Prickles in a Pickle is a home based Hedgehog Rescue which takes in over 1300 hedgehogs a year. We are run entirely by volunteers and are self funded. We cover a huge area of rural South Devon and have a transport group which coordinate the collection and delivery of any sick or injured Hedgehog found by a member of the public. There is also the hospital volunteers who come in daily to clean, weigh, medicate and feed all the hedgehogs in our care. This is 7 days a week and we need at least 5 volunteers daily. The charity is growing each year as is the number of hedgehogs we are taking in. We feel part of this growth is down to the awareness we have created in the local community about hedgehogs and when they may need rescuing. We work closely with the local vets who do any surgical procedures for us and inspect us 6 monthly to keep us compliant with holding medications.

We work closely with the community and do regular educational talks to schools, colleges and community groups. We take in Duke of Edinburgh awards students and offer adults with learning disabilities work placements. We are a very well run charity.

We currently operate out of our founders home using their garage which we have converted into a small hospital area for those nearly ready for release back to the wild, and their boot room area into the main hospital for the more poorly hedgehogs. The space is very limited and restricts the number of volunteers we can have in each room at any one time.

It also restricts the number of hedgehogs we can take in as well. Many hedgehogs come to us with intestinal parasites or other infections that are highly contagious to other hedgehogs therefore we are not able to double up these with other hedgehogs to prevent cross contamination. We also do not have an area for the volunteers to have a coffee break and they have to go into the founders home to use the toilets.

We desperately need a new premises, this will enable us to continue to grow, to offer better facilities for the hedgehogs and the volunteers and also be able to offer more placements for Duke of Edinburgh and adults with disabilities. We would love to have more space for educational purposes so we can invite groups, including young people and schools, where they can see a real hedgehog and this will give a greater impact. We are not allowed to take a live hedgehog to any of the talks , this is because it causes stress to the hedgehog which of course is a nocturnal, wild animal.

The new premises will be converted into a hedgehog hospital, offering more space and facilities. This will enable us to carry on doing an even better job helping to save the European Hedgehog from extinction. Sadly the hedgehog was placed on the Red List this year. We believe in our area we have stabilised the numbers thanks to the work we do.

The hospital needs to be near to the founders home as they are the ones that admit hedgehogs late at night and also do the lions share of the work every day. This presents a very difficult challenge to find a suitable property as the area is mostly AONB and also a very popular tourist area so any land is either very expensive or we would not get planning permission due to the AONB restrictions.

However we have found a building which is outside of the AONB and is within 3 miles of the founders home. It is at a cost that we feel is reasonable and we can hopefully afford with mammoth fundraising and additional grants and funding.

If you can help us with a donation of any amount we, and the hedgehogs will be very grateful. There is no government or National Lottery funding for wildlife rescues so we have to raise every penny ourselves - without your help this would not be possible.

Thank you