Revealed: Woman who brought ‘injured baby hedgehog’ into animal hospital went bright red in the face when staff told her it was actually a fluffy hat bobble
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A woman who brought what she thought was an injured baby hedgehog to an animal hospital turned bright red in the face and quickly left when staff told her it was actually a fuzzy hat, the manager said today.
The kind-hearted woman had carefully cared for the ball of fluff overnight after finding it on the side of the road, putting it in a shoebox with a bowl of food.
She covered her mouth in shock and exclaimed, “You’re kidding me!” when she was told that the ‘creature’ she had brought was actually a fashion accessory that belonged on a woolen hat.
She had mistaken the lump for an injured hedgehog and cared for it all night before taking it to Lower Moss Wood Nature Reserve & Wildlife Hospital in Knutsford, Cheshire, last Thursday.
But when hospital manager Janet Kotze opened the box, she realized that the ‘hedgehog’ actually belonged on a wool hat.
Ms Kotze said she “couldn’t believe what she saw” when she made the discovery.
A woman carefully nursed what she thought was a stricken ‘baby hedgehog’ overnight, only to discover it was a fluffy cap (pictured) when she rushed it to an animal hospital
Hospital manager Janet Kotze (pictured) said she ‘couldn’t believe what she saw’ when she made the discovery
The hospital director today revealed: ‘The lady very carefully brought it in a cardboard box and when she placed it on the counter I could see that it was covered in newspaper and even had a small bowl of food in it. In the middle was a small furry ball.
‘She said she had rescued a baby hedgehog and cared for it all night, but when she got up that morning it had stopped moving so she brought it to us.
She had called ahead and drove to us mid-morning. I think she was the first shot that day.
‘It didn’t look like any hedgehog I’d ever seen, but I wondered what it was and whether – rather grimly – it was part of an animal.
‘So I carefully picked up the box and took it to one of the operating rooms for a closer inspection under the light.
‘There was no movement even when I wiggled the box a little.
‘But as soon as I got a little closer I discovered that it was nothing living, and when I reached out and touched it gently it became clear that it was the bump of someone’s woolen hat.
‘I took the box to the reception where the woman was waiting and said, ‘I’m so sorry, it’s actually a lump… out of a hat’ and picked it up to show her.
‘This poor woman turned red with embarrassment, put her hand to her mouth and said, ‘Are you kidding me?!’
Ms Kotze added that if people see a hedgehog in the open during the day, they should be brought to their aid as this is a sign that they are in distress (Stock Photo)
The animal lover then sheepishly walked out of the animal hospital, box in hand.
Mrs Kotze continued: ‘She took the box back, but it disappeared in an instant. She was dejected – really embarrassed – but she had done everything right, she had not touched what she thought was the hedgehog, left it alone and brought it in to us. It’s always better to be safe than sorry.
‘Normally there is a file that people have to fill out, with their contact details and the location where they found the animal, but this lady went quickly and without any worries, not that that was necessary in the end of course.
“She got in her car and drove away. She didn’t want to linger, but that shouldn’t be so bad. She was a very sweet lady and her heart was in the right place.’
Ms Kotze added that if people see a hedgehog in the open during the day, they should be brought to their aid as this is a sign that they are distressed.
Janet said: ‘It’s a golden rule that hedgehogs shouldn’t be outside during the day, especially such small ones, but she absolutely did the right thing – apart from the fact it wasn’t a hedgehog.’