Hi Squillon and JudeMarigold
Sorry to hear about the poor hogs. Yes, it is nature, but still very distressing to see – especially if you have got to know individual hogs well. Well done for rescuing the pregnant one Squillon.
Sadly badgers cannot be trusted around hedgehogs even if there is other food available. They are the main predator for hedgehogs, although some foxes will also eat hedgehogs and, possibly more often, injure them. So it isn’t safe to feed hedgehogs near to either species.
Personally, I would stop offering food to the hogs if there were regularly badgers around as the hogs would have more chance of escaping if they weren’t lulled into a false sense of security with food around. Although some hogs will avoid the area if they know badgers are around. But, feeding in boxes isn’t safe with badgers around either. They have very strong claws and can easily break through wood.
I suspect that the badger culls may have caused some displacement, JudeMarigold, as you suggested. I had a badger visit here a while back, but luckily he must only have been passing through and I only saw him once. Also luckily there were no hogs around at that particular time. The badger had a quick drink and left – completely missing the hog food. I guess he was stressed and in a hurry.
