Hog moved into the feeding station

[injeegirl]

Hello, some information about us and I guess I’m looking for a bit of advice..

I have a large feeding station that has 2 entrances and partitions inside, a camera set up and a light in there. I have had about 3-4 different hogs visiting for many months until we got the colder weather. I understand they will hibernate during winter however I know not all hogs do.

Since Xmas Day I have a hog who has been visiting the feeding station. But since New Years Eve it has moved in and hasn’t left. I have now blocked off one of the entrances and provided him with some barley straw and he seems pretty cosy in there.

I leave out kitten biscuits, wet meaty dog food and a large bowl of water which I replenish daily. He has a healthy appetite and good size solid poo’s (I clean this up daily as well). I don’t have the best camera and I’m just using an app on my old iphone and taped it up on the wall of the feeding station. I couldn’t tell how big he was and was concerned about weight, so the other day I picked him up and he’s a healthy 1kg boy.

The thing is, the feeding station is in a spot that gets a bit of traffic, the neighbors dogs bark a lot and we walk past each day to leave the house. When the hogs were visiting at night, it was fine as the neighbors dogs are inside and we don’t leave the house as much at night so the hogs generally have that space to themselves.

The funny thing is I thought with all the foot traffic from us and the barking dogs that he would move out and find another place to move in to but he hasn’t. I get an alert every time there is movement and I’ve noticed that he doesn’t sleep all through the day which I thought odd. He will get up a few times throughout the day for a few biscuits and a drink then go back to sleep.

I guess my question is – if he is a healthy weight and his poo’s are good and he is eating/drinking ok – shall i just leave him be Or is this strange behavior and I should intervene and take him to a wild life carer?

I don’t want to cause him any stress by picking him up and interfering with his life but I also couldn’t bear the thought that I may be missing something?

I live in Felpham, West Sussex.

Any information to relay would be really appreciated.

Thank you for reading xxx

[Nic]

Hi injeegirl

I’m guessing you’re new to the Forum, so welcome!

I wouldn’t worry too much about the hog, especially as he sounds a good weight. They do sometimes decide to sleep in food boxes and even hibernate in them. He probably thinks he’s on to a good thing having food and drink readily available! Also if he has chosen to sleep there, it was his choice, so he probably doesn’t mind about the activity in the area. Coming out during the day is slightly strange but might just be because the food is close. So I would be inclined to leave him be.

I’m not sure whether your camera is catching him out at night, but if so, just keep an eye on him to make sure he continues to look ok – is moving purposefully when he’s out, etc. Although there is a very small chance that he might still decide to hibernate for a while. But if you become worried about him at any time you can always contact one of your local carers and take their advice. You can get contact details for your nearests carers from BHPS on 01584 890801.

Good luck. I hope all goes well with the hog.

[injeegirl]

Thank you for the reply. Yeh I’m a newbie here and new to hogs x

My camera catches him at night. He walks with purpose but he isn’t leaving the house at all. I see him go to leave then 2 minutes later he’s back. He just gets up to eat, poo then back to his cosy corner to sleep. Easy life eh!

I’ve been in touch with BHPS and they said a similar thing to just leave him be but to maybe put the food in a different place. I did try putting the food in another feeding station nearby but that night I noticed he got up several times looked around for the food then went back to sleep. I will try again cause if he’s hungry enough he’ll sniff it out and eat.

Thanks again 🙏

[Author]

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