Prickles...

Jim is very good at sniffing out hedgehogs on our evening walk . Luckily they curl up in a ball before he can do any harm, but he still fusses and worries at them until I drag him away. After a while, when the threat is gone they unfurl and go on their way.

People can have prickles, and if they feel threatened they retreat behind their armour. As long as they're being prodded and picked at, their armour will stay up. Perhaps if we give them space and stop prodding at them, the defences will slowly come down.

BTW hedgehogs are declining - if you want to help go to http://www.hedgehogstreet.org/