Rereleasing :(

[amh]

Hi,
I've been raising a baby squirrel for about the last month or so. He has been doing quite well, much better than I ever expected. I guess his age to be around 12 weeks and he is becoming quite wild. He has bit everyone in the house, except for me. I know he needs to be released but I just don't want to "throw him to the wolves."
I contacted a rehabber and they told me to release him in a park and his instincts should kick in. What can I do to prepare him? Or is there a better way to release him? It breaks my heart to think about letting him go but I know its not fair to keep him. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!

[CritterMom]

The "rehabber" you contacted is wrong.

Is there a way for you to start letting him go outside in a cage during the day? Most people build "release cages" that allow the squirrel to slowly spend more and more time outside and less and less time with people until after some time, the door is opened. Is that a possibility for you? That is called "soft release" and they will frequently hang around for a while, mooching goodied and being wild but still enjoying their humans.

[amh]

I thought that seemed a little strange based on what I've been reading. I do have an old rabbit hutch under a tree in my backyard. The only reason I fear letting him go in the neighborhood is I'm afraid he will get hit by a car. I also have two inside dogs that frequent the backyard quite often. Is this something I need to be afraid of or will he know to stay away?

[amh]

To clear that up, strange- what the rehabber told me, not what you said. That sounds more appropriate.

[Jackie in Tampa]

has he been exposed to your dogs?
sqs need to fear dogs..
there are so many great threads about release...if you read them I am sure the answers will come to all questions...
otherwise just ask! someone will know!:D
:poke where are the pics?
Rabbit hutch too little and low, jmo.
Others will be here to share their experiences!:thumbsup

[amh]

Thank you! I feel 100% percent after getting advice on here. I was very upset after the rehabber (they claim to be) told me just to release him.
The rabbit hutch is quite large, as we kept multiple rabbits but is probably too short. We will be doing some construction to it to make it more suitable for a squirrel. He has very little exposure to my dogs so I hope he knows to be afraid.
Is it ok to release him now? I live in Kentucky and the weather is quite mild right now and the leaves are just now beginning to change. I've read different opinions on here whether or not to release over winter. If I continue to provide him with food, will he be ok? And below are some pictures :) http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs022.snc4/33469_635669503167_210605191 http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs735.snc4/65551_635669568037_210605191_35633888_6513620_n.jp g http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs022.snc4/33469_635669503167_210605191_35633885_1025086_n.jp g

[MSC]

One last thing that may help you is this. When I went to release our squirrel I built a nest box and placed it inside of his cage. We had a very large cage similar to your rabbit hutch.

He lived in the nest box inside of his cage for about 4 weeks before we did the release.

I had been taking him outside with me every other day to acclimate him to where I would release him (our front yard).

Anyway...the day I released him I climbed up about 20 feet into the big oak in our front yard and installed his nest box (the one he had been living in inside of his cage). When I released him he ran right up the tree and straight into his nest box. Over the course of the entire day I was in the front yard doing yard work and he would keep peeking his head out of his nest box and look at me. He acclimated very quickly to being outside and lived in the nest box for about a month before he found a better place. However, every morning and afternoon at the same times he would always be on top of his nest box because he knew he would see us walking the dog. And he knew we would give him pecans.

Point of me being long winded is that your squirrel having something they are familiar with in the wild helps to ease the transition much more.

A nest box is a great way.