Baby flying squirrel won't drink water

[Buddy'sMom]

He's ADORABLE!! I'm afraid that's the only judgment I can make as I don't have enough knowledge of flyers to know one age from another I know others will be along and take a look and let you know better how old he is and what he should be eating.

[muffinsquirrel]

From the photos, and what you have said about him, I would guess around 7 or 8 weeks or so. He would probably be better off if you could get him to accept Esbilac - regardless of what HE may think, he is still a baby! The Esbilac will make sure he gets the correct nutrition that he needs. Try feeding him with a 1cc syringe (no needle, of course) with a small nipple if possible. Some of them will take it from the syringe without a nipple, often just licking it off the end rather than actually sucking. Or he may lap it from a VERY shallow dish, or lick it off your finger.

Seeds are not very good for him. Give him pieces of peeled apple, sweet potato, broccoli, peeled grapes (make sure to cut them in half and remove the 'stem' extension that goes down the middle of them), watermelon, sugar snap peas, etc. Yogurt is also very good for them - I usually feed Dannon LaCreme vanilla or strawberry, but you can use any good brand as long as it has the live, active culture and DOES NOT contain any artificial sweetener. Don't get the fat-free or low fat, either. You can also start giving him pieces of pecans - that's one of their favorites.....just not too many, or he won't eat anything else! You can put a water bottle in the cage with him, and/or a small dish of water. If you use a dish, put some marbles or pebbles in it so that he can't drown, but can still easily get the water.

Now is the time to get in the habit of making sure the toilet seat is kept down, and there are no containers of water that he can get into. Drowning is the number one cause of pet flyer deaths.

Since he is still young, he will sleep a lot, and will not care if it is daytime or nightime. As he gets older he will become more nocturnal. Carrying him around in a pocket, or inside your shirt is good, as it will make him bond more closely with you.

Be sure to have some twigs and in-shell nuts (pecans, hazel nuts, walnuts) in his cage for him to chew on. He probably won't get into the nuts yet, but they are good practice, and will help keep his teeth trimmed.

Congratulations! You are now a HOF. (Human Owned by Flyers) Your new owner will have you trained very quickly! Check out the NFSA board (address below my signature) for more flyer information than you ever imagined existed!
I post as Judy or Judy C. on NFSA.

muffinsquirrel

[Blue Fantasy]

Okay, I'm going to Walmart tomorrow and I will pick up some formula! Does it have to be that brand, or will any puppy formula do? I ask because our local Walmart has a way of not carrying what you'd think they would... I'll write down the other fruits to get him. We only gave him seeds because another site said that flying squirrels could eat like cockatiel seed. =/

We can't let him have the run of the house because we have a cat inside with some kittens, as well as a miniature pinscher who might think he's a toy. He does get to run around on the couch and curtains though.

A few more questions if it's alright. When should we expect him to start gliding? Will he be clever enough to avoid the ceiling fan, or should we turn it off when he's out? Also do we need a permit to own a flying squirrel in Florida??

When the little boy of the person who cut down the tree brought him to my mother-in-law, he said, "Ms Edith, can you take care of this flying squirrel? He lost his wings." ^-^

[Abacat]

Esbilac is the closest to Momma's milk for squirrels. The powdered is less wasteful as the liquid/premixed one tends to spoil quickly, I don't know the exact length of time as I always use the powdered. I think it's within a few days... You'll have to start slowly working him up to the full formula strength, do you know how long he's been away from mom ?

Other brands really don't have all the necessary fat, nutrient amounts that they need...

Muffinsquirrel is very knowledgeable about flyers, I would try to do whatever she suggests for your baby.

I would most definitely turn off the ceiling fan if he's left out. Make sure to keep any other pets you have away from him/her. Sorry, but I don't know the answer to your other questions...

Congratulations, what a cutie!
Welcome to TSB!

[cr8zyanimalgirl]

You can find a lot of information on the www.nfsa.us website. Good luck. And he should start gliding about 10-12 weeks.

[muffinsquirrel]

I very seriously doubt that Walmart will carry Esbilac. Try pet stores, feed stores, and vets. And do try to get the powdered form.

Keep the ceiling fan OFF, the toilet seat CLOSED, and the other animals AWAY. Flyers are unbelievably fast, and can make it to an 'off limits' area in a flash!

So far as I know, you do not need a permit to own a flyer in Florida.

Please go to NFSA and do a lot of reading up on flyers there. They have a huge amount of information there.

muffinsquirrel

[philomycus]

Where in "North FL" are you?? I'm in Jax. He needs that puppy milk. Fruits also have a good water content so he might not drink staright water yet. If he gets too dehydrated, he would need pedialyte.