Found a squirrel about a week ago. Guidance needed.

[MaxX]

Going on everything I've read on most websites, he's about 5-6 weeks, somewhere in that range. I found him on Wednesday, the 7th. His eyes opened on Sunday, the 10th. Today is the 14th, Thursday. So a little over a week, he's been in my care. He seems to be doing fine, his stools are firm, he's walking/crawling without much difficulty, and he's being kept warm, he's eating well, and he seems to be happy enough, but I'm not sure what exactly "thriving" would be considered, since this is my first baby squirrel. When I first found him, he seemed to have fallen down recently. He wasn't -too- skinny, and when I first picked him up, he squealed and chirpped. I didn't really have a choice about picking him up, because there was a cat nearby. The squirrel wasn't injured though, because the cat seemed to notice it the same time I did. I turned around and the cat was looking at something intently, and I saw a little fluffer so I picked him up before the cat could. :P He hasn't squealed or shown any signs of irritation since I first found him, so I guss he's accustomed to me. I've dubbed him Steve Wilkinson Ross.
Here's some of the issues I wanted to ask about/what I've been doing since I've found him.
The first guide I stumbled upon was this one (http://www.squirreltales.org/). I read that he was probably dehydrated, so since I couldn't get any pedialyte, I mixed up some of the home hydration fluid which the instructions were given for on that website.
"Choice #3: homemade rehydration fluid: 1 qt. Water, 1 tsp salt, 3 tsp sugar. "
I used that for about 4-5 hours until I was able to go to the store to get some pedialyte. I bought the kind they suggested and used that for about 24 hours without introducing formula, to get him hydrated. After that, I used the Esbilac milk replacement for puppies formula, first with a little bit of the formula, mixed with spring water, then gradually moving on to the full strength. I was using the full strength by Friday night. I fed Steve every four hours, even at night until Monday. Sunday night I let him just sleep through the night without giving him any formula until about 7am the next day.
So I've been feeding him every 4 to 4 1/2 hours except at 12am-7am on the full strength Puppy Esbilac formula.
Last night, however, one week after I found Steve I found what looked like a very legitimate website with alot of information (http://*****************/~jbsum/squirrel.html) and a frequently signed guest book (http://*****************/~jbsum/guestbook.html).
Basically, I was doing the opposite of everything it said to do, and according to that website, alot of squirrels died from Esbilac formula. The person recommended using Scalded milk with Vitamin. Everything I had read up till that point had said to never give any types of cow milk. According to this person, Esbilac was deadly, and the people who said to use it are just trying to get your baby squirrel to die.. I didn't know what to do. I had a panic attack. This coming from a person with a mile long website, and what seemed like general love for squirrels, and the comment, "The Scalded Milk Formula has proven to be a successful formula based on my 20 years of rehabbing more than 2,500 squirrels.".
If there had been any stores open, I probably would have gone to the store to get the Vitamin E and whole milk immediatly. Since there weren't, I emailed her, since she said she would respond quickly.

"Hi, I really need some help.
Recently, on the 6th of September, (I am emailing you at around 12am on the 14th), I found a baby squirrel in my back yard. I couldn't find a rehabber, so I decided to raise it by myself. Based on everything I've read online, the baby was about 4 weeks old. His eyes opened on Sunday, the 10th.

I've been following the instructions given on this link :http://www.squirreltales.org/Based on what I've read on your website, Esbilac is one of the worse things I can give him. What should I do? Is it still possible to switch to the Scalded Milk formula given on your web-page, or will my squirrel most likely die?

Please respond as soon as possible. Thank you for your time. "


Shortly after, I came upon this forum. And according to alot of people here, Esbilac is the best, and this person who was saying to use scalded milk is an idiot. I read she was an ex-rehabber and that she had no idea what she was talking about. I was really confused. I finally just decided to continue with Esbilac. Earlier today I received a reply from Clarissa,


"Hi!
Please do switch him over to Scalded Milk as quickly as possible. No gradual weaning necessary.

I'm just this morning going to post on my Guest Book a sad little story about a poor darling baby who was fed Esbilac and died the night before last from seizuring. I hope it will shock people into not paying attention to those other awful web pages that give such ignorant advice.

