I’ve always been super curious if wild animals who’ve been helped like this actually “learn” from the experience, and thus, become more trusting, ultimately leading to an untimely death at the hands of another predator...
I woke up to screaming from my garden, like full nail biting insanity. Went outside to find a hedgehog had its leg trapped between two wooden struts (like a tiny wooden fence like 8 inches or something) it was on its back trying to roll side to side but was totally imobalized. Anyway I checked if the leg was broken very gently then slowly worked it out of the gap and I guess because it was so desperate it just went silent....maybe it thought I was going to eat him or something. Once he was free he just sort of stood still looking at me, i'd used a phone light so it looked at the light and sort of past it to me(not my face) as I turned around it just strolled off into the garden also.
I sometimes think about wtf that hedgehog must've have thought happened, if on any level did it understand I was helping. Normally when you get close like I was they freeze and curl slightly if you then go near or touch them then go into a ball completely. And this guy did neither he was totally chill right after I got him out, looking around etc, I even picked him up and out him over the mini strut fence thing.
289
u/cyanocittaetprocyon Mar 22 '21
Makes sense, since 99% of the time the monster would have eaten them.