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Thread: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

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    squirrelman Guest

    Question How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    My wife and I found three flying squirrels this week. They are the cutest things we ever saw. How do you tell the males from the females?

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    + =

    "Talking trees. What do trees have to talk about, hmm... except the consistency of squirrel droppings?"
    -Gimli, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

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    squirrelman Guest

    Question Criteria to sell florida flying squirrels

    Does anyone know how much a flying squirrel is worth in Florida and what is the criteria to sell them?

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Welcome to TSB! How did you come to find your newest friends? Do you plan to raise & release them or would you like some assistance finding someone in your area that has experience with flying squirrels? We have a lot of rehabbers & volunteers in Florida who would be more than happy to help you out if you're not sure that it's a task that you want to take on. (Myself included.)

    A few questions for you...
    1) Do you know how old these babies are? Are their eyes closed or open?
    2) What are you feeding them?

    On another note, I have no idea what flying squirrels sell for in Florida, but most flyers that are sold as pets have been bred in captivity & have been hand-raised from almost birth. In my opinion (please, don't feel that I'm criticizing you in any way), a wild born animal should be returned to the wild if possible.

    Please, feel free to ask any questions that you have. There are a lot of members with a lot of knowledge just waiting to help you in any way.
    Shanon, Squammy to...




  5. #5
    squirrelman Guest

    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Quote Originally Posted by Legomom
    Welcome to TSB! How did you come to find your newest friends? Do you plan to raise & release them or would you like some assistance finding someone in your area that has experience with flying squirrels? We have a lot of rehabbers & volunteers in Florida who would be more than happy to help you out if you're not sure that it's a task that you want to take on. (Myself included.)

    A few questions for you...
    1) Do you know how old these babies are? Are their eyes closed or open?
    2) What are you feeding them?

    On another note, I have no idea what flying squirrels sell for in Florida, but most flyers that are sold as pets have been bred in captivity & have been hand-raised from almost birth. In my opinion (please, don't feel that I'm criticizing you in any way), a wild born animal should be returned to the wild if possible.

    Please, feel free to ask any questions that you have. There are a lot of members with a lot of knowledge just waiting to help you in any way.
    We have a regular tree squirrel pet squirrel that we raised from a baby. It hopped up to me in the driveway as a baby and jumped on my leg (animals seem to come to me when in trouble, happened before with other animals). She was so young she had no fear of me and jumped right on my thigh and looked up at me with her big innocent eyes. Mama must have died or it must have fell out of the nest. I don't know. I put it in my shirt pocket and we have had "Pearl" for two years now. She lives in a rabbit cage on our back porch. I take her out regularly and she runs around me like I'm a tree and sits on my shoulder like a parrot while she eats a peanut. She is a big fat happy squirrel now who has always lived in her rabbit cage. Sometimes she climbs off me and runs around the porch, but the cage and porch is her home and she always comes back to me and I put her in her cage again to protect her from the two hawks, one coyote, one fox and one raccoon we have as predators out here. A big owl flew in and took a half grown cat right off our porch! So we have a few predators out here in the country where I live and I have to make sure Pearl is safe. Here's a pic taken when Pearl was about 6 months old sitting on my shoulder......


    Here's a link to TWO PAGES of pics of Pearl taken when she was much younger than the fat squirrel she is now lol. The last three pics of me wearing my leather jacket with her on my leg is the day she came to me.
    http://good-times.webshots.com/album...IwYmyo?start=0

    The last several days late at night I noticed what I thought was another regular baby tree squirrel attracted to the food in Pearl's cage. It came up only at night when Pearl was asleep in her rags. It climbed on the wall and was all around the outside of Pearl's cage. I thought it would be nice for Pearl to have a companion and I tried to catch it with a crab net. That didn't work cause it was so small that it crawled right out through the holes in the net. I rigged up a box with a stick holding it up with a string attached to the stick and put crackers and peanuts under it. Originally I thought that it was a baby tree squirrel, but when I tried to catch it in a net, it jumped off the side of the house and flew about 20 ft! That and its big eyes clued me that it wasn't a regular squirrel and I looked it up on the net and sure enough it was a flying squirrel.

