Joelle
04-13-2010, 10:03 PM
Hello everyone! I'm new to the board, though I've been reading it for a few days now. There's a wealth of information on here that I'm grateful for!
I live on Long Island, in NY and all my life have been in love with rodents. I've had everything from mice to hamsters to gerbils to sugar gliders (yes I know they're technically marsupials!) I always wanted to become a vet when I was younger, but instead found myself in school for photography (however my love for animals has never diminished!)
My friend is a vet tech at a local hospital and someone dropped two baby orphaned squirrels on their door step last week. They were both in sad shape, and one had to be put down because he had a broken leg. She called me and asked if I'd mind taking care of the other, hoping that he may pull through, and I obliged. He is the cutest little thing I've ever seen! I named him Otis for the time being, and I believe he is about five weeks old. Fully furred, eyes open, bottom teeth, and a recent break in the top teeth, his tail curves ever so slightly... and I don't think he's far off from being able to sit up on his own! I've had him in a 10 gallon tank with blankets, a reptile heating pad underneath the tank and I've been feeding him 3-6cc of ebsilac with a syringe every 4 hours. I introduced him to a bit of shelled sunflower seeds, granola, and flowers off some of my broccoli robe that I had for dinner (un-cooked of course!). This little guy is doing WAY better than when I got him, though he still has the runs a bit. I read that I should cut the ebsilac with more water and feed him a bit less. Is there anything else that may help?
Now a more tricky question... aside from the advice given to me from my friend (who is a vet tech, but doesn't work with exotic animals), I contacted my aunt in California who works with many animals. She once rehabbed a raccoon that is still coming into the house every morning with the dogs! She told me that I may be able to get a current rehabber to allow me to work under their license / permit via satellite. It seemed like a wonderful idea, being that I could continue to help Otis, as well as take in other small mammals who may be in need to help. However, I can't seem to find ANY information about this online, and I don't know where to start. I keep ending up back here http://www.nyswrc.org/rehabbers.html which lists current rehabbers, or here http://www.dec.ny.gov/ - where it seems easier to find a license to kill animals than to help them, ironic, isn't it? I imagine this would be a long process to get licensed myself, but in the interim is there anything I can do to continue to help my new buddy, legally? I'd love to continue helping him myself, and I'm afraid if I call too many people I may not get an answer I like, and I might lose him! Thank you in advance for any help and advice! You've all so helpful already, Otis and I thank you!
I live on Long Island, in NY and all my life have been in love with rodents. I've had everything from mice to hamsters to gerbils to sugar gliders (yes I know they're technically marsupials!) I always wanted to become a vet when I was younger, but instead found myself in school for photography (however my love for animals has never diminished!)
My friend is a vet tech at a local hospital and someone dropped two baby orphaned squirrels on their door step last week. They were both in sad shape, and one had to be put down because he had a broken leg. She called me and asked if I'd mind taking care of the other, hoping that he may pull through, and I obliged. He is the cutest little thing I've ever seen! I named him Otis for the time being, and I believe he is about five weeks old. Fully furred, eyes open, bottom teeth, and a recent break in the top teeth, his tail curves ever so slightly... and I don't think he's far off from being able to sit up on his own! I've had him in a 10 gallon tank with blankets, a reptile heating pad underneath the tank and I've been feeding him 3-6cc of ebsilac with a syringe every 4 hours. I introduced him to a bit of shelled sunflower seeds, granola, and flowers off some of my broccoli robe that I had for dinner (un-cooked of course!). This little guy is doing WAY better than when I got him, though he still has the runs a bit. I read that I should cut the ebsilac with more water and feed him a bit less. Is there anything else that may help?
Now a more tricky question... aside from the advice given to me from my friend (who is a vet tech, but doesn't work with exotic animals), I contacted my aunt in California who works with many animals. She once rehabbed a raccoon that is still coming into the house every morning with the dogs! She told me that I may be able to get a current rehabber to allow me to work under their license / permit via satellite. It seemed like a wonderful idea, being that I could continue to help Otis, as well as take in other small mammals who may be in need to help. However, I can't seem to find ANY information about this online, and I don't know where to start. I keep ending up back here http://www.nyswrc.org/rehabbers.html which lists current rehabbers, or here http://www.dec.ny.gov/ - where it seems easier to find a license to kill animals than to help them, ironic, isn't it? I imagine this would be a long process to get licensed myself, but in the interim is there anything I can do to continue to help my new buddy, legally? I'd love to continue helping him myself, and I'm afraid if I call too many people I may not get an answer I like, and I might lose him! Thank you in advance for any help and advice! You've all so helpful already, Otis and I thank you!