The International Conference for Hedgehog Professionals 2026
Saturday the 17th of January 2026
08:30: Conference registration opens
Coffee, tea and breakfast is served
9:30-9:45: Dorthe Madsen & Sophie Lund Rasmussen: “Welcome to the International Conference for Hedgehog Rehabilitators”
09:45-10:00: Keynote opening speech by Sebastian Everding, Member of the European Parliament (Animal Welfare Party, Germany) (ONLINE)
Session: Principles and practices of wildlife rehabilitation. Chair: Grace Johnson
10:00-10:20: Peter Sandøe: “Should we always let nature take its course?”
10:20-10:40: Paul Reynolds (ONLINE): “The BWRC’s 10 principles of wildlife rehabilitation: A framework for UK standards and regulation”
10:40-11:00: Emma Ormiston: “Why hedgehogs need help: Common causes for wildlife rehabilitation”
11:00-11:30: Coffee break
Session: Hedgehog diets. Chair: Sophie Lund Rasmussen
11:30-11:50: Lea Grayston-Smith: “Tracking changes in in the diet of the UK’s Western European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) over a 100-year timeframe using stable isotope analysis”
11:50-12:10: Anja Varmløse Strathe, Rebecca Victoria Marquard Bay & Simone Lorenzen “Food choice and stomach characteristics based on macroscopic analyses of deceased European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) from various regions of Denmark”
12:10-12:30: Carys Harry: “A macroscopic investigation of kidney disease in a Danish population of European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus)”
12:30-12:40: Sophie Lund Rasmussen: “eDNA analyses of hedgehog faeces to determine diet”
12:40-13:30: Lunch
Session: Exploring the health and anatomy of hedgehogs. Chair: Sophie Lund Rasmussen
13:30-13:50: Dylan Yaffy: “Hedgehog Health and Disease at the Royal Veterinary College”
13:50-14:10: Henrik Lauridsen & Aage Kristian Olsen Alstrup: “Post-mortem micro-CT scans of European hedgehogs enabling detailed 3D reconstructions of the inner ear and whole body”
14:10-14:30: Heidi Thomsen: ”Hearing in the European hedgehog”
Session: WildlifeRecords. Chairs: Sophie Lund Rasmussen & Lucy Bearman-Brown
14:30-15:30: “Introducing WildlifeRecords, a free wildlife data management tool”
15:30-16:00: Coffee break
Session: Genetics and hedgehogs in clinical practice. Chair: Aage Kristian Olsen Alstrup
16:00- 16:20: Elaine O’Riordan: “Mitochondrial DNA reveals diversity in Irish hedgehog population”
16:20-16:40: Katrien Franssen: ”Hedgehogs in clinical practice”
16:40-17:10: Rikke Hansen: “How do we assess pain, when pain can’t be measured? And how do we handle that pain?”
And finally, an important and uplifting last talk of the day
17:15-17:45: Hugh Warwick: “Keyboard warriors”
17:45-18:00: Group photo
18:00-19:00: Poster session and reception
19:00: Conference dinner
The International Conference for Hedgehog Professionals 2026
Sunday the 18th of January 2026
8:30: Doors open
Coffee, tea and breakfast is served
Session: Infections in hedgehogs. Chair: Dylan Yaffy
9:10-9:30: Hannah Davies: ”Hedgehog arterivirus-1 in European hedgehogs in England and Wales: an update”
9:30-09:50: Vicki Oliver: ”Hedgehog arterivirus-1 in wild European hedgehogs – a rescue centre perspective”
09:50-10:10: Amaury Van Goethem: ”A year of hedgehog necropsies: Insights into Salmonella”
10:10-10:30: Discussion: What should we study in the future?
10:30-11:00: Coffee break
Session: Anthropogenic factors influencing hedgehog health and survival. Chair: Anouschka Hof
11:00-11:20: Catarina Jota Baptista (ONLINE): ”European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) as bioindicators of heavy metal(loid)s pollution in Portugal: a One Health perspective”
11:20-11:40: Emily Thrift: “Assessing the presence of plastics within the European hedgehog diet”
11:40-12:00: Abinesh Muthaiyan (ONLINE): “Observation on factors affecting the survival of juvenile Madras hedgehogs (Paraechinus nudiventris) in different districts of Tamil Nadu, India”
12:00-13:00: Lunch
Session: Hedgehog parasites. Chair: Thomas Churchyard
13:00-13:20: Angelique Lofaro: ”Prevalence of ringworm in Atelerix algirus in Malta – Preliminary data report”
13:20-13:40: Brawin Kumar: ”Parasitic pressure and behavioural constraints in the Madras hedgehog: Evidence from urban and semi-arid grasslands in Tamil Nadu”
13:40-14:00: Ann Wairimu Kinyanjui: ”Next generation sequencing based detection of microbial pathogens in ticks from Danish hedgehogs”
14:00-14:30: Coffee break
Session: Hedgehog conservation in action. Chair: Lucy Bearman-Brown
14:30-14:50: Grace Johnson: “Hedgehog conservation in the UK: Strategy, monitoring and engagement”
14:50-15:10: Vicky Grant & Thomas Churchyard: “From Uist to the mainland: Designing Scotland’s first hedgehog release strategy”
15:10-15:30: Sophie Lund Rasmussen: “Hedgehogs and robotic lawn mowers, Danmarks Pindsvin and Hedgehog Conservation Ireland”
15:30-15:50: Diane and Andrew Cook: “When nerds nurture nature – Project HEDGE: A nationwide platform for passive hedgehog monitoring and research collaboration”
15:50-16:00: Rounding off the conference
Farewell tea, coffee and snacks are served
Thank you & get home safely!