    The box trap worked like a charm and I captured it. Then TWO MORE of them came out and I captured them too. I have them (all three) in a big plastic contained with air holes in it. Feeding them water, sunflower seeds, peanuts and crackers. I don't know their ages or sex. Their eyes are very big and open. A pet store guy told me not to put them in with my regular tree squirrel Pearl. He said Pearl would kill them. So there goes my idea for having them as companions for Pearl.

    They are soooo cute! I am torn between letting them go, or selling them to someone that would give them a good home.

    Now that I know they can't mix in with Pearl, I don't want to have to deal with separate cages. I read that in rare cases they have given humans typhus and rabies. One bit me on the finger when I was taking him out of the capture box to put him in the plastic container, but he didn't break my skin. Just pinched me good.

    I was thinking of releasing them tonight pending suggestions from this forum.

    Here's a few pics of the three flying squirrels that I took tonight of them in the plastic container.......








    Thanks very much!


    .

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    That was a wonderful thing that you did, saving Pearl. If you don't mind me asking, how much time does she spend in the rabbit cage & what is the size?

    As for the flyers, they look to be at least juveniles & past the age of bonding easily if you were to sell them. My suggestion...release them back to your yard & set them free. Set up a feeder & enjoy the natural activities of these amazingly smart & beautiful furry creatures. You might be surprised by how many visitors you have since flyers do live in communities.

    Keeping a flyer as a pet is a huge responsibility in the best situation. One member & hobby breeder sums it up perfectly here. http://www.thesquirrelboard.com/foru...ad.php?t=15969

    As for finding a 'friend' for Pearl, I'd suggest just enjoying her as she is. Bringing in another squirrel at her age could be a bigger conflict than you realize. She may feel it is a threat to her territory. Some members have gotten pet rabbits or guinea pigs & they have done well with their pet squirrels.

    We have another member out in TX who posts about his night time visitors pretty regularly. http://www.thesquirrelboard.com/foru...ad.php?t=16345

    I hope all of this helps & I hope to hear very soon about the beautiful night visitors that you have!
    Shanon, Squammy to...




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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Oh yes...please release these babies back to where they came from...that will be an early Christmas gift for them and for me....
    Good Luck with little Pearl she is a cutie....

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    squirrelsrule&bunniestoo is offline Licensed rehabber specializing in squirrels and bunnies, Ohio
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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    I agree, those babies are older and ready to be on their own. They look healthy too .


    The chances of a squirrel having rabies are very very small. To get rabies they would have to be attacked by a rabid animal and survive, which is not likely, especially for flyers.
    SQUIRRELS RULE AND BUNNIES TOO!

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Typhus is not really a problem unless you live in an attic that has been inhabited by a large colony of flyers that have lived there for years. Prolonged exposure to dust from cleaning poop and bedding is where the danger is.

    Feeding them water, sunflower seeds, peanuts and crackers.
    Well, the water is right, anyhow. Other than that, you would really have to work hard to find a worse diet for flyers! Check out our nutrition thread on here - it will give you a good list of what you need to feed them. They often will like yogurt - Dannon LaCreme vanilla if you can find it, Dannon Natural Vanilla if you can't. They also like mushrooms. Try kale, sugar snap peas, broccoli, sweet potato, tomatos, etc., all raw. Cut it into pieces about the size of a quarter. They love pecans (in shell, to keep their teeth trimmed) and acorns. But like kids with candy, you have to limit the amount of nuts you give them.

    The best thing you can do with the flyers is release them back into your yard, put up a feeder for them, and enjoy watching them. Flyers trapped from the wild do not make good pets, and they take a long term commitment in both time and money - they can live 15 years or more. It would be very wrong - for both the new owner and the flyer - to sell someone a wild animal as a pet. I hope you decide to release them.

    Ask all the questions you need to - there are a lot of people on here willing to help.

    muffinsquirrel
    The Southeast Texas Acorn Academy

    Already we have hickory nuts, black walnuts, pecan nuts, peanuts, hazel nuts, oak nuts, beech nuts, chestnuts.......and now you're here!


    http://www.nfsa.us/phpBB2/index.php

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    My vote is with the rest...Please release those flyers back into the world they know...
    To all my babies past and present..
    Thank you for showing me how to love
    and be loved unconditionally....
    RIP Timothy

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Just checking to see if the babies like there freedom...

