Brent Robinson of Rakon joins Hi-Tech Hall of Fame

Just a quick note today....great to see Brent Robinson of Rakon recognised as the recipient of the Tait Radio Communications Flying Kiwi Awards in the NZ Hi-Tech Hall of Fame.

See the NZ Hi-Tech Awards for more info (link here) . In brief, the award recognizes individuals that have made a sustained and outstanding contribution to New Zealand's hi-tech industries: software, electronics, telecommunications, biotechnology, creative technologies...

Caring for sick / injured hedgehogs

In a departure from my normal topic areas, I had to write about my experience this morning. If for no other reason than to offer some advice to anyone finding a stray, injured or otherwise bothered hedgehog in their shed, garage, garden etc.


So I went into the garage this morning to find a strange puddle of oil on the floor.

And footprints.






So I followed the trail...and followed some more...

A cat I thought, judging by the paw prints. But no, there are only 3 or 4 pads in the footprints..... Yes, it turned out to be a hedgehog. A somewhat shiny looking hedghog with an oily sheen to it.

The poor thing had somehow got into our garage (? not sure how?) and climbed into a tray of old engine oil that I hadn't disposed of properly. Dammit.

How to catch and wash a hedgehog? A quick search on the net revealed an amazing range of advice, charities and plain old good hearted folk who take these cute little animals into their care and nuture them back to health. Examples such as http://www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/ and http://www.wildlifeonline.me.uk/hedgehog_care.html had some great tips.

So..if YOU find a hedgehog covered in oil or similar, here's what I suggest...

1. Get a bucket of tepid/warm ish water and add 1 teaspoon of baby shampoo or washing up liquid per litre of water.

2. If you have one, get a spray bottle (but not one that has had chemical cleaning products in it of course!)

3. Pick up hedgehog carefully with gloves or wrap in a towel, place gently in an old plant pot or holey bucket. I used a large old plastic plant pot - handy because it is large enough for the hog to run around but it also has holes in the base so the water drains away quickly..

4. Gently spray hedgehog with soap/water solution, avoiding eyes and ears. A toothbrush or cloth helps wipe oil off the spines.

5. Rinse using same soap/water solution by dipping a cup or similar into the bucket and pouring carefully over the hedghog working from behind the head to the tail. This little fella / sheila seemed to like this..when I picked it up, the spines when up, but while washing, the spines went down and it actually looked up and started sniffing around while I was doing this.

6. Get some clean, soap free tepid / warm water and repeat to remove all soap / oil residue.

7. Dry hog with towel or cloth. Not easy if you are rough since those spines go up again. It's important to do this though since the advice I've read says hedgehogs must be kept warm.

8. Place in another plant pot or cardboard box or similar in a quiet place, ideally with some food/water/bedding and covered to make it dark for the little fella. The links above have good suggestions...I used some rabbit food, straw bedding and a water/sugar/salt solution in a small tray...see here....






9. That's as far as I've got! I'm going to check on him/her later this evening...





Horner's Hedgehog House : )