If you suspect that a Hedgehog has made a nest somewhere in your garden, leave it alone! In the summer it may be a mother and babies; in the winter an animal might be hibernating. Look forward to seeing the hedgehogs again when they emerge.
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Sometimes a Hedgehog might be spotted virtually in the open, sleeping on a bed of leaves. Leave it alone, it might just be napping and, if it gets cold enough, it will soon wake to find a warmer spot. Hibernation is not continuous and periodically the hedgehogs wake up and their temperature returns to near normal. They seldom move about, but simply remain alert in the nest.
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By mid-winter, most hedgehogs will have started to hibernate. Any late-born youngsters still found wandering about on these cold winter days are unlikely to survive for very long. I never advocate removing any wild creature from nature, but in the case of very young hedgehogs, I will collect them when I find them late in the season and keep them in a fenced area where I can provide shelter for them, sometimes even keeping them in the house until the worst cold is over. The problem with keeping them inside is that they don’t know it’s winter and will spend the time awake, running about!
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It is therefore a good idea not to remove leaf litter from your garden in winter (luckily there are lots of trees shedding their leaves in winter!), it provides a warm and safe haven for any little mammals visiting your garden.
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