    I know that you are most likely going to do what you want anyway...we usually do, but if you wanted an honest opinion...you have come to the right place. These little ones were out enjoying their freedom and their life. You took that away from them. They sustained themselves along with help from their mama...they don't need help or intervention.
    Catching a healthy wild animal and caging it for our pleasure is not a rescue...releasing them would be.

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    I agree...they look too old to be able to bond to people. They'd do very well on their own if released back into the yard where they came from.
    + =

    "Talking trees. What do trees have to talk about, hmm... except the consistency of squirrel droppings?"
    -Gimli, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Quote Originally Posted by Nancy in New York
    Just checking to see if the babies like there freedom...

    I know that you are most likely going to do what you want anyway...we usually do, but if you wanted an honest opinion...you have come to the right place. These little ones were out enjoying their freedom and their life. You took that away from them. They sustained themselves along with help from their mama...they don't need help or intervention.
    Catching a healthy wild animal and caging it for our pleasure is not a rescue...releasing them would be.

    (Did I actually write there instead of their???) Oh no!!! ...

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Hey, Squirrelman...Looking forward to seeing your feeder set-up for the flyers once you've released them! I bet there are more hanging around, too.

    Hopefully you take to heart what's been said in the above posts regarding release and diet and all. Peeps here care deeply for squirrels, want the best for them, and wish to see them where they belong---in nature, in the trees. If a squirrel is injured or needs help in some way, we do our best to help out and then if and when the fuzzy is capable of making it on their own they are released back into the home they know and love best. You sound like a good man, I bet you understand. I can definitely understand the temptation to keep those gorgeous little fuzzballs in your hands! They are so fleepin' cuuuuuute!

    That's so cute how Pearl will sit on your shoulder like a little fuzzy parrot.
    Got any more Pearl Pictures to share? We love pictures here!! And we love squirrels even more!! So if you got more pictures of squirrels, whaddya waiting for?? Post 'em, asap!

    (Nancy...will forgive your spelling...this time. But watch it, lady... You're spelling on thin ice.)

  15. #15
    squirrelman Guest

    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Okay, here is what I am doing for the flyers. The other day while at the scrap metal shop where I get material for some of my inventions, I saw this really neat STAINLESS STEEL castle. It was pretty big. I thought about getting it for Pearl to sleep in but I realized it was too big to put inside her cage. That was BEFORE I found out about and captured the flying squirrels. Today I went back to the scrap metal shop and the castle was still there. So I bought it. As serendipity would have it, there was also a rabbit cage there the same exact size as Pearl's cage. I had been looking for a good deal on another identical size rabbit cage to attach to her existing cage so she will have TWICE the space. I will simply cut out the top of this new cage and the bottom of her old cage and attach them together with chicken coop clip rings that they sell with the tool at the feed store for about $12.00
    I set the white cage on top of her old cage just to take some pics, but the white one will go on the bottom because it has a neat bottom tray that slides out for convenience of cleaning. Not a bad cage for $5.00!


    The scrap guy only charged me $5.00 for the white rabbit cage and $35.00 for the stainless steel castle, but the castle would have cost MUCH MUCH more if bought in a shop. It is PERFECT for the flying squirrels. They can't knaw or eat it and it won't rust. Plus the doors and windows are really small but just perfect for their size to get into without anything else being able to get in. A perfect little flying squirrel's nest! I just need to clean it up a bit and straighten out a few bends that are on the top and lower the drawbridge a bit and push the doors behind the drawbridge open a little further so I can get rags and feed inside. Ain't it cute? No time today but tomorrow I am going to finish modifying it and put rags and feed inside it and then I am going to one by one put the flying squirrels inside it and tape all the windows and doors shut except for the one that I put them in. Then when they have settled down and gotten used to the security of being inside it with warm rags and plenty of feed, THEN I am going to take the tape off the doors and windows so they can get out. But by then I am hoping they will remember there is warm rags and food in there and come back and make it their nest. The castle will sit on top of Pearl's double stack rabbit cage when it is all finished.

