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This month’s Hedgehog Hero is 78-year-old Irene Cannon, who was nominated by many for her commitment to helping hedgehogs. Irene has been working alone over the past year as she had to isolate due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Here she tells us about her passion for hedgehogs and her fundraising efforts:

 

When did you first start looking after hedgehogs?

My involvement with hedgehogs started about 20 years ago when I found a hedgehog out during the day in the autumn months. Looking after the hedgehog made me realise I needed to know much more about their needs in order for me to continue to help them. To build my knowledge and experience I went on the First Aid, Care & Rehabilitation of Hedgehogs Course at Vale Wildlife in Gloucestershire and another in Yorkshire.

 

After I completed the courses, I realised that helping hedgehogs was a true passion and so that is when I decided to create Furness Hedgehog Rescue.

 

What is it about caring for hedgehogs that you love?

 

I love hedgehogs. They ask for so little; just food and water and somewhere to sleep. 

They are the most gentle little creatures – although I have had a few bites over the years!

 

What can we do to help hedgehogs off the extinction list?

 

Everyone should put a fresh bowl of water out every night whether you have a garden or not. Dehydration is a terrible thing.

 

For those that have gardens, it would help hedgehogs immensely if you create a hedgehog highway by simply having a 5″ gap in your fence or wall. If you have a pond, make sure there is an escape route for hedgehogs to get out, as many of them fatally drown in ponds every year.

 

Do you do any fundraising?

 

I do lots of fundraising. I sell hedgehog related items, most of which are donated by friends of the rescue. This year has been difficult because of Covid but on dry days I have been putting a small table outside my house to sell some of our hedgehog items. The support has been amazing.

 

Why do you think so many people nominated you to be a Hedgehog Hero?

 

I think a lot of people have nominated me because I run the only rescue in the area and I live in a small town where most people know me. Over the years I have saved countless hedgehogs and sometimes have over 100 overwintering or in need of care.

 

 What does it mean to you to be named the Spike’s Hedgehog Hero for May?

 

I think it is a great honour to be named May’s Hedgehog Hero with people recognising what I do and appreciating all the effort I put in on a daily basis.

 

Congratulations to Irene for being named this month’s Hedgehog Hero and for continuing your efforts throughout a difficult year!

 

 

Our Hedgehog Hero for March is six year old Charlie! Charlie has been helping raise money for his local hedgehog rescue since the age of 4, with the help of mum, Lucy. Lucy tells us more about Charlie’s fundraising and his love for hedgehogs:

 

You must be really proud of Charlie being so enthusiastic about helping hedgehogs from such a young age, can you tell us how he first got involved with Help for Hogs? 

 

Charlie loves all animals so when our local hedgehog rescue, Help for Hogs, advertised for volunteers in early 2018, I contacted Sue at the rescue and asked if I could volunteer with Charlie. Sue and Clive have been running Help for Hogs since 2015 and they were keen to have Charlie participate. However with him being only four at the time, he couldn’t get involved in the standard day-to-day volunteer work. Knowing he was eager to be involved, Sue suggested Charlie help clean the outside water sources and check and replenish the feeding stations. It was from there his love for hedgehogs grew.

 

Can you tell us about Charlie’s fundraising efforts?

 

Charlie often asks Sue and Clive questions about the hogs. He’s inquisitive about the world around him and likes to find out how and why things happen. He quickly became very knowledgeable about the work carried out at Help for Hogs and became particularly interested in the spring when the baby hogs started to appear at the rescue. 

 

The rescue centres have Brinsea TLC Incubators but these are quite expensive for a small self-funded rescue. Charlie decided he wanted to help buy one. Our wonderful friend, Claire James at The Pedlars Tray in Hereford, helped Charlie come up with the idea of selling hedgehog pencils made with pine cones to raise money. Charlie began to sell the pencils in our village and at The Pedlars Tray. 

 

With the hedgehog pencils being such a success Charlie took his efforts to the Shobdon Food and Flying Festival and managed to raise £133! Charlie also attended and sold pencils at an event at The Children’s Bookshelf book shop in Hereford, where Author Rosie Wellesley read her books about Isaac the Hedgehog.

 

 

At Halloween in 2019, Charlie made limited edition pencils and sold them at Madley Environmental Study Centre. Then at Christmas, he made some festive limited-edition pencils and sold them at some of our local shops. 

 

Through all of his efforts, Charlie was able to purchase a small Brinsea Incubator that can be set up in a vehicle and taken out on rescues, giving the hogs the best chance to recover. He was also able to purchase a much larger Brinsea Incubator which provides a warm, clean, quiet, safe and controlled environment. This gives orphaned babies and sick hogs the best chance to recover and thrive. 

 

Where does he get his enthusiasm for helping others?

Charlie is a very caring child who loves nature and the world around him and that’s what drives his passion for hedgehogs and animals in general.

 

What does Charlie love about hedgehogs? 

Charlie thinks hedgehogs are very cute. He loves the way they move around and the sounds they make. Their spikes remind him of dinosaurs- like a stegosaurus!

 

What advice do you have to those wanting to get involved in helping hedgehogs? 

Rescues are always in need of volunteers at the centres or with fundraising. Hedgehogs were placed on the red list for British Mammals in July 2020 meaning they are now classified as vulnerable to extinction. Help for hedgehogs is needed now more than ever. Everyone can give a helping hand by putting holes in their fences, creating feeding stations and having awareness of foods that can cause hedgehogs issues (such as sunflower seeds, peanuts and oats, which can give hogs metabolic bone disease). Hedgehog houses and wildlife-friendly planting can also help hedgehogs thrive in our gardens as well as removal of any hazards. 

 

Following your local rescue or the BHPS on social media is beneficial if you want to raise awareness and provide support. Volunteering is massively rewarding and a great way of boosting your mental health!

 

What does Charlie have in the pipeline to help hedgehogs? 

Charlie is currently fundraising for a new microscope that will help identify nasties such as lungworm, roundworm and fluke. The hedgehogs can then receive the necessary treatment before they are released back into the wild. When we went into the first lockdown in 2020 and all of the shows and events were cancelled, Charlie began to sell rainbow-coloured hedgehog pencils outside of our home, with £1 from every pencil going to the NHS. The pencils are now on sale at Bartestree Stores in Hereford. 

  

What does Charlie see himself doing when he is older? 

Charlie wants to be a doctor, a vet, a palaeontologist or a biologist when he is older. He also has a passion for art and would love to be an artist. If he could, he would become all of the above!

 

Well done Charlie for all of your hard work, we’re proud to have you as our Spike’s Hedgehog Hero for March!