Stray cat protects abandoned baby hedgehogs in Turkey’s Antalya

ANTALYA

A stray cat has taken three abandoned baby hedgehogs under its protection in the Mediterranean province of Antalya.

Three baby hedgehogs were found in a garbage container in Antalya’s Kemer district on May 10, after which the Kemer Municipality took them to a temporary animal shelter.

At the shelter, veterinarian Mehpare Seda Aytekin tried to make some cats in the kittening period become milk mothers for the hedgehogs.

A number of the cats rejected breastfeeding the hedgehogs but one, called “Nazlı,” stepped forward to accept feeding the babies, taking them under his protection.

“There are no hedgehogs at the shelter that could be milk mothers. Of course breastfeeding a hedgehog is not easy for a cat, and many of the cats refused to breastfeed the hedgehogs. A lot of cats could not adapt to breastfeeding the hedgehogs because of their thorns. But finally Nazlı took them under protection and started to breastfeed these babies. We are very lucky: If Nazlı had not accepted them these hedgehogs could not have survived,” Aytekin said.

She added that they will continue to keep the hedgehogs under protection until they are able to eat food.

“They will stay in our shelter and we will release them into nature when they are ready,” Aytekin said.