It's all politics out there with those other web pages -- their mortality rate with those commercial formulas is terrible, as you'll see from the section called Baby Squirrel Formula on my web page -- but they don't bother telling the public that since they don't want people to be successful.

Anytime I've taken in babies who've been fed those alien formulas, I always immediately give them
Scalded Milk but do add a good dollop of Dannon plain yogurt to their milk from that time on twice
a day since their intestinal flora have been messed up.

If you don't have the Vitamin E right now, don't worry about it, but when you do get it, get the liquid
kind, not the capsule form, since that's what you'll use later to put in the Nutballs.

Baby grays do like a titch of pureed baby banana (Heinz or Gerbers) in their milk, so if they're not
too keen about the unsweetened Scalded Milk, you might add just a titch of that to it for flavor.
Don't put either that or the yogurt in the main batch of milk you keep refrigerated since it'll only be
lost in there, but do put it in the part you warm up to feed twice a day.

I do encourage people to print it out since it's much easier to read in that form than it is off this machine.

People have told me they've had to read it over and over again, since there are things on there that
they've missed the first time and that they learn something new every time they read it. Also, some
things are appropriate now and others are later on when squirrels are older.

Hope this helps. Let me know. "


I really don't know what to do. According to all of you, she is wrong and mis-informed, but how could she have such a large number of successful raisings and releases yet still be out of touch with what's healthy. Anyway, to sum it up, that is my biggest concern.



Other questions I have are,
When I am feeding him, he sometimes opens and closes his mouth and goes into what seems like a trance, and then suddenly snaps out of it and once again becomes engaged in the syringe. Is anything wrong?

He wiggles alot, and I'm not sure if these are seizures or just natural baby squirrel behaviour, since I've never raised one before.

There is what looks like a pale blue blotch on his stomach, not very profound, and it doesn't really stand out, but is this just his stomach showing through his skin?

What exactly does an over-fed squirrel look like? To me, his stomach looks fat, but not too fat. He poops and pees fine, so I don't think there's any back-up.



I'm most likely going to have a lot more questions. Thanks in advance from me and Steve to everyone who can help.

[SQUIRRELMOM]

Esabilac is fine for now,, i would use fox valley.. don't let him aspirate.. getting to much milk at one time and blowing it out his nose.. it will go in the lungs and he will be sick. eyes opening at 5 weeks and he will start to chew on nuts (shelled of course) and cheerios and such. he don't need to be by hisself,, they get where they don't know what another squirrel is, and its not a good idea to release by hisself.. i would find a local rehabber in your area to teach you how to do the right thing,, its hard to explain sometimes. they eat every 4 hours not at night.. last feeding should be around 8-10 pm.. then feed again in the morn early.. they eat about 4 to 5 times aday. feel free to email me. i can help you find someone in your area. These guys don't make good pets,, some will bite and slap when they get teenagers.. the hormone's kick in.lol

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

Ok #1 you are doing wonderful stay on with the Esbillac, its a wonderful formula & that woman is full of uknowwhat.
Do not give milk under any circumstances.
That formula there we see you right thru there is no sense in spending more $ changing at this point, however go to your vet & get a 1cc syringe feed him very slowly because it is easy to aspirate their lungs & since you havent done this before thats what I suggest. The reason he is swallowing like that may be he's getting to much at once or thats just his way?:dono
If he is 5-6 weeks you may want to give him some peeled grapes, little bits of apple to get him started. Do you have him in a nice size cage this is the age where they will soon want a little more room to start moving around. Sounds like you are doing fine with him!

[Critter_Queen]

If he were having seizures, he would tremble, arch, squeeze his eyes shut, or eyes WIDE open, mouth gaping or closed very tight, feet fisted or rigidly extented. If he is eating, I doubt he is seizing.

You are feeding him the correct formula. Ask ANY vet (just grab the phone book and call a few) and they will tell you that cow's milk is ONLY for cows. It can actually leach calcium from human bones if consumed in high enough quantities... If you can find it, there was a thread on here that talks about the exact nutrient content (%) of the scaled milk vs Esbilac. Hands down, Esbilac will nurture more squirrels than scaled milk. Period. I feed all my squirrels Esbilac and the only ones that EVER die do so for reasons other than malnutrition or anything related to the food they are getting.

