Stealth Hog Revelaed!!!

Beautiful!

Tonight I was outside playing with Coco Cat at about 9.30pm when she suddenly stopped playing and sat at attention looking at the fernery - where the wild hoggie nest was located. AH HA thought I, maybe my visitor was up for the night! I raced inside and grabbed some gloves and my torch and went on a hog hunt. 

My suspicions were correct and it didn't take long  to locate the Stealth Hog who sat rather calmly observing me as I approached ...

Hmmm .... 

Scoping the hoggie up and bringing it inside I started to get a little excited as I thought I recognised the face and the hoggie was very squirmy and rather unconcerned at being handled.

At first I wondered if it might be Posh but on closer inspection it was revealed our visitor was a boy. Once inside under the lights I had a good look at the wee boy and he was in fabulous condition - albiet a little skinny due to just coming out of hibernation. There was absolutely no sign of mange or anything else untoward. 

Then, I made an amazing discovery ...

A bit skinny and 'pointy' but hey, he's only just woken up!

There in the middle of the hoggie's back was the faintest remains of some blue nail polish which means my little visitor is Baldric, come home to roost! I am so very excited and happy that he has successfully survived his first winter and that he is healthy and well. 

After reapplying Baldric's 'war paint' and giving him a dose of Advocate I took him back outside and popped him into the feeder box to have some dinner and to carry  on with the rest of his busy night. 

My beautiful little man Baldric

So, now ... well... 

I know I said that I wanted to capture the wildling in order to remove it from the back garden and let it go free, but I find I'm having some second thoughts about what to do. Baldric obviously knows where 'home' is and I don't have the heart to shut him out so what I'm going to do is cut a hole in the fence through to my neighbour Donna's garden so that Baldric et al can access the garden as he/they choose to. I'll make a lockable flap door for the hole so that during the day when Westley is out, the flap is closed and then open it up at night to give the wild hoggies access into the garden.

It's a feeder box Baldric, not a nest box!!!!

UPDATE: This was the feeder box this morning. Young Baldric has been a very busy boy overnight. I suspect he has gone to bed in the temporary bedroom box and will check later. BUT, I won't be moving the box out of the garden now. Instead, I'll get another wooden bedroom box made up and transfer him into that and this weekend I'll make a hog hole in the fence so he isn't trapped in my garden.

It will be really interesting to see if he leaves and for how long he stays away.