Ticks, Torches & a Troublesome Tumour

Peanut Lover Larry

[Blog posts are like buses...nothing for ages and then two come along at once]

So, I mentioned back in early July ["Bird, Bath & Beyond"] that one of our visiting hedgehogs had a swollen back leg which we were concerned about. We dubbed him 'Limping Larry', as he was obviously a male [a favourite with the ladies] and alliteration involving physical traits makes animals easier to distinguish. We'd been seeing him around, but he'd only visit in the wee, small hours of the morning and typically during the work week - and as enthusiastic as we were to offer assistance, personal wellbeing comes first. As per the instructions given to us by the Burntisland Hedgehog Haven, we'd kept a newspaper lined cardboard box on standby.

Earlier this week, Larry popped up on the wildlife camera around 11.30pm. He wasn't looking super well; his back leg looked badly swollen [to the point he fell over when he tried to scratch his ear] and he appeared to have numerous ticks behind his ears. Note: wildlife charities recommend rescuing hedgehogs with lots of ticks (particularly on their faces) as it can indicate illness or a weakened immune system.

Last night Larry visited the peanut feeder around 10.30pm, looking very worse for wear. He was happy to munch on peanuts, but fled when I offered nutritious tinned hedgehog food. He visited the water bowl and seemed to drink for a good few minutes. We hummed and hawed about the best way to contain him. Fortunately, we'd been having a BBQ that same evening so M's massive BBQ-ing gloves were enlisted. By the time we'd decided how to approach the situation, Larry had wandered off, and although we could hear him shuffling around in the bushes we couldn't see exactly where he was. So, we reset all the wildlife cameras, turned off all the lights and went into a different room.

You can see how thin he is here and how he's really stumbling about

Nary 15 minutes later, the camera jingled [it's a motion sensor Ring camera - so we get jingling alerts direct to mobile] and we dashed back. This time, instead of using a regular torch to locate him, I used a Ultra Violet torch [thanks Dad!] and this made finding Larry much easier. Hedgehog quills are UV reactive - in this case glowing a rather neon green colour. So, with the torch trained on Larry and myself blocking an exit route, M moved in to lift the small prickly bowling ball. We could tell how unwell he was by the fact he was lying down flat - only curling into a ball at the last possible moment.

After safely storing him in the emergency box, we placed a towel over him and placed the entire unit in the bathtub, while we phoned the emergency vets for further instructions. As we have no personal transport, the vets suggested ways we could care for him overnight before taking him to the vets in the morning. M and I did shifts throughout the rest of the night; checking on him, offering him watered down tinned food, water and fresh cosy blankets. He did seem to improve; food went in [and out], his breathing calmed down and he started quivering his spines when we got too close.

Deluxe room for one, with separate bathroom

In the morning, one of our very fabulous neighbours, C, gave us a lift up to the Edinburgh University vets at the Bush Estate. From there we regaled his story once again, signed a consent form to officially handover 'our' wild animal to the care of the vets and discussed possible options. Interestingly the vet mentioned that although the SSPCA no longer accept wild animals from members of the public, they will accept them if they come through vet practices first. The vets also take note of our contact details so they could update us, and ideally get us to take him back if all turned out well [it's recommended to return animals to their 'home' territories].

Unfortunately for Larry, the vets discovered that he had a large tumour near his back leg and decided [given his already poor state] the kindest thing to do was to euthanise him. Apparently, hedgehogs are very prone to tumours, particularly older beasts. They are often malignant and it's never fair to put an already stressed animal through invasive surgery.

So, it's a bit of a sad ending to this story, but I'm really glad we were able to 'rescue' him, if only so he spent his last night somewhere warm without harassment from foxes or cats. It's often difficult when you love wildlife and you see something injured or ill; the human desire for nuturing often overrides what the wildlife is comfortable with and you really have to think what's best for the animal, even more so than for a pet. Kudos to the vets for being really understanding and caring and yet asking sensible questions to make sure we'd not simply picked up an animal [going about its daily business] off the street. I can confirm that this vets don't charge you for handing in wildlife.

Rest in Peace Larry.