You should be giving him solid foods at this time in addition to the formula. Peeled grapes, peeled apple chunks, pears, leaf lettuce, dried or raw banana, a baby carrot, and definitely give him something hard to chew on. I give mine whole in-shell nuts. They can't usually get into 'em at that age, but they wear their teeth down on the shell and they have a lot of fun playing with it!

As far as that lady's website and guestbook, anyone can sign a guestbook as many times as they want under as many identities...I would not trust anyone who can't put you in DIRECT contact with at LEAST as many people (with her same success) as you find here supporting the feeding of Esbilac...know what I mean?

When you are feeding him and he does the trance thing, it's called a feeding seizure, but don't let the name scare you...it's not really a seizure. Every squirrel I've had does it too! They just get so into what they're doing they kinda space out, I think. :tilt It's ok. Just jiggle the nipple/syringe a little or stroke his head and he should remember what he was doing! :thumbsup

All my squirrels look fat in the tummy...but they aren't bloated. Bloated looks like it sounds. Bulging, kinda malformed looking, baby will be extremely uncomfortable and will usually complain. Here is a great resource for lots of that infomation: http://animaladvocates.us/squirrelmanual.pdf#search='Raising%20infant%20tree %20squirrels' This publication has a picture of a bloated baby's tummy on it...

Not sure about the blue blotch...maybe it's a bruise? I know my little Weezel had a bump on his noggin when he came to me as a pinky, it was raised, blue/purple/black and looked sore but didn't seem to bother him. (well other than he's blind on that side...musta hit a branch on his way down)

I LOVE the name you gave him. :thumbsup

:Welcome I hope we can help you raise a fine baby squirrel!

[island rehabber]

Two added thoughts:

If the "blue bruise" is sort of on the left of his tummy when you're looking down at him, I've seen that too, on all my pinkies and I'm sure it's an organ. (Snakegetters will probably be aghast at my total ignorance of squirrel anatomy -- whoops! LOL)

Secondly -- Fox Valley squirrel formula is very very good! The main reason I use Esbilac all the time is because I am not very well-organized and I often run out of formula quicker than I'd planned....you can run out and buy Esbilac at a good pet store but you must order Fox Valley online. If I had my brain in gear ahead of time I could do that but it's always a last minute thing for me. :shakehead Just wanted to say that both products are proven to be excellent for squirrel babies.

Keep up the great work!

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

Yes, from what everyone has written it must be a great product, I have wanted to get it before..problem is when we get squirrles that need formula we need it right away, there is no time for ordering!!

[rygel1hardt]

I order my Fox Valley way ahead and keep it in the freezer. I usually order at least two pounds of each at a time. They make a formula for newborn to three weeks and another formula for three weeks to weaning. Nick is great to work with and I usually get my order within three to five days. The order I just got in this week is good til Jan 2008 when kept in the freezer. I prefer Fox Valley and it does seem to have a higher acceptance rate in as far as any babies I have raised and it smells so good! I do keep Esbilac and one other formula on hand at all times just in case a baby would have an allergy to the protein or fat source and need to be on a different formula but so far this has never been needed and I have been rehabbing for more than five years now. Stacey



Yes, from what everyone has written it must be a great product, I have wanted to get it before..problem is when we get squirrles that need formula we need it right away, there is no time for ordering!!

[MaxX]

Thank you all very, very much for your help. I'm glad I found a place with lots of helpful people. You guys rock.
I'll start feeding him some solid foods on the next feeding. By the way, the guide I listed that I was following said to get "Science Diet Puppy Chow" and let him chew on it if he wants, which I got, and have been offering it several times, which he sometimes gnaws on, then loses interest. Should I discontinue letting him chew on it?

