What Do Hedgehogs Eat: A Year-Round Feeding Guide for Garden Wildlife Lovers

What do hedgehogs eat? First to know is that they’re insectivores. In the wild, they snuffle out beetles, earthworms, caterpillars, slugs, millipedes, and earwigs after dark. To help visitors to your garden, put out meat-based wet food or specialist hedgehog food, alongside a shallow dish of fresh water. Don't feed bread, milk, or mealworms; all three do more harm than good.

One of the UK's best-loved wild mammals, hedgehogs are famously short-sighted, surprisingly noisy, and easy to miss unless you catch them rustling through your garden at night. If you've ever wondered exactly what's safe to feed them, what to avoid, and how to support these nocturnal visitors all year round, this guide walks you through it.

Why Should You Feed a Hedgehog?

Hedgehogs are now classed as vulnerable to extinction in Great Britain and are legally protected due to their declining numbers. One of the most impactful things you can do is support wild hedgehogs in your garden.

 Providing the right food, - especially during autumn and winter, - can make a real difference to their survival. Cold weather and dwindling natural food sources make it harder for hedgehogs to find what they need to stay healthy and build up enough fat reserves for hibernation. Although encouraging natural foraging by creating wild, untidy corners in your garden is ideal, offering supplementary food is a simple, caring way to support local hedgehogs when they need it most. It also helps to think carefully about the wider safety of your garden, including questions such as are slug pellets safe for wildlife.

The British Hedgehog Preservation Society is a registered UK charity, and if you would like to learn more about how to protect hedgehogs or get involved, it’s a great place to start.

What Do Hedgehogs Eat in the Wild?

A hedgehog's natural diet is varied, made up of the creepy-crawlies they find while snuffling through leaves and soil.

Wild hedgehogs eat:

• Earthworms

• Beetles (ground beetles and scarab beetles)

• Caterpillars

• Earwigs

• Slugs

• Millipedes

• Fly larvae

• Small frogs

• Bird eggs

• Carrion (dead animals found in the wild)
  

Encouraging insects in your garden by leaving leaf piles, reducing pesticide use, or allowing a corner to grow wild, can go a long way in supporting a hedgehog’s health and wellbeing, while also helping you better understand what garden birds and animals eat in a thriving garden habitat. It helps them stick closer to the natural diet they’ve evolved to thrive on.

What Can You Feed Hedgehogs?

While a hedgehog’s diet is mostly made up of creepy-crawlies and other insects they find, there are a few extra foods you can give them to enjoy. 

Safe supplementary foods:

• Lean, cooked meats like chicken breast or turkey (we suggest providing from time to time only)

• Quality, specially made hedgehog food

Never feed:

• Bread: Low nutrition and can cause digestive issues
• Milk or dairy: Hedgehogs are lactose intolerant. Milk causes diarrhoea
• Mealworms and sunflower hearts: These cause metabolic bone disease. Hedgehogs love them and will refuse healthier food to eat them, so they cause serious long-term harm
• Fish-based cat food: Wrong nutritional profile and unpleasant smell
• Dried fruit, nuts, seeds: Choking hazard and poor nutrition
• Human leftovers: Too salty, fatty, or sugary

What Can Hedgehogs Eat in Different Seasons?

Hedgehog feeding needs change dramatically across the year, and timing matters. Autumn feeding is the single most important window: hedgehogs need to reach at least 600g by November to survive hibernation, and underweight juveniles are the most common casualties of a cold winter.

Season	What to Offer	Why It Matters
Spring (March to May)	Meat-based wet food, specialist hedgehog food, water	Hedgehogs wake up depleted after hibernation and need to rebuild reserves fast
Summer (June to August)	Insects (natural foraging), light supplementary feeding, water	Breeding season. Females raising hoglets need extra protein
Autumn (September to November)	Meat-based wet food, specialist hedgehog food, water	Most critical feeding period. Hedgehogs need to reach 600g before hibernating
Winter (December to February)	Continue feeding through mild spells	Not all hedgehogs hibernate fully. Underweight adults and late-born hoglets may still forage

Signs a Hedgehog Needs Help

Hedgehogs are nocturnal, so seeing one during the day is often a warning sign. Contact your local wildlife rescue or the British Hedgehog Preservation Society if you notice:

• Out during daylight and moving slowly or seeming disoriented
• Very small in autumn (under 600g going into November)
• Wobbling, staggering, or lying on its side
• Visible injuries, flies, or maggots
• Coughing, wheezing, or laboured breathing
• Caught in netting, drain, or garden fencing

Do not offer food or water to an obviously sick or injured hedgehog beyond a shallow dish. Call a rescue for advice first. Keep the hedgehog warm in a high-sided box lined with newspaper and an old towel until help arrives.

