Rescue Mission

What's that down there inside the cattle grid?

Looks like a hedgehog has fallen in and is stuck in the mud.

Gardener comes to the rescue.

That's him out.

Let's see if he's dead or alive.

Can't tell clearly,

 but I think I can detect the prickles rising and falling.

Is he breathing?

He is encased in mud and I can't tell his back end from his front end.

An hour later and he hedgehog is still motionless, apart from what appear to be

signs of breathing. We put a saucer of bread crumbs soaked in milk close

to where he lay on the lawn and kept other creatures off. 

No movement.

We added a portion of wet dog food and a saucer of water to the provisions.

To stop other animals eating the food and to stop them investigating the smelly little heap 

on the lawn, we covered him and his various sources of nourishment with

a wooden box, well ventilated.

At midnight we took another look.

Hurrah, he had eaten and drunk the lot, breadcrumbs, dog food and water.

As he played dead again, we left him under the box all night, 

adding another spoonful of dog food and some more water.

Six am today,

no further food had been eaten, the hedgehog lay dead.

Seemingly.

Eight am I lifted the box off him and left him to his fate.

This is what I saw from the window at ten am:

one perky little hedgehog scuttling off towards a flower bed at high speed,

button-and-bright-eyed,

and nose end and tail end clearly visible.

Mission Accomplished.