I had two terrific things happen yesterday.

First of all, I had a telephone conversation with my prospective publisher! I still can’t tell you much more, but I wanted to let you know there’s a lot going on in the background and it’s all good stuff. Keep tabs because you’ll hear it here first!

The other terrific thing is completely non-writing related. I’m wary of straying too far off the writing path in my blog posts, but now and again I get the overwhelming urge to include something much more ‘personal’. A particularly personal one (though I know it was still writing related) was the tribute to my dad. Thanks again to everyone who got in touch with me about that. I didn’t anticipate the depth of response I got. And thank you so much for sharing your own personal stories – that really did mean a lot.

As well as writing, I have certain other passions in my life, one of which is animal welfare and wildlife conservation. Last year we moved house and managed to find one with a small patch of woodland. It was a dream come true to have found somewhere where we could actively preserve our own piece of nature. We’ve set up and constructed various habitats from birdhouses, to log and rock piles, nettle patches and even a Tawny Owl box. It’s fairly wild in places, which I love, with some areas totally undisturbed. We’re very lucky to have oak trees – lifeblood for many a species – as well as Holly, Hawthorns and a stunning Ash tree. As you can imagine, I particularly love the latter two for all their magical and mythological connotations and yes, I will confess, I’ve built a fairy garden near one of the Hawthorns (where frogs have now taken up residence).

The best thing of all about moving here was being able to take a more active role in wildlife rehabilitation. Not long after moving in, I was very lucky to link up with an amazing lady who takes in sick, injured or orphaned small mammals, primarily hedgehogs. Anyone who has their finger on the pulse regarding British wildlife conservation will know these shy and harmless little chaps are currently under threat.

Hedgehogs used to be a common sight in the British countryside and gardens, but numbers are plummeting at a scary rate. If it continues, by 2025, they could no longer exist. No one really knows why they’re on the drastic decline, but losing their favoured habitats as well as the increase of farm and garden chemicals (including slug pellets) are all likely contributory factors. Fortunately they’ve long been protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act so cannot be subject to intentional harm. More recently they’ve been classed as an endangered species so hopefully more active measures will be put in place to protect them.

Hedgehogs particularly like ‘untidy’ gardens (cue us!), with bushes, hedges, leaves and twigs in abundance. Because we have the right environment, we were lucky to be selected as a soft release site as well as being able to help as an overflow rehabilitation place during busy times.

Last year I had three tiny orphaned hoglets transferred to my care. Despite their traumatic start being left alone in their nest after their mum met a tragic end, these two boys and one girl eventually got to healthy weight and were fit enough for release a few weeks later. One of them was released on our patch and still appears to be happily residing with us. That little chap, Mr Orange, is the one at the forefront below (his sister, Miss Pink, is asleep on my arm in the background):

Two weeks ago, two boys came to us. Again, they were orphaned. They were too small to cope on their own, so they’ve been under our supervision. At last night’s pre-dusk weighing, the gorgeous pair weighed in at over 500 grams each, a nice healthy weight for soft release.

I cannot say what an amazing feeling it is to see hedgehogs that probably wouldn’t have otherwise made it, scuttle off into freedom to make their own way. Hopefully they’ll stick around for a while to feast on a few slugs and snails and help salvage what’s left of my ravaged veggie patch (the rest of the wildlife having taken their pick too), or maybe they’ll leg it off into the back field to even greater freedom. The fact remains, they are two more that made it.

That, for me, constitutes terrific news. 🙂