Fundraising for Hornbeam Wood Hedgehog Sanctuary

Martin Maylin is organizing this fundraiser.

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About Hornbeam Wood Hedgehog Sanctuary:

We are a small family run Charity that looks after British Wild Hedgehogs founded in April 2015. Mother and son are involved on a daily basis and the Charity rehabilitates wild hedgehogs and orphaned baby hoglets that are sick, injured, or underweight. Since 2015 we have rescued, rehabilitated, and released close to 2000 injured or orphaned hedgehogs.

Location of the Charity:

Hornbeam Wood Hedgehog Sanctuary is located on the same lands that made up Grahame Dangerfield's Animal Sanctuary and still uses many of the original pens and cages. The sanctuary is based in Harpenden/Wheathampstead in Hertfordshire with 10 Acres of woodland and open fields home to all kinds of local wildlife including Barn Owls, Bats, Deer, Foxes, Hedgehogs, Rabbits and more.

About British Wild Hedgehogs:

The Wild British Hedgehog has been included in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List for British Mammals. Their population has decreased by about 50% in urban areas and 70% in rural areas since the year 2000. It is estimated that 100k -350k hedgehogs are killed each year on the roads.

Their habitats have been diminishing and their inability to access and travel through gardens and across roads has become in most cases, impossible. Roads create invisible barriers and also physical barriers for hedgehogs. The use of poisons like slug pellets, and intensive agricultural farming also have a part to play in their decreased populations through the loss of hedges and pesticides.

We use 100% of donations to help the hedgehogs:

We currently have a peak of around 80 hedgehogs at any one time and an average of between 30-50 in rehabilitation. Hedgehogs in rehabilitation are with us anywhere from 2 weeks to 6 months but usually at least 1-2 months. One hedgehog can easily eat close to an entire can of dog food, but it's normally just over half a can, or a large bowl of hedgehog food. It's not unusual to go though at least 30-40 cans of food a day. This does not include the more expensive foods such as the critical care mousse and hoglet powdered food. There are also lot of ongoing costs involved in rescuing the hedgehogs but it costs about £50 a month just to feed and shelter a hedgehog in rehabilitation.

There are also hedgehog consumable costs (such as medical treatments, gloves, various disinfectants, wound sprays, flea, mite, and tick sprays, milton tablets, etc..) and general maintenance and repairs of hedgehog buildings, hutches, and pens. Some of the larger costs for the Charity are insurance and electricity along with the on-going running costs of the rescue vehicle used to pickup and drop off hedgehogs rescued, along with being released back in to the wild. The cost of fuel is more than £50 a week. On top of this are expensive items such as incubators. These costs alone amount to several thousand pounds a year.

Donations are greatly appreciated and help us a huge amount.

Registered Charity No. 1190048

Wildlife Education & Awareness:

Hornbeam Wood Hedgehog Sanctuary is extensively active in promoting ways people can help hedgehogs and spreading awareness of the troubles wild hedgehogs face. The Charity hosts nearly 100 Hedgehog Educational and Awareness talks annually. As of November 2023 over 8,500 children and adults have attended these talks at the sanctuary.

Martin (the founder) was nominated for the Green Award at the BBC Make A Difference Awards 2023.

We are focused on Biodiversity and Conservation with a focus on Wildlife Habitat Creation. We have many projects on-going at the sanctuary.

The Charity also communicates these messages in the media both locally, and nationwide through articles radio and tv broadcasting companies to help raise awareness.

Sky Nature (https://youtu.be/97O2DTIuNVw):