Lochau hedgehog rescue hatch handles a rush of patients

A 24-hour drop-off hatch for hedgehogs in Lochau is seeing a steady stream of arrivals, with 25 animals currently in care. ORF reports that Adele Dornig runs the private rescue station, where sick, underweight or injured hedgehogs are cared for until they can return to the wild.

The hatch, which opened a year ago beside a main road, is checked daily. Some of the smallest hedgehogs weigh just 160 grams, far below the 500 grams Dornig says is the minimum needed to get through winter.

Many hedgehogs need medical treatment as well as help gaining weight. The station has equipment including an incubator with a heated bed for animals suffering from cold. Dornig also uses a small dolls’ bathtub to remove parasites.

The hatch is located at the Igelfreunde Leiblachtal hedgehog station, at Lindauer Straße 17, near the underpass to Schwarzbad. Dornig says it has proved a success during its first year.