Hedgehogs can often be found nesting in gardens under piles of logs or old sheds, or in compost heaps. But you can provide a hedgehog with a safer place to hibernate, and encourage it to become resident in your garden. If the house is installed in a suitable location, a female hedgehog may have her babies in it during the spring and use it as a shelter throughout the year.

In the autumn, hedgehogs will begin to collect leaves, grass, bracken, straw and other materials to line the house, so you can encourage this process by putting some torn up newspaper or straw in the hedgehog house and putting it where it will not be disturbed – under a hedge is ideal. The entrance should face South for added protection from the elements. The house should then be covered with a piece of plastic, and then soil, twigs and leaves to make a protective and camouflaged dome. The entrance must be kept clear and you should not disturb the hedgehog during the winter when it is hibernating.

The house should be cleaned in the spring when no longer inhabited - if you put one small twig across the entrance, and this is moved, you will be able to tell if the house is in use.

It's only available in black - coloured versions would be pointless because it will be buried.

Dimensions: NN (w) x NN (h) x NN (d) cm

These details about Hedgehog House Recycled Plastic, which is one of 44 Green Frog Animal Housing products in Ishop Market Place, were supplied (along with details of 545 other products from Inavata T/as Electric Fence Online) on 23-May-2012.