How appropriate that we are seeing so many baby animals this week with Mother's Day just around the corner! First a day-old rhino, then an hours-old baby elephant . . . now we can throw these hedgehogs into the mix! Although these little guys were born last month, they do have an interesting story. In Europe, birthing time for hedgehogs is usually in late May to early June, with hibernation and cold weather keeping them safe inside their burrows. But this litter, born April 26th, is one of the earliest litters of hedgehogs ever seen in Europe, and oh-so tiny – each little one weighs less than an ounce! Elizabeth Dyas, founder of Prickly Ball Farm in Devon (which looks after these animals) is speculating that unseasonably warm weather is what's bringing the hedgehogs out of hibernation early:

"When we first started taking them in about 20 years ago there were harsher winters and they hibernated for much longer periods than they do now. Normally we would start to get small numbers being born at the end of May and beginning of June"

To read more about these adoro hedgehogs, and to see just how tiny they really are, read more.

The cutie-patuties have been named Bluebell, Primrose, Daisy, and Buttercup after popular springtime flowers. Thankfully, the babies have been gaining weight by feeding from their mother, and will be transferred to nutrient-rich cat food until they weigh a healthy pound each.

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