This poor chap has suffered horrific injuries and lost an eye.His injuries are possibly caused by a garden strimmer or more likely a discarded food tin can.

Many hedgehogs die or receive horrendous injuries each year from garden dangers such as Lawn mowers, ponds that have no escape route, garden netting and wire,household rubbish, discarded elastic bands,pesticides and pet dogs. STRIMMERS & EMPTY FOOD CANS can & do cause serious injury and maiming as the hog on this page shows. He has lost an eye, a front tooth and has serious scarring under his neck and on his face. Keep rubbish/bin bags off ground level to avoid any wildlife getting into and receiving such injuries. Jars & pots can trap and kill also.If a hog falls into, it may not be able to get out of. Should a hog be found tangled in garden netting or wire,it will need to be taken into care & monitored. Although the hog may look fine it may present with problems some 7-10 days after caused by friction burns from rubbing on the netting /wire in it's bid to free itself . The area can become infected and treatment will be required. Scorched prickles after a fire  may give an impression that the skin is undamaged but 7-10 days later, the whole burnt area will drop off leaving severe open wounds.Break any elastic bands found on the ground to prevent hogs becoming tangled in them. Hedgehogs are good swimmers but need an escape route out of a pond, garden water feature or outdoor swimming pool.Consider a raised pond or cover with green plastic coated wire netting or provide the same that goes down into the pond rather than across it. You could provide a plank of wood, log or raised bricks to enable safe exit out of your pond & leave a couple of floats in your pool for a hog to take refuge on.Please check daily to ensure any hog that has fallen in can be rescued before it's too late.Please keep all garden chemicals off ground level. Hedgehogs are very inquisitive and can't help but nose around. Never turn your composter over with a garden fork before making sure you do not have a hedgehog sleeping in it. Please be vigilant when letting your dog out to toilet in your garden particularly at dusk and night time.You may well have a prickly visitor in you garden either as a regular visitor or passer by. This could be during daylight hours as well as night in the case of a sick,injured or orphaned hog. Dogs can do serious harm to a hedgehog whose prickles are no defence in this instance. YOU CAN ALSO SAFEGUARD against injury/maiming of hedgehogs by crushing the open end of empty food cans with the lid inside, before putting out for rubbish/re-cycling. Many hogs get their heads stuck in opened tins and either suffocate or become injured in their desperate search for food. Cut polysyrene and disposable plastic vending cups in half lengthways and cut the plastic multi pack can holders (beer,lager,baked beans, spaghetti etc so that a hog does not become trapped.The hog still grows but the plastic does not and will cut into a hogs body and cause severe injury & distress. You can provide a hedgehog feeding station with a longish shallow plastic storage box. Cut an entrance hole out of one end big enough for the hog to enter but not a cat. Place the food at the furthest end of the container to stop cats pawing it out.If you use a clear plastic you will be able to see your garden visitors feeding.Make it cat proof with either a brick built or wooden tunnel.We can all make a difference to our wildlife for very little effort. Many people ask me what hedgehog poo looks like. If you would like to see please go to General Facts page. Many people now have wood fence panels surrounding their gardens. Try either removing a bottom slat or make a hole in one bottom slat to allow hedgehogs to enter and exit. Wild Hedgehogs should not be kept as pets or a means of slug control.NEVER light a bonfire without first checking that there are no hedgehogs sleeping/hibernating in it. Use a broom handle to check .If you really have to have a bonfire it is best to leave building it until the day of burning. For bonfires built in advance, you can protect a hog from entering by fencing the perimeter with chicken wire, staked and at least 2 feet high.Should you ever find an adult hog out during daylight, it is possible that it could be a female and may have a litter close by. Please be on the lookout and listen for any hoglets who will become distressed with the absence of their mum. A hoglet's call for mum is a very sharp/high pitched bird like call but will be coming from ground level. Please be extra vigilant around springtime when hedgehogs wake from their long hibernation.They will be in need of food and water having used their fat reserves during hibernation Hedgehogs out during daylight need urgent help. Keep drains covered to prevent hogs falling into and check cattlegrids which a hog may have fallen into   

Some people beleive that we should not interfere with & let nature take it's course but ,my beleif is that we as humans have already interfered by creating dangers, taking away open land,creating busy roads & motorways destroying natural habitat.
We owe it to our wildlife when they suffer such stress & trauma as a result of our modern world.

Slug Pellets,or slugs that have eaten slug pellets,Jeyes fluid,bleach & household cleaning chemicals/fluids,Anti freeze
Garden chemicles & pestecides,Paint & thinners are also all poisonous.
  PLEASE THINK BEFORE YOU USE

This female juvenile was found by a member of the public.Her injuries have more than likely been caused by a strimmer.She is currently receiving treatment. 05-11-2011

Sadly this little hog died a few days after being admitted to mhr as a result of her massive injury.