The idea of putting one's own garden at the service of animal welfare is by no means new, but remains topical due to the decline of natural habitats. For example, hedgehogs, once a common sight, are now covered by the Federal Species Protection Act. In the wild, the hedgehogs have fewer and fewer refuges, which is why some of the remaining population is turning to home gardens for shelter. Since they act as beneficial insects there, the necessary animal protection is combined with an advantage for the garden: Hedgehogs eat slugs, grubs, insects and worms, and thus also contribute to a natural balance. However, properly understood hedgehog conservation becomes even more urgent for another reason: with good intentions, animals that are thought to be sick or too weak are often taken away from their ancestral environment in the autumn, even if they would have better chances of survival there. And last but not least, hedgehogs are at great risk from the growing volume of traffic.

A natural garden is an essential contribution to the preservation of the hedgehog. He needs freedom of movement; fences and boundaries must be permeable, light wells should be covered with a grid.