houseful of hedgehogs

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

Merry Christmas from Herisson and everyone at the Houseful of Hedgehogs!

BEST "BACK TO SCHOOL" WISHES

It's that time again. Alfie and Eliza are dressed for school with their apples and backpacks. Best wishes to all the teachers and students for a good school year!

TRAVELING TO HEDGEHOG DESTINATIONS

I will have to exercise some restraint next week because we are heading to some known "hedgehog" destinations. While visiting family and friends, we will be near some places I have also been wanting to see. The first is Hedgehog Gifts in (Hedgehog Harbor) Ellison Bay, Door County, WI. The owner carries my book The Roundabout Hedgehog Journey in addition to what I understand is a great collection of hedgehog items. Here are just a few of the unique gifts that my sister-in-law gave me after she discovered the shop while on a trip with friends.

We will also be driving the Upper Peninsula to Michigan with the ultimate destination being the outstanding Bavarian town, Frankenmuth. My husband took me there a few years ago with only a hour to spend--very cruel. This time I'll have the entire day and also get to be with a dear friend I rarely get to see.

One of the places we will visit is Bronner's, the enormous Christmas store.  I hope they've stocked up on hedgehog ornaments!

HEDGEHOG PHOTOS FROM ENGLAND

Every once in a while I run across "things" that I want to include in my hedgehog memories. I obviously couldn't add this rural English road sign to my collection, but I could snap a picture to remember and admire it.

Here is an ancient hedgehog from The British Museum in London.  I would love to add it to my collection! The information I have about it is: "British Museum, EA 58323. Glazed composition. Late Period, about 664-332 BC. Provenance unknown." It's good to know that even the early artists admired the hedgehog.

This is a beautiful hedgehog vest that I found at Town and Country Wear in Hawes, Upper Wensleydale, Yorkshire Dales. I really thought about buying it, but it was just too expensive.  I chose a hedgehog sweatshirt instead.

Here are some luscious hedgehog candies from the window of the historic Betty's Cafe Tea Rooms in York, England. Yumm!

POLLY "HOPE" HEDGEHOG MYSTERY SOLVED

Several months ago when my Aunt Polly moved to Wisconsin, my cousins found a mysterious hedgehog at her vacated house. At the time Polly couldn't remember how she happened to have the adorable little hedgehog. She now remembers that my Aunt Hope bought it while she was living in St. Louis. The hedgehog has an injured foot, and my Aunt Hope bought it because she felt no one else would.

I'm so happy to have "Polly Hope Hedgehog" as a remembrance of my two sweet aunts.

SUMMER VACATION

We'll be on vacation until June 19.  Please stop by Houseful of Hedgehogs again soon!

ON VACATION

We'll be on vacation for a few days.  Please stop by again for more hedgehog happiness!

HAPPY HEDGEHOG VALENTINE'S DAY

Alfie and Eliza, the lovely Senger Tierpuppen, wish you a Happy Valentine's Day! They are quite festive and have an outfit for every holiday. See their story here.

Little Emile and Baby Emile, French hedgehog dolls by Moulin Roty, are admiring a Bramble and Clover heart wind chime.

A basket of valentine hedgies with a few friendly bears make a sweet decoration.

My Lovely, by Marjorie Liucci of Marmee Craft, is one of my very favorites. He is on display all year round, but he really stands out on Valentine's Day!

HEDGEHOG COOKIES

I tried out my new hedgehog cookie cutter from Amanda of Mrs. Tiggy Winkles Hedgehogs. I can imagine lots of ways to decorate them, and they're just the perfect size.

On the subject of cookies, I baked these remarkable chocolate chip cookies that I saw on Emily Martin's (Inside a Black Apple) blog.  She has a link to the recipe which produces large, chewy cookies full of chocolate.

DFW HEDGEHOG SHOW

I had no idea what to expect from my first hedgehog show, and I learned a lot from the community of people who associate with hedgehogs. They are kind, caring folks who love their little companion hedgehogs. Along with general care and professional breeding ethics, hedgehog rescue is an important focus.

The composition show judge is holding Elle, a lovely pinto female, who won "Best in Show."

Baby hedgehogs came to show themselves off, but sales do not take place at the show.

The babies were adorable, of course!

Even Santa came to take pictures with the pampered little hedgies.

I was most impressed with the way the owners, breeders, judge, veterinarian, and rescue volunteers demonstrated their genuine love for their hedgehogs.

 

 

HEDGEHOG SHOW AND CHRISTMAS CARDS

It's not too early to be looking for your Christmas cards. In our Etsy shop, le herisson hedgehog art, we are offering these sweet hedgehog Santa cards painted by Nancy Burch. 

THE DALLAS FORT WORTH HEDGEHOG SHOW

I have never been to a hedgehog show, but I've always been curious about what happens there. I'm going to find out this Saturday, November 7, in Plano, Texas. I'll be presenting my book The Roundabout Hedgehog Journey. I'm taking my camera and planning to have a great time! Check the link above for details.

TIGGYWINKLES WILDLIFE HOSPITAL VISIT

Don't worry. This little hedgehog is just resting after surgery on his eye. He is one of the thousands of wild animals treated each year at Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England. I have just returned from a visit to the hospital where "All British wild animal casualties brought to the hospital are treated completely free of charge and are released through a controlled programme, back to the wild, when they are fully fit. No sick, injured or orphaned wild creature is ever turned away." 

