How to Draw a Hedgehog for Kids header graphic

As the nights start drawing in and the garden fills with crunchy leaves, hedgehogs are busy snuffling about looking for a cosy spot to spend the winter. There's something brilliant about their spiky, round little shape — it makes them one of the most fun British animals to draw, and a great one for beginners because those spikes hide a lot of small mistakes!

At Chunky Badger, every animal in our books is broken down using our 6 Simple Steps method — starting with basic shapes and building up to a finished, coloured drawing. No reading required, so children can follow along completely independently (perfect for ages 4–9). Here's how to draw a hedgehog for kids, step by step.

What You'll Need

  • ✏️ A pencil
  • 🧹 An eraser
  • ✏️ A sharpener
  • 🎨 Coloured pencils or felt tips (browns, greys, and a peachy pink for the face)
How to draw a hedgehog step by step — 6 steps from the Chunky Badger British Animals book
The 6 Simple Steps from our Learn to Draw: British Animals book 🦔

How to Draw a Hedgehog in 6 Simple Steps

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Step 1: Draw the Body

Start with a big, rounded oval lying on its side — a bit like a chunky rugby ball. This will be the hedgehog's spiky back and body, so don't worry about making it perfectly neat.

Keep your pencil strokes light to begin with — it's easy to erase and adjust!
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Step 2: Add the Face

At the front of the oval, draw a small triangle-ish shape pointing outwards for the hedgehog's snout. This gives your hedgehog its cute, pointy little face.

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Step 3: Add the Legs and Feet

Draw four short, stubby legs peeking out from underneath the body, with tiny oval feet at the bottom. Hedgehog legs are quite small compared to their round bodies, so keep them short and simple.

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Step 4: Draw the Ears and Nose

Add two small rounded ears on top of the head, and a little circle at the tip of the snout for the nose. Two small dot eyes go just above the snout.

Leave the eyes as simple dots for now — you can make them shine later with a tiny white highlight.
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Step 5: Add the Spikes

This is the fun part! Fill the top of the body with lots of short, spiky lines pointing outwards in all directions. Don't aim for perfectly straight lines — real hedgehog spikes are wonderfully messy, so wobbly lines look even better.

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Step 6: Colour Your Hedgehog

Colour the spikes in shades of brown and grey, mixing the two for a natural, textured look. The face, tummy, and feet can be a soft peachy-brown or cream. Add a black nose and two dark eyes with a tiny white dot for sparkle.

Colouring Guide

  • Spikes: mid-brown and grey, blended together
  • Face and tummy: soft peach or light brown
  • Nose: black
  • Feet: light brown or grey
Spikes: mid-brown & grey
Face & tummy: soft peach or light brown
Nose: black
Feet: light brown or grey

Well Done, Little Artist! 🎉

Well Done, Little Artist! 🎉 You've just drawn one of Britain's best-loved garden visitors. Try drawing your hedgehog again, but this time curled up in a tight ball — perfect for a chilly autumn day!

Want to explore more drawing tutorials? Check out our guide on How to Draw a Fox for Kids!

Learn to Draw: British Animals

Loved drawing a hedgehog? Our British Animals book has 45+ more homegrown favourites — from foxes to red squirrels — all broken down into the same easy 6-step method.

🛒 Get the Book on Amazon

Or grab our FREE 5-day drawing pack — 5 British animals delivered to your inbox, one per day. Completely free!