And thanks for the comment about his name, Critter Queen. It has special meaning for me. :P
Steve after the amazing naturalist Steve Irwin, one of the Top 5 people I wanted to meet in my life time, whose death I honestly couldn't believe really happened. I kept having like "I can't believe he really died" moments for like two days.
Wilkinson after Colm Wilkinson, one of the greatest broadway actors, he created the roles of Phantom from Phantom of the Opera, and Jean Valjean from Les Miserables, and several others.
Ross after one of my heroes, Bob Ross. Awesome painter, and thanks to him, I've always longed for a chance to raise a baby squirrel. Did any of you see him when he used to have those little critters on his painting show? One time it showed these two little squirrels sitting in what looked like a nest. As the camera zoomed out, you realised that they were actually sitting in Bob Ross's afro.

[Critter_Queen]

HA! I LOVE BOB ROSS!! Man, you are cool! LOL! :thumbsup I remember Bob's squirrel babies, too! Forgot all about that. :)

I was very dumbfounded about Steve Irwin's death as well. I, personally, was irritated by his extreme enthusiasm, but that doesn't mean I disliked him or didn't absolutely respect his love and drive for conservation and education... I watched a special on him the other night and bawled...told hubby, "I didn't even watch the guy...but MAN was he nice. What a loss to this world."

My mentor said that Science Diet used to be the best puppy food for squirrels but I guess they recently (last couple of years) changed the formulation of it and she said it's not as good now...she prefers Iams. I don't really know either way, but do what she suggests, cuz, well, she's my mentor! :D

Keep up the good work!

[Alaskan Squirrel Cam]

Thank you all very, very much for your help. I'm glad I found a place with lots of helpful people. You guys rock.
I'll start feeding him some solid foods on the next feeding. By the way, the guide I listed that I was following said to get "Science Diet Puppy Chow" and let him chew on it if he wants, which I got, and have been offering it several times, which he sometimes gnaws on, then loses interest. Should I discontinue letting him chew on it?

And thanks for the comment about his name, Critter Queen. It has special meaning for me. :P
Steve after the amazing naturalist Steve Irwin, one of the Top 5 people I wanted to meet in my life time, whose death I honestly couldn't believe really happened. I kept having like "I can't believe he really died" moments for like two days.
Wilkinson after Colm Wilkinson, one of the greatest broadway actors, he created the roles of Phantom from Phantom of the Opera, and Jean Valjean from Les Miserables, and several others.
Ross after one of my heroes, Bob Ross. Awesome painter, and thanks to him, I've always longed for a chance to raise a baby squirrel. Did any of you see him when he used to have those little critters on his painting show? One time it showed these two little squirrels sitting in what looked like a nest. As the camera zoomed out, you realised that they were actually sitting in Bob Ross's afro.

Bob Ross, was a First Sargent in the USAF stationed here in Alaska just down the road from us here in North Pole, at Eielson AFB. A very very nice man, and is missed by all who knew him. His mountain paintings were always a reminder to his stay here in the Great Land.

bob

http://www.thesquirrelcam.com

[island rehabber]

Wilkinson after Colm Wilkinson, one of the greatest broadway actors, he created the roles of Phantom from Phantom of the Opera, and Jean Valjean from Les Miserables, and several others.
.

:WelcomeYou are super-OK in my book, MaxX...not just for your appreciation of Steve Irwin and Bob Ross, two of my favorite people too who are gone from us now, but for the nod to Colm Wilkinson -- the most glorious pop voice of our age, in my humble amateur singer/opera lover's opinion! I saw him on stage the first week of LesMiz....I still get chills thinking of his performance of "Bring Him Home"....... no one could follow him after that. Your squirrel baby is truly well-named!
But I didn't know Bob Ross had baby squirrels! Just makes it all perfect, doesn't it?
:peace:)

[MaxX]

:WelcomeYou are super-OK in my book, MaxX...not just for your appreciation of Steve Irwin and Bob Ross, two of my favorite people too who are gone from us now, but for the nod to Colm Wilkinson -- the most glorious pop voice of our age, in my humble amateur singer/opera lover's opinion! I saw him on stage the first week of LesMiz....I still get chills thinking of his performance of "Bring Him Home"....... no one could follow him after that. Your squirrel baby is truly well-named!
But I didn't know Bob Ross had baby squirrels! Just makes it all perfect, doesn't it?
:peace:)


Awesome. Another Wilkinson fan. There seems to be so few these days.

