Oh, just look at what a cute little hedgehog! Those beady eyes, soft tummy, cute paws. I wonder why he came out of the forest? Let's take him, okay, let's be la-a-aska?
And at this moment, you will face a choice. It will be no less fateful than choosing a university, a job, or a soulmate. After all, if you take a hedgehog home and try to save it, you will doom yourself to suffering, and the animal to a quick death.
The first problem you will encounter is health. Normal and perfectly adequate hedgehogs run away from any animal larger than a cat, because if it doesn't eat it, it will definitely trample it. And if the hedgehog doesn't run away from you into the nearest bushes, then it is, at a minimum, seriously injured, and at most, fatally ill.
Unfortunately, you won't find hedgehog veterinarians in our country in broad daylight. And those who practice treating insectivores already have a line of people as compassionate as you. Therefore, you will have to deal with hedgehog treatment, which threatens the animal's quick death. And even you.
Did you think bears and wolves were the most dangerous animals in the forest? Not at all! Hedgehogs are real breeding grounds for deadly diseases, including those for humans: rabies, tularemia, salmonellosis, and a whole host of different fevers that will take anyone to the grave.
Although, of course, not all hedgehogs are “breeders of diseases”, let's say both you and your new pet survived. Are you thinking of putting your hedgehog in a cage and admiring its mischievousness? Yeah, right now. A wild creature does not recognize any masters. Hedgehogs are nocturnal, so every moonrise will be accompanied by endless rustling in an attempt to escape from captivity. And if you are brave enough to give the animal the opportunity to walk around the apartment, then get ready for a nightly hunt for your heels and toes. They can bite if they feel even the slightest threat.
But even if you put up with all of the above, the hedgehog will not live long. For a wild animal, the apartment is too warm and dry, there is not enough space, and instead of winter, which you can safely sleep through, there is eternal summer. The animal's body simply will not have time to adapt to the new conditions, and the entire hormonal system will completely fail, which will lead to the death of the animal.
So my advice to you: if you see a hedgehog, call your local wildlife rescue center and go about your human business. Let the professionals handle the rescue of the animal: then both you and the hedgehog will remain alive and well.