The BHPS runs a UK-wide advice line and can point you to your nearest rescue: 01584 890 801.

How to Set Up a Hedgehog Feeding Station

A dedicated feeding station protects the food from cats, foxes, and rain, and gives hedgehogs a safe spot to visit each night.

• Location: Quiet corner of the garden, near cover (hedge, shrub, or wild area). Away from busy paths
• Container: A shallow, ceramic or heavy plastic dish for food. A separate shallow dish for water, wider than deeper
• Shelter: A simple wooden feeding box with a small entrance (13cm x 13cm) keeps cats out and food dry
• Timing: Put food out at dusk and remove any leftovers each morning to avoid attracting rats
• Consistency: Feed at the same time and place each night. Hedgehogs remember reliable food sources

A hedgehog feeder makes the whole setup straightforward and protects your investment in the food itself.

Caring for Baby Hedgehogs

If you find yourself looking after a young hedgehog, it's essential to understand their nutritional requirements from the start. Baby hedgehogs, often called hoglets, need a carefully balanced diet to grow strong and healthy. The best way to feed hedgehogs at this stage is with high-protein options such as wet food or specialist hedgehog food.

Place food and water in a shallow dish that’s easy for a baby hedgehog to reach and clean up any uneaten food daily to avoid attracting pests.

Creating a safe feeding station in your garden by installing a hedgehog feeder can help give wild hoglets the best chance of survival, especially in colder months when natural food sources are scarce. You can support them throughout the year with suitable hedgehog food, while also giving them mental stimulation by hiding a few tasty bites in log piles or among leaves.

Feeding Hedgehogs Year Round

Whether you're helping wild visitors or caring for pets, providing the right support to hedgehogs makes a real difference. When you feed hedgehogs, you help them stay healthy, active, and better prepared for hibernation. A balanced diet rich in natural proteins such as earthworms, worms, millipedes, and even a few mealworms support their wellbeing far better than human foods.

For wild hedgehogs, creating a dedicated feeding station in your garden is a wonderful way to offer safe access to food and fresh water. You can also supplement their food with high-quality specialist hedgehog food, ideally one that mimics what they naturally eat in the wild.

At Garden Wildlife, we’re committed to helping you give hedgehogs the care they deserve. Whether you’re welcoming a curious hog into your garden or caring for one as a pet, our range of hedgehog feeders,hedgehog houses, and wildlife cameras help you feed, protect, and enjoy the company of these charming creatures throughout the year.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can hedgehogs eat fruit?

Best to avoid it. Hedgehogs are insectivores and struggle to digest sugars, so fruit can cause digestive upset. In the wild they'll occasionally nibble fallen fruit, but you shouldn't offer it as part of a feeding routine. Stick to meat-based wet food or specialist hedgehog food.

Can hedgehogs eat vegetables?

Some vegetables are safe in moderation, particularly soft, cooked options that are easy to digest. Try offering cooked squash, cooked carrots (in small amounts), green beans and peas. Avoid starchy vegetables like potatoes, raw carrots, corn, celery, and lettuce, as well as anything hard or with little nutritional value.

What do hedgehogs drink?

Always provide fresh water in a shallow dish. Remember, hedgehogs are lactose intolerant, so never offer milk.

Can pet hedgehogs eat meat-based wet dog or cat food?

According to the Cumbria Wildlife Trust, you can feed wet pet food to your hedgehog but it should only be a supplementary diet fed on occasion.

Do hedgehogs eat mealworms?

Hedgehogs love mealworms but should never be fed them. Mealworms have a calcium-to-phosphorus ratio that causes metabolic bone disease over time. Worse, hedgehogs become addicted to them and will refuse healthier food. The same applies to sunflower hearts. Both look like "natural" foods but cause serious long-term harm. Stick to meat-based wet cat food or specialist hedgehog food instead.

When do hedgehogs hibernate in the UK?

Hedgehogs typically hibernate from November to March or April, depending on weather and body condition. A hedgehog needs to weigh at least 600g to survive hibernation safely. Underweight hedgehogs, late-born hoglets, and adults during mild spells may stay active through winter and still need feeding.