Factors influencing the hibernation of juvenile hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in the wildlife rehabilitation centre of Luxembourg

Abstract

The survival rate and the average daily weight gain have been used to identify and study the influence of different factors on the hibernation of hedgehogs kept inside the wildlife rehabilitation centre of Luxembourg during the winters of 2021, 2020 and 2019. The factors that have been observed to see if they influence or not the hibernation quality of recovering juveniles in the WRC are the following : the type of treatment a hedgehog received during its stay and the weight on arrival of a hedgehog. Medical treatments given to hedgehogs during their hibernation period at the WRC did influence their survival rate and daily weight gain, although it is difficult to separate the influence of the cause of admission from the influence of treatment itself.