How to create a hedgehog hole in a fence with concrete in the bottom?

I'd like to make a hole in the bottom of my fence about 13x13cm as advised to allow hedgehogs access through my garden to the one next door. Unfortunately my fence is the kind that has concrete at the bottom into the ground.

Does anyone know the best way to go about creating a hole in a fence like this?

Any tips much appreciated.

 

If your neighbour is keen on the Hedgehogs too, you could perhaps make the access hole in the fence and have a brick or similar on both sides to act as a step and ennable the hogs to climb on to that, thru the hole and back again. Just a thought

 

That's a nice idea! I didn't realise that hedgies are amenable to stepping up on a brick.
Ideally if i could made a ground level hole I'd like it best, then when I move out, the next owner needn't make sure the brick stays there (in case they are not hedgehog helpers).

 

Is it your fence???

 

Yes it's my fence.

 

I can only really think of cutting the end off the concrete gravel board, or replacing it with a wooden one, depending on how high it is this might mean one end is kind of floating around if its not connected to the post.

 

Are you saying I could cut into that concrete gravel board? This picture looks like my fence:

 

Could you dig a tunnel under the gravel board @Pink678? Or if you made the hole in the wooden fence, constructing an earth ramp on either side might be another option, instead of using bricks.

 

That's a great idea, I could dig a tunnel. And earth ramps could work with a hole in the wood, or I could construst little wooden ramps. Though I still hanker after a ground level hole that will remain after I leave this house, and that doesn't rely on any upkeep from the other neighbour.

 

Hedgehog's are very good climbers, they would be able to climb over the concrete gravel board if you made a hole in the fence. They have deceptively long legs under their prickly skirts.
If you could put a hedgehog highway sign above the hole any new people moving in would know what the hole is for, this could help with whichever method you choose.
Small wooden steps are attached to the other side of this gate, similar to a cat ladder. It's just under a foot drop down the step. The hedgehogs use it frequently.

 

The problem with a tunnel is that it would flood.

 

Must admit I thought the gravel board was higher.

 

Hello Pink678, it's nice to think about hedgehogs, but believe me, there is no reason to damage your fence.

As long as you have soil underneath the fence, a hedgehog will easily find its way and digs itself through to the other side.
If you have got hedgehogs in the area, then make sure that you have enough plants that attract slugs, snails (don't bin them in Spring time because they eat your new green on the plants) and earth worms. Then walk along the fences of your garden and you might find a passage dug by a small animal (don't try to fill it again, because it might have been done by a hedgehog).

 

Yes - if it's just a concrete gravel board @Pink678 , it shouldn't go too far below the soil surface, so you can certainly do a tunnel. If, as @Sheal says, there's a risk of it getting flooded and/or the soil filling back in, you can use bits of drain/downpipe - the curved sections, to slot into the gap you make. That tends to be more effective at keeping cats out - anything else [ie holes in the fence above the gravel boards ] they can easily get through, even when the holes are quite small. I speak from experience....
The other alternatives are to use clematis/rose pots pushed together with the bottoms cut out, or make a little concreted channel yourself so that there's less chance of the soil refilling.

 

Thank you everyone for your replies!
I found a spot in the corner where the gravel board is a bit lower because the ground comes up higher. There is still some height, but as hedgehogs can climb up quite easily, I'm thinking about cutting a 13x13cm hole above the gravel board there.
I uploaded a photo of the spot (pictures 029).
There is a wooden bit next to it without gravel board but I am not sure what is on the other side. If that part turns out to be just wood with nothing blocking it, then that spot would be even better.
The overall length of the fence is 12 panels. Is one hedgehog hole enough for those 12 panels, or is it worth making a second hole further down? The gravel board is higher there though (pictures 030).