It’s not every day that a routine site inspection turns into an animal rescue, but that’s exactly what happened when South West Water colleagues Joe Martin and George Cane discovered a young hedgehog stranded at the bottom of an underground storm tank.
It’s incredibly rare for wildlife to be found in storm tanks as they have barriers around them, but hedgehogs are surprisingly good climbers. They’ve been known to scale fences up to six feet high, and Aquarius, as he was later named, had managed to clamber up the safety railings before venturing into the empty tank at Blackawton near Dartmouth.
Joe Martin, Recovery & Treatment Area Manager for Wastewater Services, said: “I was walking the site as part of routine checks when I spotted a small ball of spikes down in the tank. Thankfully the storm tank was empty despite the recent rain. We improvised with a telescopic sampling pole, a bucket and a hoe to scoop him to safety.
“He looked cold and slow, so we moved him somewhere quiet and even tried feeding him worms. We contacted the charity ‘Prickles in a Pickle’ because we thought we might need some expert help.”
Home for a Hog
Joe and George created a makeshift transport carrier from a cardboard box and dry vegetation gathered on site before driving Aquarius to the hedgehog rescue in Stoke Fleming. There, Alan and Judy took him in, assessed him, and gave George a tour of the sanctuary – run entirely from their home and caring for up to 200 hedgehogs at a time and around 1,000 every year.
Judy, co-founder of Prickles in a Pickle, said: “When Aquarius arrived he was very cold, thin, dehydrated and wobbly. He weighed just 260g.
“Thanks to Joe and George’s quick thinking, he’s now doing really well! He’s doubled his weight to 540g. He has a poorly hind leg that’s improving and some internal parasites we’re treating, so he’ll be staying with us over Christmas.
“We reunited him with Joe and George who wanted to visit and check on his recovery a few days ago. They’ve grown attached to the little chap and couldn’t believe how much he’d grown. Aquarius might not have survived Christmas, but thanks to these two, he will be happily fattening himself up even more.”
Prickles in a Pickle is currently fundraising to build a dedicated hedgehog hospital so the charity can move out of the founders’ home and support even more rescues.
Hog-proofing the storm tank
Back at Blackawton, South West Water has now made the tank extra secure to prevent any future ‘adventurous’ hedgehogs attempting the same climb!
“It’s made our Christmas knowing Aquarius is on the mend," added Joe. He’s a tough little character, but let's hope he's less 'adventurous' in the future!”
Aquarius is expected to be released near to where he was found in the New Year once he has fully recovered. In the meantime, he will spend Christmas snuggling up in his favourite Christmas hat.