After a while, the hedgehog was up and running around, although a well hedgehog would not normally be seen in the daylight.  The Tiggywinkles facility contains a visitors' center, zoo-like grounds for the resident animals, a hospital that is closed to visitors, an education area, a gift shop, and a very large museum dedicated to hedgehogs. The staff are helpful and informative, and there is a talk several times a day about wild hedgehogs. Tiggywinkles survives on donations which may be made at their website.

The hedgehog museum is a creation of Tiggywinkles founders Sue and Les Stocker and contains hundreds of pieces of every imaginable type of hedgehog. There are, of course, many figures dating from antique to modern. The museum also contains post cards, books, toys, etc., and several displays of various ways the hedgehog has been used as a symbol throughout history. For example, the next picture shows a hedgehog as part of a family crest.

 

My friends Derek and Nancy, who were so kind to invite me to visit them in Northhampton, drove to Aylesbury so we could see Tiggywinkles. No excursion in England would be complete without a stop at the local pub. We had a good lunch in the Rose and Thistle's garden on a lovely summer day--a great memory to savor.

I'M OFF TO ENGLAND TO VISIT SAINT TIGGYWINKLES!

I have wanted to visit St.Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital since I first learned of its existence decades ago. Nancy Burch, the illustrator of my book, and her British husband are staying a few weeks in England. They have invited me to visit, and we plan to make the pilgrimage to St.Tiggywinkles and some other hedgehog hospitals in the area.

I always love to spend time in England, and getting to visit a hedgehog hospital is icing on the cake.  Several years ago, I was fortunate enough to have my husband drive me to Prickly Ball Farm. I absolutely loved the experience, and I am so looking forward to this next hedgehog adventure!

I don't have many in my collection, but here are some Mrs.Tiggy-Winkle pieces. She is a lovely character in Beatrix Potter's books, and is named after the author's own pet hedgehog.

WE'RE ON VACATION

Thank you for stopping by!  I will answer emails and send out book orders after July 1.

THE REAL, LIVE ALFIE AND ELIZA

Alfie in the baby tears

Two live hedgehogs named Alfie and Eliza used to play in my sunrooms.  I suppose I have put off mentioning them because it still makes me sad that they are no longer living. It's time to honor them now.

Many years ago, my son excitedly brought me a newspaper ad for African hedgehogs at an exotic animal farm not far from our home.  I had no idea that people kept live hedgehogs as pets since this was early in their introduction to the United States. Of course, we had to go to see them. 

We came home with a three-month-old male and named him Alfie.  He was very shy, and I thought he must be lonely. In a few days we went back and came home with Eliza. Alfie was happy to see her, but the feeling was never mutual.  They were extremely cute and sweet little creatures, but I'm sure they had not been hand-raised as they are today by quality breeders.

Alfie and Eliza had a good home with proper food, plenty of exercise, and a clean, warm place to live.  I hope all people considering getting a hedgehog will take the time to research and prepare for their new pet.

Eliza riding an elephant

I don't have many pictures of Alfie and Eliza because they would never hold still to pose! I was able to get this lovely shot for my Christmas card one year.

I still honor the memories of Alfie and Eliza by using their names as the characters in my children's book, The Roundabout Hedgehog Journey.

PRICKLY BALL FARM AND HEDGEHOG HOSPITAL

In a beautiful part of Devon, England, in the town of Newton Abbot, up a steep and narrow road sits Prickly Ball Farm.  My husband was kind enough to drive me there several years ago.  The farm is home to a hedgehog hospital and educational center which can be visited by the public and school groups.

The experience began with a brief tour and talk about the facility.  We were given a presentation about hedgehogs and even got to see some of the healthy residents. 

Outdoors there were transitional areas where recovering hedgehogs were reintroduced into the wild.  There was even a little hedgehog cemetery.

It was the first time that I had seen live European hedgehogs, and it was certainly a thrill for me.  An additional thrill was the large gift shop full of hedgehog items (where I had to be reminded that I had a limited amount of room in my suitcase.)  I managed to squeeze in a few--all for a good cause.

A CURIOSITY THAT GREW AND GREW

When I mention that I collect hedgehogs, sometimes I get a blank stare.  How and why would someone from the US start collecting hedgehogs?

The first hedgehog I discovered was in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. I wasn't sure what it was, but it was so cute, I couldn't resist buying it. Since hedgehogs are not native to the Americas, Beatrix Potter's Mrs.Tiggy-Winkle was the only hedgehog I had known.

Hedgehogs became a greater interest to me on my first trip to England. I was in the china department of Harrods in London, where I was drawn to several hedgehog figurines. I came home with three more, and the collection was officially begun.  I found them so adorable, and they seemed to make me smile every time I saw one.

They used to be almost impossible to find in the US, so I began to look for them when I traveled outside the country. I suppose I started collecting more hedgehogs because it was so much fun to spot one of the elusive little animals.  I expected the inhabitants of the UK to have a great affection for hedgehogs, but I was pleasantly surprised that people in other European and also Asian countries seem to love them.

If you also have an interest in them, I would love to know what first attracted you to hedgehogs.