Friday 3 August 2012

This and that.

Aren't the Olympics so exciting? We are having new guttering fitted on our house today and the farmer couldn't go down to his usual Market, so I drove down on my own. I always meet friends in the Golden Lion pub for coffee and I always buy my fruit and vegetables from the lovely market stalls. By the time I returned home the Olympics were in full swing -= mainly the rowing. I told the men that lunch would have to fit in with the times of the races, put on the electric hob and the television and flitted between the two. Joy of joys our pair of women won Gold and I was so excited that I completely forgot that I had put on the omelette pan with a little oil in the bottom - forgot that is until I smelt smoke. The pan was well and truly on fire. The farmer and the builder were standing just outside the kitchen window. I hammered on the window and mouthed 'fire' - they thought I was calling them in for lunch and called 'we'll be in in a minute!' - it took three panic calls before they finally got the message and all was well that ended well, except that the whole house smells of smoke. All the windows are open, and the doors - Tess is in her element as she can wander in and out at will. And yes, before you tell me, I do know that I should have wetted a tea cloth and thrown it over the pan quickly - but in the heat of the moment (forgive the pun) I completely forgot.

As I came back from town I spotted on the lawn close by the front gate but outside on the lane side, a very young hedgehog nibbling away at the grass. He was in a prime position to be flattened on the lane by the first vehicle that drove past. I went in, donned rubber gloves, got the fire shovel and went out to see him. Of course he rolled himself into a ball but I told him it was for his own good - gently popped him on to the shovel and put him under the bushes in our garden, where there was plenty of fine, lush grass for him to eat. I hope he is alright now, but - does anybody know - should a hedgehog be out eating during the day or are they completely nocturnal? This chap looked perfectly healthy to me - he was a delightful little chap - but is there any truth in the story that a hedgehog out during daylight hours is a sick hedgehog. Answers on my blog please.

11 comments:

Heather said...

I am not really a sporty person and have surprised myself with my level of excitement over the Games - I am exhausted already and we are only halfway through! Team GB are doing us proud.
Glad no real harm was done with your burnt pan - it can happen so easily.
One of our granddaughters saw a hedgehog in her garden the other day. I thought they were nocturnal creatures and don't know why they are appearing during daytime.

John Going Gently said...

pat
see
http://www.sttiggywinkles.org.uk/hedgehogs.html
it says YES, it is probably ill
x

angryparsnip said...

awwwwwwwwww, I hope the little Hedgehog is not ill.
I didn't know they were nocturnal because I always see drawings and pictures of them in the daylight.
I think theu are so cute !

cheers, parsnip

Virginia said...

Heavens! That was a close call!

I had a kitchen fire caused by a neglected pan, and the fire brigade convinced me to buy a special aerosol can extinguisher - much easier to use when you are in a panic because it functions just like any other aerosol can - no leavers or pins to manipulate.

I also have put out a much smaller pan fire by simply putting a lid over the top. It fixed the problem, but ruined the lid - the nob was plastic and objected to getting that hot!!

The negatives of both fires was that I didn't get a new kitchen out of them - darn! I should have left them to burn!

Hope the hedgehog grows up to be a happy slug-killer!

Beacee said...

Definitely shouldn't be out in daytime. If it's very small it may be that the sow has failed to return home to feed it. You could try it with a bit of dog or cat food - but not fish flavoured. Please don't give it bread and milk!

Barbara

Midlife Roadtripper said...

Glad others can offer advice on the hedgehog. I can't. I did have six baby skunks in my backyard the other day. I saw my cat run in an hid under the lawn chair and found the babies moving about the yard in a clump. Sent my husband out with the camera but it was dusk and the photos didn't turn out so well.

I burned a pan of beets the other day. Put them on to boil then for my dinner salad and got to reading blogs. Forgot about them. Lovely color in my sink as I scrubbed the pan.

I, too, love the Olympics. Makes me want to get out of my chair and get in shape - maybe.

Rachel Phillips said...

I just read what you said about Christopher Frome, just catching up. I couldn't agree more. I would like to have seen him and Wiggins battle it out for first place in the Tour De France because it would have spiced up an otherwise rather boring Tour. I dont understand why Frome had to wait for Wiggins and missed out on having a go at winning it himself. They were in the same team after all.

I am not so keen on hedgehogs. When I am boiling beetroot I sometimes forget they are on and the saucepan ends up dry.

Acornmoon said...

Do be careful! The house across the road to my home had a fire recently, the family where enjoying the sun in the garden. By the time they had noticed smoke coming from the roof it was too late. Seven fire engines could nor prevent the total loss of the house interior and all the contents.

MorningAJ said...

It's not easy to make a young hedgehog eat. (My ex was a bit of a Doolittle. I've nursed all kinds of waifs and strays.)

The Weaver of Grass said...

I just hope that hedgehog is still surviving - thanks for the helpful comments.

Maggi said...

I have a friend who takes in sick and injured hedgehog Pat and two years ago I found a young hedgehog out in the daylight too. he says that they probably will not make it through the winter as they have not built up enough reserves. I took mine in to him and he looked after it until it was time to be released. I didn't have ot released here as I have badgers around who have already killed one hedgehog - very traumatic. Is there a rescue place nearby that you could contact for advice?