Having had hedgehog envy for years I now have resident hedgehogs of my own, oozing with prickly charm and completely captivating.
My nights now include nocturnal wanderings and skulking in the back garden, observing my mealworm munching visitors.
I had no idea hedgehogs were quite so loud!
The first regular visitor appeared under the bird table one evening.
Small and sweet, she is a regular 8.30pm muncher, and is called Tiggy.
Closely followed by tubby Mabel, who makes a beeline for the food station within minutes of it being filled.
And as midnight approaches, Big Boris makes his appearance, snuffling through the undergrowth.
I feel honoured to be sharing a garden with these prickly residents, who are sadly in decline in the UK, partly due to over tidy gardens and fences replacing hedges.
Iconic and charming, I will happily leave a (large) corner of the garden to go wild and have now added hedgehog food and houses to my Amazon impulse buys...
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/gardening-blog/2013/sep/18/hedgehogs-gardens
And these cute, prickly residents are going to be my inspiration for a new range of hedgehog decor, including Hector below!
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/261703247/hector-a-tactile-tweed-hedgehog-cushion?ref=shop_home_active_14
