' she said.
But she said there are things people can do to help.'Small things like placing a hole in your fence to encourage mobility through gardens can help hedgehogs thrive again.
'Also, they are very inquisitive creatures so covering any open drains helps reduce the chance of a hedgehog getting caught in one,' added Sue.
On call and available to help 24 hours a day, the sheer number of hedgehogs that come through Sue's home indicates that the hedgehog population is under threat.
Thu Feb 02, 2012 5:35 pm
