Taken from Lynne’s weekly column ‘Green Scene’ for the Western Mail
26th October 2019
Hedgehog Heroes
I was driving Yogi to hydrotherapy last week and noticed a flock of crows and magpies mobbing something in a field adjacent to the farm track. It’s never going to be good, clean fun if these birds are involved, and sure enough they were ‘pecking’ on a little hedgehog. The hedgehog was obviously a juvenile but otherwise seemed quite healthy and thankfully untouched by the feathered thugs. But I know that if a hedgehog is out and about in the day (other than a mother looking for food for her young in the spring) then they are not well, no matter how normal they look.
So I popped her into a box that I always carry in the truck for such rescues (tip no. 1) and put my body warmer over her to keep her warm. Then I took her to Taz. Taz (or Terri) started as a bed and breakfast carer for Hedgehog Helpline 18 months ago, and is now well on her path to a primary carer. People like her are just amazing, voluntarily caring for our spiky little friends amid their own busy lives.
By the time I got to Taz, my little rescue had burrowed her way into the pocket of my body warmer, which then had to be sacrificed to release her. Good job I don’t wear Chanel, although as one friend quite rightly said, “You would have still sacrificed a Chanel coat for a hedgehog.”
The next day Taz called to say our little rescue, named Hydro, had lungworm. Thankfully it is easily treated but she wouldn’t have survived if I had left her at the mercy of the birds. She has been treated, is putting on weight well and will be released safely soon.
Please have a look at http://hedgehoghelplinecymru.org.uk and read up on what to do if you do see a hedgehog – firstly consider yourself lucky, as they are definitely in decline, but secondly it is important to know what action to take in different circumstances.
In the summer I always recommend you have the telephone number of your local Beekeeper’s Association handy to call to collect swarms if necessary, and I think it’s equally important to have the Hedgehog Helpline number to hand too.
These numbers are far more important than Just Eat or your local Indian takeaway number!
Relax Your Pet
I absolutely dread Fireworks Night, as Yogi is terrified of fireworks. It is harrowing to see her so anxious and I have tried numerous methods of making this time of year easier for her. I feel so strongly about this that I have been campaigning for silent fireworks to be used in Wales, and for Wales to lead the way on a more humane approach to the 5th November. You can see more of my endeavors and add your signature at https://www.lynneallbutt.co.uk/your-story
This year I am hoping for a more relaxing time – and dog – as Yogi has been benefitting from her Relaxopet unit. The ‘animal relaxation trainer’ emits subliminal, high frequency vibrations which have proven to promote deep relaxation in pets. It is recommended for any circumstances that the animal finds stressful, including fireworks, thunder, travelling and even loneliness, and there are units available for cats, birds, horses and even lions. I can’t think of anything worse than a stressed lion on Fireworks Night!
Liane, at Pet Trade Innovations, was really helpful and reminded me that it wouldn’t be an instant fix but reassured me that it would only take a few days to witness the benefits. On the first day her dog just lay next to it, seemingly soothed by the music but after a few days she turned the music off and he still chose to lay with it, chilling out nicely.
The RelaxoPet PRO unit offers the additional relaxation music and the encouraging news is that 89% of all dogs show a noticeable deep relaxation after an application period of less than 10 minutes – as Yogi demonstrates (see pic).
All RelaxoPet ‘animal relaxation trainers’ are wireless, independent of a power outlet, and have been developed over a 5 year research and development period in close collaboration with veterinarians, breeders and pet owners. Importantly, they have no side effects, which I always worry about with some of the other products that claim to calm anxious pets.
Yogi reacted pretty much as Liane described and she was much more relaxed when we had the inevitable and extremely irritating early fireworks last week. The big test will be next week, but I’m confident that if it can relax a lion, then Yogi will benefit too.
Please contact Liane at info@pettradeinnovations.com for more details, and to order with a discount of 10% and free delivery if you mention Yogi Allbutt! Lian will also share a fabulous video of Ted, her own dog with his Relaxopet as I’m hopeless and can’t add a link here! You can also read more at https://en.relaxopet.com.
Fall Back
Don’t forget to put your clocks back tomorrow (Sunday 27th), or if you are like me, the phone and other techy stuff will take care of itself, the cooker clock will stay wrong until it’s right again next year and I’ll only change the clock in the truck after I’ve confused myself a few times (yes, I still change the clock in my truck manually; I have only just got a truck with central locking and electric windows – and I miss the windy ones!)
And as a dear native American friend reminds me at this time of year: “Only the government would believe that if you cut a foot off the top of a blanket and sew it to the bottom, you’ll have a longer blanket.”
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