[MaxX]

Sorry for the double post, just wanted to give an update on Steve.
He's been doing well, but when I got home tonight I saw that he had had some diarrhea. I'm not sure what caused this. Two days ago I started feeding him very little solid foods. Like 1/8th of a slice of a banana, trying to get him to chew on apples, offering peeled grapes and letting him eat one or two pieces of shelled walnut. When I got home, he was standing up and he looked right up at me, so he appears to be healthier and more active than ever. I have been feeding him 6-12 CCs each feeding, still ever 4 to 4 1/2 hours. I just got done feeding him his last meal for the night. I fed him 8 CCs and just two small pieces of peeled green seedless grapes.

So, my main question is, why the diarrhea? Is this a really bad sign?

[snakegetters]

Very, very bad things happen to squirrels that are given cow's milk. Look at the actual nutritional composition of squirrel milk (yes, it's been measured and studied) and the nutritional composition of cow's milk, and the numbers are very radically different.

Them's the hard science facts. Now what does your common sense tell you about what happens when you take a baby animal and give it food that is nothing like what it should be getting from Mom? Uh huh. Exactly. This is what happens: http://www.squirreltales.org/sq-pics.htm

There are no "politics" on the subject online, just one woman who has put up a web site with some fairly bizzare quasi-religious sounding stuff on it and insists that her way is the only right way despite a rather large pile of hard evidence to the contrary. From what I understand, she has lost her rehabber's license specifically because of this bizzare and harmful practice. I do not clearly understand what motivates her to continue spreading her "gospel", but it isn't healthy for squirrels at all.

Run the numbers for yourself:
Nutritional composition of grey squirrel milk https://kb.osu.edu/dspace/bitstream/1811/5665/1/V72N01_003.pdf

From http://www.ewildagain.org/pubs/sqnathistory.htm
"Juvenile squirrels that are still nursing require effective squirrel milk replacers (e.g., Esbilac and Multimilk, and Zoologic; manufactured by PetAg, Hampshire, IL). Product selection, formula mix, and feeding protocol should closely match the nutrient content and caloric energy provided by the mother animal during a 24 hour period. Caution should be used when using milk replacer formulas since a number of factors can effect the nutrient and caloric content of mother’s milk. Additionally, preparation of a milk replacer formula can effect the nutrient content. The nutritional content of commerical diets may change over time (Casey 2001 and b). Rehabilitators should check product labels or obtain the current nutritional analysis from the manufacturer, and consult with professional animal nutritionists when trying to match the nutrient composition of mother’s milk."

Some baby squirrels do die while seizing, but it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with Esbilac. Personally I'm using the Fox Valley squirrel milk replacer product because it is formulated by veterinary nutritionists specifically to meet the needs of baby squirrels, and it is our protocol at the zoo I work at to use species specific veterinary formulated diets in every instance they are available. It's also just a good standard of care.

Homemade formulas or commercial formulas for other species *can* be adequate if you tweak things around carefully to match the nutritional composition of the milk the animal should be getting from its mother. But that's a pain in the butt, and some homemade formulas really don't do the trick. Scalded milk, for instance. :eek:

[MaxX]

Okay, thanks. Yeah, I've already decided to stick with esbilac anyway, but still helpful comments. Any thoughts on the diarrhea, though?

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

well there are 2 things I would try add some baby rice cereal to the formula or give a little dannon vanilla yogurt.

[nutz4squirls]

