Hedgehog Lady

I first met hedghog lady, whose real name is Lesley, today while invigilating. She rushed in late and explained it was because she couldn't find one just before she was ready to go out, but eventually found him curled up in a bag of bedding. We got talking about animals, and also about the small animals hotel, which is run near here and near to her house, and where we leave the guinea pigs when we go on holiday. We also got talking about what used to be a fish and chip shop at the top of our street, and, coincidence, the son of the fishshop owner, William was also inviligating today.

After the session she invited me back to her house for a coffee. I admit that I was a bit put out by this as, after a boring sesh, I was desparate to read the paper. However I got on my bike and found her house.

She showed me me the hedgehog in question who was still asleep in the bedding and picked him up like in the pic. After a while I asked whether he was still asleep as he was very still but she said no, he had woken up but they are quite strange creatures, who, however, can certainly put a bit of speed on when they want to. I asked whether he was a bit prickly and she said he could be when he wanted but to feel him as he was very warm, as indeed he was. She also had a number of hedgehogs in little runs in her house, which was a nice thing to do as she obviously didn't have much money and the vets fees mount up. Apparently she has been rescuing hedgehogs who have been hurt by strimmers (grass cutting machines) and who have damage to their limbs.

She lived in a very nice bungalow with a lovely garden which she had obviously made great efforts to hold onto. It had some Pampass grass (which she obviously likes) and was quite impressed by the fact I know about an impressive plant on a verge near to where I live, because I took a picture for this blog, which she has noticed too. Though she says she will pass the on the pink Pampass grass, which apparently her sister-in-law has.

All around the house and sunroom (which caught the light) were a motley collection of rescue cats who were strategically sunning themselves on the exact warmest spots that the sun came through the window. One cat came in mewing and she said "He is very fat, don't look" and he certainly was. Another sleeker brown cat was sunning himself outside on a patio chair. Yet another cat was sunbathing in the sun room on a chair which was the last left over from the suite which she had bought with her ex-husband many years before, but she had cut up and burned all the rest, but she had kept a chair for her cat.