Bishop’s Stortford nature lovers rallied to save Herts Hogline from extinction and now the wildlife rescue’s co-ordinator wants the town to become a haven for the protected species.
Lynne Garner had less than a month’s money left in the bank when she issued a plea for help on Facebook last Thursday (November 23) – and within 24 hours, supporters had donated enough to fund her work for at least another year.
With £129.55 left and monthly expenses of £135, she had been resigned to the “very hard decision” that Herts Hogline should close on January 1.
She said: “I’m still picking my jaw off the floor because so many people made donations over 24 hours.
“So long as we don’t get any big medical bills, we should be able to continue for the next 12 months.”
As well as financial support, she was also been offered a free website redesign and some bespoke graphics to create money-spinning Herts Hogline merchandise.
Lynne founded the helpline and rehabilitation centre almost 30 years ago, building on her childhood love of the creatures, which have rapidly declined in rural areas, with the loss of up to three-quarters of the population.
She honed her conservation skills as a student, studying environmental geography at Anglia Ruskin University, with a stint as a volunteer for a Hertfordshire hedgehog group.
When its leader retired, Lynne took over the mantle and a shed in her garden has become a hedgehog hospital where she provides a sanctuary for up to eight hedgehogs at a time – although she has squeezed in 16.
She said that in the past 50 years, the UK’s hedgehog population had been decimated, but with so much affection for the spiny species evident, she wanted a campaign to make the town safe for them.
In 2013, Bridport in Dorset became the country’s first “hedgehog town” and now Lynne believes it is time for Stortford to follow suit.
Many of the nocturnal creatures lose their lives on the roads, so Lynne wants householders to ensure they leave a hole the size of a CD case in garden fences to allow them to forage safely and ensure they can climb out of ponds.
If every third house offered a hedgehog house and feeding station, she said, the population could recover.
Pesticides and poisons have also taken their toll on the hedgehogs, whose ancestors have inhabited the earth for 15 million years, compared to a mere 300,000 years for home sapiens.
Lynne said modern farming methods – creating larger fields with fewer hedges for their homes – were also a factor and climate change was playing its part for the animals which typically hibernate from December to March. Hedgehogs need to weigh at least 600 grams to survive the winter slumber.
She works closely with Bishop’s Stortford Veterinary Hospital and Mercer and Hughes in Stansted as well as A120 Veterinary Centre and a practice in Stanstead Abbotts.
But out of hours, her prickly patients may have to be driven to Enfield so Lynne, who is recovering from a broken elbow, is appealing for volunteer drivers.
Householders with large, enclosed gardens are also in demand as foster carers.
She also welcomes donations of “non-fishy” cat or dog food for her charges. Every year pupils at Northgate Primary School dedicate their harvest festival collection to the good cause and supporters can donate as they shop online through TheGivingMachine or play the East Herts Lottery to help.
Lynne said: “Everyone can do something to help save the hedgehogs.”