The diahrea could be from eating fruit, the added sugars can result in lose stools and just starting to eat different foods could cause some diahrea also. If it becomes worse let us know. You really shouldn't be feeding him any dog food, many may disagree but the appropriate dry foods for squirrels would be a good quality rodent block, which is available in pet stores. Kaytee and L&M make one, preferably I prefer the Mazuri rodent block and Zupreem Primate diet. Both are nutrionally correct for squirrels, in many cases they tend to like the zupreem better. You should also offer your squirrel the following: kale, brocolli, sweet potatoe, apple, a small piece of fresh ear corn (which by the way, corn will also result in loose stools but it gets them nibbling, just don't go crazy with it). squashes are also good, and other fruits and veggies. You should also offer him some hard shelled nuts out of the shell, just a couple a day will do other wise he won't eat the other good stuff. Stay away from peanuts and sunflower seeds.
Here is a link to squirrel care on my site, though the site your were on is excellent. Not Clarissas site! As far as formula goes, Esbilac, zoologic 33/40 or Fox Valley are all appropriate for squirrels. I personally use the esbilac or 33/40 but I know many people who use Fox Valley and are happy with the results. I would not change formulas mid stream. You should keep him on the Esbilac because their is a slight difference in all three formulas, a change now will only make his diahrea worse. I do carry the above products except the Fox Valley but you may be able to purchase these products locally depending on where you live.

Here is the link for baby squirrel care, also on this link you can search for a rehabber in your area. I do recommend getting him to a rehabber, he should be raised with other squirrels or he will have a hard time socializing in the wild world.
http://www.squirrelsandmore.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=category.display&category_id=1498
Nutz

[MaxX]

Okay, thanks for the advice.

Now, for the Mazuri Rodent Block, the one listed on that site, does it have to specifically be that one? Because I'd rather not wait for it to ship if I didn't have to.
Petsmart has these available and I was wondering if they were similar or adequate to be fed to squirrels.

MazuriŽ Hamster & Gerbil Diet
http://www.petsmart.com/media/ps/images/products/detail/standard/July04/6703_39d73.jpg
Mazuri Ferret Diet
http://www.petsmart.com/media/ps/images/products/detail/standard/July04/6702_39d71.jpg
Mazuri Chinchilla Diet
http://www.petsmart.com/media/ps/images/products/detail/standard/July04/6706_39d77.jpg

[Critter_Queen]

The top pic most resembles the rodent block I use. Large clylinder-shaped pellets. Approx size of each block is 1/2" x 2/3" or so. Basically what's on the squirrelsandmore site...so it should work.

Hmmm, I'm going to ask my mentor about the puppy food now that she says that...I guess I never thought twice about it...

[Critter_Queen]

My mentor said that we could leave out the puppy food as long as they are eating the rodent block... Good to know! She said the reason she had me doing it for the two squirrels I took in last fall is because the rehabber that had them before me was feeding them commercial squirrel mix and they wouldn't touch much of anything else...specially not the rodent block...

Sorry for the confusion!!

[MaxX]

Okay, I bought this (http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=84552444177 7055&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302032118&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023695&bmUID=1158730856538&itemNo=9&Ntt=ferret+cage&In=All&previousText=ferret+cage&N=2) for him today. He was beginning to get rowdy and I was afraid he would jump out of his former temporary home, a heated box with blankets. :P There was no top, so with the way he's growing and becoming active, I decide it'd be a good idea to go ahead and start introducing him to his new living quarters. I haven't set up all the layers yet, seeing as he's still fairly small. I'll give that a week or two longer. He didn't seem to be scared or anything, I let him in there once I had set it all up and he seemed right at home. Eventually, when he gets bigger, I'll take out all the crap that comes with the cage (the different levels) and stick tree branches in there instead.
An update on his food. His poo has gotten solid, so tomorrow I'm going to start offering the shelled walnuts, apple, and banana again. I'll also try some baby carrots and leaf lettuce. Also, any other thoughts on the different type of rodent chow I've listed?
Thanks in advance!

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

Wow what a beautiful new home , I am sure he will enjoy every minute of scampering he does in there!

[MaxX]

Just today it seems like he's jumped in activity by 400%. He's growing up so fast, hah. He's not eating very many solid foods.. He only seems to show interest in partly chewing on walnuts, then dropping them, and he also likes to eat little bits of banana. No interest in lettuce, carrot or apple, and I'm worried to give him grapes now. I gave him a very small piece and he seemed to be choking on it for several minutes. I could see it in the back of his mouth, and I was worried he was going to choke himself. He finally spit it out.. So yeah. I dunno if I should give him any more bits of peeled grapes.. Either that or I should just hold it and let him chew on it. Any thoughts?

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

oh no ..no more grapes for him mine almost choked to death on a raisin.

