Want to Pet...But...Too...Pointy

These two little guys (gals? they all look the same to me) are new additions to the Spickschen Compound in Seeheim. Thorlef and Brigitte had two hedgehogs in their backyard/garden/whatever you call something that large with a pond. Apparently they eat annoyances such as slugs and are just generally awesome, as you can see.

But a couple of months ago we found the carcass of one. Brigitte wanted to get another one to keep the survivor company, and for some reason the animal shelter where they got their cat a few years ago had a hedgehog to offer. So we headed over there yesterday with the kids to score us some 'hog. When we got there, though, it turned out they had not one, not even two, but three hedgehogs available. Well, the more the spikier, so we returned home with triple the bounty.

We unpacked them deep in the backyard and let them figure out when to come out on their own. I suppose they'll be settling in to hibernate soon, but I'm sure once they wake up and rub the sleep out of their eyes they'll be very happy in their new home. On a related note, I hope Winston, my parents' dog, never meets one of these -- his favorite toy is a stuffed hedgehog. You can look, but, boy, you can't touch.