Islanders are being urged to “check before they chop” after several hedgehogs had to be put down following strimmer-related injuries.
The Jersey Hedgehog Preservation Group explained that branchage season brings an increase in injured creatures.
Branchage refers to a historical legal requirement in Jersey which requires landowners to cut back overhanging vegetation to ensure roads and footpaths remain safe and clear.
The Jersey Hedgehog Preservation Group is reminding islanders to take “extra care” while doing garden work and check for animals before strimming, cutting or mowing.
The group confirmed that one hedgehog had to be put to sleep recently with a nose wound, and another hog was left with its nose hanging off due to being sliced through.
Hedgehogs rely on their sense of smell to find food in the wild, which makes nose injuries “extremely difficult to heal”, the group explained.
Hedgehogs tend to nest under hedges, in compost heaps, and in twig piles. Hoglets cannot survive without their mother.