Yahoo, July 19, 2002

LINK

Police Roused by Mating Hedgehogs

MAINTAL, Germany (Reuters) - German police rushed to investigate cries of distress reported by an elderly woman in a small town near Frankfurt early Tuesday only to find the moaning came from two copulating hedgehogs.

The terrified 72-year-old alerted police after enduring two and a half hours of pained wailing, police official Rudolf Neu told Reuters.

"The woman said they were not lusty moans, they were as if someone was in need of help," he said.

She reported the sounds of agony coming from a neighbor's hedge, but could not see anything out of her window and was too afraid to leave her house.

After two officers arrived on the scene and combed the area with flashlights, they found the source of the groans beneath a car parked about 20 meters (yards) from the woman's house.

"They were looking around in the darkness, and then found the two hedgehogs at work under the car," said Neu.

Shortly after being discovered, the pair completed their mating and escaped from the prickly situation unharmed.

-- (lars@indy.net), July 10, 2002

Answers

Everything you never wanted to know about hedgehogs.

-- (lars@indy.net), July 10, 2002.

What is a Hedgehog?

Hedgehogs are a small, insectivorous (insect eating) mammal that can be found throughout the world. They are native to England, Europe, Africa and Asia. The hedgehog that is now kept as a pet in North America is the Pygmy Hedgehog from Central Africa. Since there are no native species of hedgehog in either Canada or the United States, many people still mistake the domestic hedgehog for the porcupine - an entirely different and unrelated animal. While porcupine quills are extremely sharp, barbed and very dangerous, the hedgehog quill is smooth and not nearly as sharp. Petting a friendly hedgehog can be compared to petting a hairbrush - bristly, not prickly. The average African Pygmy Hedgehog weighs about ½ to 1 ¼ pounds and is 5 to 8 inches long - about the size of a Guinea Pig. There are some that will grow to as much as 1 ¾ to 2 pounds (without being fat) while others are as little as 6 or 7 ounces. Your pet should be kept indoors at normal room temperature (65 to 80*F); can be fed a good quality dry cat food or a specially formulated hedgehog food. Besides simply being enjoyed as pets, there is also an active hobby. Thanks to the International Hedgehog Association, (IHA) there is even a working show system and standard of perfection for African Pygmy Hedgehogs. Top

-- (hedge hog stew @ 6:00.ish), July 10, 2002.