Video: Woman shares her love of rescuing African Pygmy Hedgehogs for National Pet Month 2024

We went for a look inside the quirky world of African Pygmy Hedgehogs, as Annette Blagden explains why they make amazing pets.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

In this adorable video, Mrs Blagden shows us round her special ‘hedgehog room’ where her spiky pals get to live their best lives. Mikey, Niamh and Rossi each have their own vivarium filled with cute accessories, toys and everything a pampered pet might want.

Annette Blagden in her African Pygmy sanctuary.Annette Blagden in her African Pygmy sanctuary.
Annette Blagden in her African Pygmy sanctuary.

Hospital for wild hedgehogs

Animal-mad Annette has even turned her garden shed into a dedicated hedgehog hospital, called Hugs4Hedgehogs, where she rehabilitates injured critters. Annette has adopted and fostered 26 African Pygmy Hedgehogs since 2015, and says she loves their quirky personalities. In the short clip, she explains: “They are quirky, funny, they have their own personalities. You get the really huffy, grumpy ones which I fall for straight away as I want to bring them out of it.”

Nocturnal pets

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Footage shows Annette’s three prickly pals in their home, in Blackpool - although she explains why they are not particularly active in the video. “They are nocturnal so they like to get up and run around at night when we’ve all gone to bed.” To learn more about these friendly pet hedgehogs, or to find out how to adopt or foster one in the UK, visit https://www.happyquillsrescueandrehoming.co.uk.

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.