Hedgehog behaviour

willowjay · #1 (**permalink**) 25-03-2011, 08:53 AM

A few weeks back I noticed some hog poo on our patio, so started putting out a small handful of dried hedgehog food and a nice large shallow dish of water. Hogs used to come last year, so I kept my fingers crossed and was rewarded with a nightly visitor. He/she is easy to see by peeping through the venetian blinds, and seems healthy, lively and hungry. About ten days ago another, larger hog turned up and joined in, but took to shoving the smaller one out of the way.

Last night there were three, two large, and the little one. The two big hogs spent more time pushing and shoving each other than eating. The little one waited out of the way, sensibly, and then finished up what food was left.

Are they likely to be siblings? Unrelated? About to pair up? It's fun to watch, but am I doing the right thing feeding them? I only put the food out after dark, and they usually turn up at about 8 pm.

Wild-Woman · #2 (**permalink**) 25-03-2011, 09:09 AM

It may be that your larger hedgehogs are the male or boar. Females may be slightly smaller. The boars could be on a mission to spread their genes as far as possible so are do a bit of shoving and pushing before mating.
The mating can be a noisy affair and is worth listening out for!

dampflippers · #3 (**permalink**) 25-03-2011, 02:49 PM

Try pulling a couple of dishes of food and water in different places to stop food wars.
If one is charging the other or biting it is fighting.
If one tries to get behind the other and the other moves to keep facing it, it is courtship.

CharlieCreek · #4 (**permalink**) 25-03-2011, 03:59 PM

Yes please continue to put the food out for the hogs it is an appreciated addition to their diet. On coming out of hibernation they have lost weight and the extra food easily available helps them. It also means that you continue to see them as well.. so double bonus.

They are unlikely to be related, hedgehogs don't stay in family groups they are solitary creatures with young leaving home at an early age to all go their own ways.

Hedgehogs aren't territorial and tolerate other hedgehogs when they come across them but they will huff and puff and sometimes side barge each other over food.

As has been suggested by a previous poster placing a couple of sources of food in different parts of the garden would be a good thing to do with multiple hedgehogs competing for the food.