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Nov 02, 2024

Gardener Drops Everything After Spotting Hedgehog's Little Pink 'Necklace' - The Dodo

While working in their garden in England earlier this week, Nathan Brady and his daughter noticed a spiky little visitor passing through. It was a local hedgehog, apparently out for a stroll. Brady

While working in their garden in England earlier this week, Nathan Brady and his daughter noticed a spiky little visitor passing through.

It was a local hedgehog, apparently out for a stroll. Brady was delighted by the sight.

“I whipped out my phone to get a couple of pics,” Brady told The Dodo. “They are usually shy and nocturnal.”

But a closer look at this hedgehog revealed that something was amiss. She appeared to be wearing a small pink necklace.

Turns out, however, the “necklace” was actually the cap ring from a plastic bottle — and it was firmly wrapped around the hedgehog’s neck.

It seemed as though she was asking for help. And she found it.

“We grabbed some pliers and scissors from the house. The hedgehog seemed very calm at first, letting us cut the plastic ring around [her] neck,” Brady said. “The plastic ring had obviously been on the hedgehog for a while as it was really tight.”

The hedgehog instinctively curled into a ball during the process, but after some gentle effort, Brady was able to free her from that sad predicament.

“The hedgehog was super happy when [the ring] was removed,” Brady said. “[She] had a quick drink and some dog food, and then wandered off to do some hedgehog stuff.”

Before she left, the newly freed hedgehog lingered for a moment near Brady and his daughter, as if to thank them for their help.

Brady believes that the plastic ring had been inhibiting the hedgehog's ability to eat or drink — a preventable death sentence caused by litter.

"Hopefully [this story] will raise awareness of plastic waste and its damage to animals," he said.