Making Your Garden Safe for Hedgehogs

Why Hedgehogs Need a Helping Hand

Hedgehogs are one of Britain’s most beloved garden visitors, but their numbers have fallen sharply in recent decades. With rural habitats shrinking and roads becoming busier, our gardens have become vital refuges. A single hedgehog can roam up to two kilometres in a night, so a network of connected gardens is essential. They are a gardener’s friend, eating slugs, beetles, and caterpillars. Small, simple changes can make a real difference—and you’ll be rewarded with the sight of a prickly visitor snuffling through your flowerbeds.

Create Hedgehog Highways

Fences and walls block hedgehogs from finding food and mates. The solution is a hedgehog highway: a gap just 13 centimetres (5 inches) square—about the size of a CD case—at the base of your fence or wall. A single gap can open up a whole new territory for a foraging hedgehog.

• Cut a notch in gravel boards or a small hole in concrete bases.
• Talk to neighbours about linked gaps on both sides of shared fences.
• Keep gaps clear of bricks, pots, and overgrown shrubs.
• For walls, remove a brick at ground level or insert a pipe.

A community effort is far more effective than a single garden. Hedgehogs don’t respect property lines.

Offer Safe Food and Water

Hedgehogs appreciate a little extra help, especially in dry summers or before hibernation. Never offer milk or bread—milk causes diarrhoea, and bread has no nutritional value.

• Water: Use a shallow plant saucer. Deep bowls and steep ponds are drowning risks. Refresh daily.
• Food: Offer meat-based cat or dog food (in jelly, not gravy) or specialist hedgehog food.
• Mealworms: Avoid as a staple—they lack calcium and can cause bone disease.
• Place food under a shelter to deter cats and foxes. Clean dishes regularly.

A feeding station made from a plastic storage box with a 13cm entrance hole works well. If you see a hedgehog out in daylight, it is likely in trouble. Contact a local wildlife rescue.

Banish Slug Pellets and Other Chemicals

Slug pellets are one of the biggest killers of hedgehogs. They contain metaldehyde or ferric phosphate, which can be fatal if ingested directly or through eating poisoned slugs. Even “organic” pellets can harm hedgehogs. Never use slug pellets around pets or children either.

• Use natural controls: nematodes, beer traps, copper tape, or handpicking after rain.
• Avoid pesticides, weedkillers, and rodenticides—they reduce the insects and worms hedgehogs need.
• Check long grass before strimming or mowing. A strimmer can cause devastating injuries.
• Store chemicals securely and dispose of them responsibly.

A healthy garden with natural predators will keep slugs in check without poisons.

Provide Shelter and Nesting Spots

Hedgehogs need safe places to sleep, hibernate, and raise young. Leaving a few wild corners makes all the difference.

• Log piles: Stack logs loosely. They attract insects and provide cover.
• Leaf piles: Leave a pile of leaves in a quiet spot—perfect for hibernation from November to March.
• Compost heaps: Warm and full of invertebrates, but check for sleeping hedgehogs before turning.
• Hedgehog houses: A wooden box with a tunnel entrance and dry straw bedding. Position in a quiet, shaded spot.

A tunnel entrance helps keep out predators like foxes and badgers. Keep shelters away from prevailing winds and ensure they stay dry.

Stay Vigilant Through the Seasons

Different seasons bring different hazards. A little vigilance goes a long way.

• Bonfires: Build on the day you light. A pile left overnight is a tempting hibernation spot. Check thoroughly before lighting.
• Ponds: Add a gentle ramp or stones at one end so hedgehogs can climb out.
• Netting: Keep at least 30 cm above ground. Hedgehogs get tangled and injured.
• Drains and holes: Cover open drains and provide a ramp in steep-sided holes.
• Dogs: Keep dogs indoors or on a lead at dusk when hedgehogs are active.
• Litter: Pick up plastic rings and cans—hedgehogs can get their heads stuck.

Before mowing, walk the area and look for nests or resting hedgehogs. Every gap, every shallow dish, every chemical-free choice adds up. Your garden can be a haven—and you might just be rewarded with the sight of a prickly visitor snuffling through the flowerbeds.