    Here's a few pics. Enjoy and drool over my new stainless steel castle squirrel nest Lol.









    Oh yes, for whoever asked to see more pics of Pearl my pet tree squirrel, see my earlier above post with the pics. It has links for you to click on that will take you to more pics AND VIDEOS of Pearl.

    Squirrelman








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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    If you have to put tape on the windows and doors please make sure that they don't stick to it...
    This just breaks my heart...do you really think these little creatures of God will be happier in a stainless steel castle...or back in nature...
    To me this is purely for your enjoyment and you aren't thinking about them...so very sad...
    God...watch over these poor babies...

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Squirrelman...that's a pretty cool castle alright....but it's best if you let the flying squirrels go as soon as possible. That castle isn't big enough for one, let alone three. And if you close it all up, they won't have air...They need air... And it looks like it could be sharp around the edges...Not safe for little furry critters.

    Please, do what's best for the squirrels... Keeping them for any time in a small, dark metal box isn't going to make them want to come back to it for treats....If you release them now and set up a feeder, you'll have much better luck getting them to come around. Keep some nuts and rags in that castle, if you want, and maybe they'll sneak into it at night for treats ...but don't force them to stay in there. They need to be released.

    It's great that you are making Pearl's cage bigger ...but unfortunately her cage isn't big enough even with the extra cage added. Squirrels need A LOT of room to be healthy and happy....they need to climb, to play, to run around, to hide...Pearl needs more room, some branches, a nestbox inside the cage, some toys, and lots more space to be truly happy.

    You did a good job raising her from a baby! Have you ever considered releasing her, as well as the flyers? I'm sure we could hook you up with an excellent rehabber who could help you with a soft release so Pearl, too, can get back to the trees. Let us know what you think!

    Thanks for the reminder that there is a link with more pics and video...I'll go check it out!

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    I have never seen a more inappropriate, dangerous and uninviting "habitat" for wild creatures. Bad enough you have kidnapped them from the wild, but now you imprison them in a metal box? Are you that clueless, squirrelman, or are you playing us for fools?

    I am going to finish modifying it and put rags and feed inside it and then I am going to one by one put the flying squirrels inside it and tape all the windows and doors shut except for the one that I put them in. Then when they have settled down and gotten used to the security of being inside it with warm rags and plenty of feed, THEN I am going to take the tape off the doors and windows so they can get out. But by then I am hoping they will remember there is warm rags and food in there and come back and make it their nest
    .

    In my opinion you are engaging in Cruelty to Animals and it is very lucky you are NOT in my region and subject to New York cruelty laws. I would make that call SO fast......
    Island Rehabber
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    You can't afford a pet.
    NEGLECT IS ABUSE.

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    '...and the greatest of these, is Love. '

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Quote Originally Posted by island rehabber
    I have never seen a more inappropriate, dangerous and uninviting "habitat" for wild creatures. Bad enough you have kidnapped them from the wild, but now you imprison them in a metal box? Are you that clueless, squirrelman, or are you playing us for fools?

    .

    In my opinion you are engaging in Cruelty to Animals and it is very lucky you are NOT in my region and subject to New York cruelty laws. I would make that call SO fast......

    IR you are my hero!!!!!!!!

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    Default Re: How do you determine the sex of flying squirrels?

    Oh MY GOSH!!!!!!! How could you think of caging three wild creatures in a dark, metal dungeon!!!????? You profess to love squirrels and your Pearl.....how can you even CONSIDER THIS????????? Please I pray to GOD you reconsider and let these wild creatures go. Do not punish them for having the misfortune to be curious and come near your home!!!!!!!!!!!

    This is the main reason why I can hardly bare to read posts here anymore....why would you something so CRUEL?!??!?!? These are healthy, wild creatures who deserve to be free.....

    Oh, I am crying.........anyone....is there anything we can DO?!?!?!?!?!?!?

    "Animals are such agreeable friends...
    They ask no questions, they pass no criticisms."

    ~ George Elliot


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