[island rehabber]

MaxX I have the same ferret cage -- it's great. Because it comes apart, you can re-configure it any way you choose as well -- make it half the size when the squirrels are small so they don't fall too far from the top, then enlarge it later. If yours comes with those plastic clips to hold the pieces together, you might want to reinforce with tie wraps as well....10-wk-old squirrels can bite right thru those clippy things and that's how my Percy made his Great Escape last spring. I took all the plastic shelves out except one because I thought it would be handy to put the food bowls on. But, all they would do was pee on it and the pee just sloshed around the shelf all day.....eeewwww! You're right -- take 'em out. :D

[MaxX]

MaxX I have the same ferret cage -- it's great. Because it comes apart, you can re-configure it any way you choose as well -- make it half the size when the squirrels are small so they don't fall too far from the top, then enlarge it later. If yours comes with those plastic clips to hold the pieces together, you might want to reinforce with tie wraps as well....10-wk-old squirrels can bite right thru those clippy things and that's how my Percy made his Great Escape last spring. I took all the plastic shelves out except one because I thought it would be handy to put the food bowls on. But, all they would do was pee on it and the pee just sloshed around the shelf all day.....eeewwww! You're right -- take 'em out. :D

Hah, okay.
Actually about the tie-wraps, do you mean the things that come tied around bread and stuff like that? If so, I actually have them holding the door in place right now, seeing as I don't want the door to start scaring him. I'll probably start actually closing it when he's a bit older and get him used to the noise then.
Now, he's hardly eating any solid foods. I really don't know how much I should feed him, when to feed him solid foods, etc. I don't want to give him too much too quickly.

[Secret Squirrel]

Hah, okay.
Actually about the tie-wraps, do you mean the things that come tied around bread and stuff like that? If so, I actually have them holding the door in place right now, seeing as I don't want the door to start scaring him. I'll probably start actually closing it when he's a bit older and get him used to the noise then.
Now, he's hardly eating any solid foods. I really don't know how much I should feed him, when to feed him solid foods, etc. I don't want to give him too much too quickly.

Tywraps also know as cable tie, you can get them at wal-mart, radio shack, or any hardware store...Lowes, Home Depot. They come in different colors, and all typs if widths and lenghts.

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

Maxx, I released my first set of squirrles at 13 weeks. Knowing what I know now, that way too early. By the looks of your guy hes smaller than mine. Dont be in a rush keep him around a bit & enjoy him.
He can look forward to going out in the day, & being safe in his home at night. He will feel more secure! And so will you knowing he can fend for himself.

[MaxX]

Maxx, I released my first set of squirrles at 13 weeks. Knowing what I know now, that way too early. By the looks of your guy hes smaller than mine. Dont be in a rush keep him around a bit & enjoy him.
He can look forward to going out in the day, & being safe in his home at night. He will feel more secure! And so will you knowing he can fend for himself.

Oh, I think you musta misunderstood about the cage. It's in my room currently. :P Not outside. Don't worry. I'm certainly not gonna release'em too soon. Heh.

Oh, those tie-wraps. Hah. Okay, I'll pick some up.

[MaxX]

Grr.

He's refusing all but a little bit of the formula I'm trying to give him, and the only thing he's eating right now is shelled pecan halves.
I've been putting leaf lettuce, apple, carrots, cheerios, banana and sweet potato in his cage to see if he'll eat any. He's not eating a whole lot of any of those, actually, hardly any. The main things he's really showing any interest in are the pecan halves, (He just chews those things to bits constantly), little tiny bit of banana, some cherrios, tiny bits of carrot, he only picks up the lettuce and just puts it in his mouth, doesn't seem to think much of it. And he hasn't really touched any apple.
One thing I haven't been feeding him the past few days is avacado, which I'm about to go give him some right now. But my main concern is his not eating any of the formula, and if he does it's only like 2-3 ccs. He's been doing this since this afternoon.
I've been trying to feed him more every 2 or so hours. Should I start giving him water instead, or keep trying to feed him the formula? He spazzes alot and runs all over my arms and back when I try to give it to him, but I have no idea why. Any help?