Welcome
Welcome to Dorset Hedgehog Rescue, where we treat over 1,000 hedgehog casualties a year.
The centre is open for admissions from 8am – 5pm weekdays, and 8am – 4.30pm at weekends.
Sorry, but we are unable to collect casualties due to time and resources – the hedgehogs that are already in our care must come first.
You can call us between 8am – 5pm on 01929 290112 for help and advice.
After 5pm, we switch to an out of hours system for emergencies only.
Wildlife rehabilitation
Wildlife rehabilitation is the treatment and care of a sick, injured or orphaned wild animal and its preparation for release to a successful life back in the wild.
We are a single species rescue specialising in the care of our native wild European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus).
Every Hedgehog is Special
The hedgehogs that are in our care come to us because they are poorly, injured, underweight or orphaned. We help hundreds of hedgehogs every year and have a high success rate in the treatment and rehabilitation of hedgehogs and releasing them back to the wild.
Our rescue centre is open 24/7, 365 days to care for all sick, injured and orphaned hedgehogs.
With your support and donations we care for hundreds of hedgehogs every year.
The decline in hedgehog populations
Hedgehogs are one of the few wild mammals we sometimes encounter up close and are a firm favourite of the British public. Sadly, we’re seeing concerning population declines across the UK. Between 2000 – 2014 hedgehog populations declined by over half in our countryside and nearly a third in our cities and suburbs.
In recent years, evidence has pointed towards a decline in abundance in many areas, particularly in rural environments (Hubert et al. 2011; van de Poel et al. 2015, Williams et al. 2018, Wembridge et al. 2022). Scaled to a 10-year period and primarily using data gathered from long-term citizen-science programmes, estimates of national-level declines span 19% in Great Britain (applying the data and protocol used in the British Red List of Terrestrial Mammals to a 10-year period.
They’re now considered “vulnerable to extinction” in Great Britain and “at risk” in the rest of Europe according to the IUCN.
Despite covering just 6% of land, urban landscapes are increasingly important for hedgehogs. The matrix of gardens and green spaces in towns and cities can support the highest densities of hedgehogs and may act as a refuge from agricultural practices and high predator density.
Habitat loss from new developments, in-filling of gardens with housing, roads, impermeable boundaries and ‘over-management’ of green-spaces and gardens are all, however, threats.
There are a variety of factors contributing to hedgehogs’ decline, including:
- The destruction of their habitats
- Increased road traffic
Use of pesticides which makes it harder for them to find food - Garden hazards like netting and ponds cause further casualties as hedgehogs can become easily trapped in them
Wildlife rehabilitation centres such as ours provide a vital service caring for wild animals in the UK but rely upon the generosity of donors to keep us running, along with a small army of volunteers.