Feeding station or toilet?
- This topic has 10 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 2 years, 5 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
The last few days, when I’ve gone to top up the food/water bowls, all of the food has been eaten and replaced with poo; and not just on the newspaper, also on the food tray.
They didn’t used to be this bad, at least they did it elsewhere to where they eat.Does anyone else have this? Could it be to do with territory?
It’s just hedgehogs being hedgehogs. They think nothing of drinking from a dish then poo’ing in it before coming back to drink more.
We have poo all round the feeding areas, guessing they are too busy eating and can’t be bothered to nip off elsewhere for the toilet.
Despite leaving out fresh water mine prefer drinking rain water that they’ve been trampling about in bathing and washing their grubby feet and then drink it.
I wish they would poo on the flower beds guess with all those nutrients in it would be good for the plants, never see any there though!
Not sure how they manage it, but they always seem to poo exactly where I walk the next morning to put out the bird food. I am forever getting caught out and treading in it – you’d think I would have learnt by now!
It always amazes me how they manage to get it up the walls, but then I’ve heard that some humans have a talent for that too, urghhh!!!
As for marking territory, I have noticed that the males – usually when limbering up for a fight – will crouch low to the ground and rub their chins on the floor, has anyone else noticed this?
I have also been amazed at the mess left in and around the food bowls.
The conclusion I came to is that as wild animals the hogs defecate as they go about foraging, as they are unlikely to be passing the exact same spot, a bit like cows in a field. Feeding stations are unnatural but the hogs haven’t lost their natural tendency to go “when needs must”. I’m not convinced this is territorial.
I think it is a do it when and where ever – mine have pood at the neighbours front door and my cats were blamed I explained it was the hedgehogs only to be greated with “what’s one of those” and “I don’t think so” some folk don’t understand about wild life I guess – also I’ve had poo in the food bowls in the garden and at the front door along with the foxes so nothing changes – when you got to go you got to go they say. Good job for rubber gloves and plastic poo bags!
Hi YonderDave
I agree, they would not normally congregate is such numbers if we weren’t ‘encouraging’ them by feeding and what you say makes sense. I don’t think the poo-ing is territorial either.
Penny – I have often seen the males crouching down to the ground, but it doesn’t look to me as if it is their chins they are rubbing. It is often when there is a female around. They stretch themselves out and make themselves look longer and then sometimes taller and thinner, except from the side.
The hogs here must be better behaved – I have never seen any hog poos up the wall, but there is a first time for everything!I have the problem that my hedgehogs keep coming back to the same place to pop – right outside my patio door! It’s disgusting. Two or three pops a night and huge flies on it then to come indoors. What can I do to deter the hogs from pooing there?
CCB – Just love ’em! They are the messiest creatures ever. Poo in the food dish, grit 🙂 in the water bowl, strategically placed tokens of affection placed just right for you to step in them.
You are blessed to have the lovely endangered hogs visiting you. Yes, they do leave a trail but I rather envy you – at least you have yours trained to poo in one place.
Scoop it up early morning, throw it on the roses, reap the rewards of nature at work 🙂I too have found poop in their feeding box and have even found a prickly little friend asleep in there with their nose almost in a dollop of it, ewwww!
Yes, the ‘up the wall’ habit is also evident with the two hogs that visit our feeding station regularly. So much so, that my husband made an adjustment to the feeding station by making the base removable so that it is now much easier to clean out.
Despite their slightly unpleasant pooping habits and the odd inconvenience of stepping in it, I still find them to be one if the most adorable and endearing little creatures and would miss them so much if they stop visiting. They will always be welcome in my garden.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
