Hedgehog with its spines cut off found in Sheffield halls
It was deliberately harmed
A hedgehog has been rescued from Sheffield’s halls of residence after its spines were cut off with a pair of scissors.
The injured hedgehog has been taken to a South Yorkshire animal sanctuary after being found by a maintenance man early on Saturday morning, with several of its quills cut into.
The animal was given painkillers to calm it down before then being taken to a vet.
Allan Broadhead, owner of the Cawthorne Hedgehog Rescue And Care Centre said: “The maintenance man was in one of the kitchens when the hedgehog ran over to him. It has been abused. Its prickles have been cut off. It is an act of cruelty.
“We have never seen a hog in such a state of neglect and deliberate harm.”
Broadhead continued: “We have taken it to the vet and it has had x-rays. There are no broken bones.
“He is eating and drinking OK now. We need to check it for internal parasites but he does seem better.”
The vet also diagnosed the hedgehog with ringworm, a fungal skin infection which can be transferred to humans.
Due to the contagious nature of the infection there is a high possibility that whoever cut the hedgehog’s spines will have caught the disease.
According to Broadhead, the hedgehog’s healing process will be lengthly, and its broken spines could take up to eight months to re-grow, if they do at all.
In the unlikely situation that its prickles don’t grow back, the hedgehog will remain in the care of Cawthorne sanctuary for the rest of its life, rather than going back into the wild.
The animal’s abuse has been reported to the RSPCA.