The Hecks are back

We have had some wonderful warm and sunny weather over the past couple of days, in contrast to the cold and chill winds that have been blowing at the start of the week. So spring is very definitely here.

And as evidence of that, the Hecks - the family of hedgehogs who live at the bottom of the garden, have emerged from hibernation and are once more roaming about underneath the shrubs and amongst the plants.

First the Babe Magnet spotted a prickly creature at the far end of the lawn, and then, encouraged by the fact that I had put out scraps of unwanted cat meat (their favourite chicken varity - the Hecks' favourite, that it, not just the cats!) the bigger ones ventured closer to the house.

Then when we went to bed, leaving the windows open because of the warmth meant that we heard the familiar snuffling and grunting as these little creatures munched on chicken and cat crunchies. It's good to have them back and to know that we still have a family of hedgehogs as we had since we moved into this house 21 years ago. Those snuffling noises also mean they are getting ready to create new baby hedgehogs so hopefully the generations will continue - and I'll look forward to seeing some mini Hecks in the near future.