Thistle's Prickly Charm

Thistle was found in a UK garden, a wild European hedgehog underweight and full of parasites. We treated him and, because he was habituated to gardens, gave him a safe outdoor enclosure. He'd emerge at night, snuffling through leaf piles for slugs and beetles. His famous self-anointing—creating frothy saliva to spread on his spines when encountering strong smells—was a bizarre and fascinating ritual. The hedgehog house is empty now, missing the soft rustling of his nightly patrols, the sight of his pointed nose twitching, and the occasional, surprising speed of his waddle when excited.