‘We are spreading the word of the crisis our hedgehogs are in,’ says Brackley charity founder

Brackley Hogwatch will be holding a talk on Wednesday September 28 for anyone interested in hedgehogs and what can be done to help their falling numbers.

Andrew Jackson, founder member of Hogwatch set up the charity in 2011 but with limited time for fundraising, more than £30,000 of personal money has been invested into the work that has been done so far, with no help available from funds like the National Lottery.

Andrew has a lifelong interest in hedgehogs and has spent almost his entire life observing and studying them in and around Brackley. His expertise and knowledge is well known and he is known as ‘the hedgehog man’.

During the work that he does, he became aware of something unusual in the hedgehogs that he saw. Increasing numbers of juveniles were being found sick and he was determined to find out why and if this phenomenon was in any way significant in the overall decline in hedgehog population.

With hedgehogs under threat of extinction, Andrew will be talking about his work and what you can do to help too, at Egerton Hall in Brackley from 7.30 to 8.30pm.

At the event, Andrew will be bringing a hedgehog or two so you can be acquainted with these lovely creatures up close and ask any questions that you may have.

One recent story that Andrew shared was the rescue of a female hedgehog from a home in Brackley who had lost a leg after what was believed to be a fox attack. With the care Hogwatch provided, she has now recovered and has even produced a litter of hoglets last month. She has been named Emily by the family who found her, and is expected to be returned back to the wild.

If you would like to get involved with the charity you can contact them on: [email protected].

You can also book on the talk via the wildlife trust website: www.wildlifebcn.org/events/2022-09-28-brackley-hedgehogs.