Maybe not an emergency, but help now, pls!

[JLM27]

I have a squirrel just sitting out here at the end of a broken off branch in the maple tree for the last half hour with his tail over his back just letting the snow pile up on him. Why is he doing this? Why is he not seeking shelter?

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[Rhapsody]

Really I am not sure..... if the squirrel does not seem sick or injured in any way he may just be wanting to sit in the snow or cool off from where he was.
I know my dog Zulu likes to sit in the rain when its just a drizzle. :dono

[island rehabber]

What is going on below him? He's looking down very intently, as if there is a cat or other predator below.....

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

Is there a box nearby, or nest? I saw this behavior during a sleet storm a year ago, when a squirrel left her box to eat, and another squirrel moved in. When the previous occupant came back from lunch, she could not get back in her box. She sat curled up like that in a sleet storm for 2 days trying to get back in her box.

I made another box and hung it on the adjacent tree, which then scared her off, and I assume she finally found another drey. Do you have any spare boxes that you can hang?

[JLM27]

He's the one with the cut eye. I'm scared he is in trouble.

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

That's a possibility. He might not be feeling well. Can you net him (or blanket trap)?

[JLM27]

I tried to net him but he leapt up, began running around, ate some nuts and a piece of avocado that I laced with abx, chased away some other squirrels and generally did not allow himself to be in a situation where I can catch him. He is about 35 feet up in the tree and outside my window where I can reach him with a net, but he detects it and jumps away. So far he is not afraid of me because of it, and if I can lure him in I am going to trap him and treat him with abx for that eye, which now looks infected. It is shut completely now. But I'm pretty sure I can't get him. If he falls out of the tree, he will fall into soft snow, but whether he will freeze to death depends on me being able to see that this has happened. He is back on the perch letting snow build up on him again.

[mpetys]

Oh my goodness. Poor baby. This picture reminds me of the picture of Meemor. Remember how he was kind hunched over on that one branch for hours. Maybe scared.

I hope this squirrel can get some help.

Michele

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

Glad you were able to get some spiked treats in him. Any chance he'll go in a Havaheart?

[TinyPaws]

Oh that poor squirrel...How heart breaking it is to see him like that...Do you think he'd clime in thru the window if you left it open and tempted with snacks on the other side? My prayers go out to him.....Keep us posted..

[pappy1264]

Oh that poor baby! Sending good thoughts and prayers. Keep us posted. This snow here is brutal....and we have a second, worse storm heading right for us!!!!

[JLM27]

The nest boxes are below. Maybe he is waiting for an opportunity to get in. He is out there on a different branch now with a little more shelter from the tree.
*************
There was some chasing around out there while I was on a business call. Now it is dark and I do not know what happened with him. It stopped snowing for a while, but it is supposed to go down into the teens tonight. i am worried for him.

[TinyPaws]

The nest boxes are below. Maybe he is waiting for an opportunity to get in. He is out there on a different branch now with a little more shelter from the tree.
*************
There was some chasing around out there while I was on a business call. Now it is dark and I do not know what happened with him. It stopped snowing for a while, but it is supposed to go down into the teens tonight. i am worried for him.

It's times like this that we feel the most helpless...:grouphug

[island rehabber]

He may be 'low man on the totem pole', and has to sneak into a nest box after hours, so to speak. Good job getting meds into him, JLM27 :bowdown . It would be wonderful if somehow you could coax him indoors for a few days, just so he could heal up and rest.....

[JLM27]

He's a little guy, and nice to me, but he is fierce with the other squirrels! I can just see me bundling him into a cage. He'll probably put me into the ER for stitiches. He's no baby like Munchkin was!

[island rehabber]

He's a little guy, and nice to me, but he is fierce with the other squirrels! I can just see me bundling him into a cage. He'll probably put me into the ER for stitiches. He's no baby like Munchkin was!

And Munchkin was a force to be reckoned with, as I recall....:D
it's good that he doesn't let himself be pushed around, then.....all you can do is watch and wait to see how he is tomorrow. :dono

[tomcics]

Is it dark there yet? What is status? Hope things improved.

[NaturesGift]

Praying he is tucked away in the warmth!

[JLM27]

Alas, I do not know where he is tonight. I think he will be OK as long as he sticks around me and stays off the ground when the cats come back out. (They are in for the duration because of ice and snow. No fools they!) He is now handicapped, though, which breaks my heart, because he is otherwise a beautiful little creature with a lot of courage. He has been coming to the window sill pretty regularly, so I will try to get abx in him, BUT the only meds I have left are from Munchkin last summer. They have been sitting in solution (sorta) in the fridge since then, and I am not sure if they are any good anymore.

[TinyPaws]

I hope he'll be alright....:grouphug

[SquirrelsinSingapore]

It hurts my heart to see him like that. Last time i had a squirrel doing same when theres a cat stalking her under the tree. Yeah it is looking down and grabbing on tight so that they can jump off in time when the cat decides to climb. Even after chasing off the cat, she's is still there in the same position after some hours/ :osnap My guess is she's alittle traumatised

Pls keep a look out for this little fellor.:grouphug
Take him in if possible even for short while.... Do keep us updated of the situation.....
:Sham

rallying for help tinfoil
damn cold outside!

[Kat762]

Thats so sad he looks like he's really in trouble :grouphug

Any news today ?

[JLM27]

I have not seen him today, but I have been outside a lot carrying on with the snow shoveling, etc. I think he was trying to get into the nest boxes. I think maybe he failed and has left for another berth. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Meanwhile, my sweet squirrel Little Boy is MIA for 2 and a half almost three weeks.

[JLM27]

Update: he showed up right after my last post and I was able to get more of my dubious abx in him. His eye is open today, but looks pretty glaucous.

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[Tickle's Mom]

Oh gosh...those pictures make my heart hurt. Anyway, and this may have already been suggested, can you try to trap him safely?

[island rehabber]

He looks chubby & well-furred other than the eye problem. Hopefully with some meds he'll be fine. :thumbsup

[JLM27]

I think he will lose most of the eyesight in that eye though. He's a scrappy chap, but I know being handicapped now his long term chances are much diminished.

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

Sounds like you are doing a great job getting those antibiotics in him. Do you have enough, and are they still potent enough?

[JLM27]

I am working on that. I have enough, but it has been in solution in the fridge too long. It is sulfatrim that I had left over from something else. Thanks for asking.

[TinyPaws]

I'm so glad to see he made it thru the night..and that you were able to give him ABs...My prayers and thoughts are on that little one..

I hope you see your other squirrel again..My Rosie has been MIA for about a year..I miss her..

[CritterMom]

I am working on that. I have enough, but it has been in solution in the fridge too long. It is sulfatrim that I had left over from something else. Thanks for asking.

Sulfatrim lasts a long time - but you will have to shake it until you dislocate your shoulder...

[JLM27]

Yes, they are chubby from eating nuts and avocados in addition to everything else they are eating out there. Miss Stella is now Miss Piggy Pie.

[JLM27]

[QUOTE=My Rosie has been MIA for about a year..I miss her..[/QUOTE]

I'm sorry Rosie left you. I try to be philosophical about it. They can't stick around just because some old lady hands out treats. They have lives to live, children to bear, nests to build and defend, mates to acquire and live out their lives with. (Yes, I believe they do pair up; they are just not continually monogamous.)

We just hope they are OK. We never know. And squirrels don't say goodbye.

[tomcics]

Good news that he showed up again and you were able to treat. Pray it will help and we can read about his recovery.

[island rehabber]

JLM27, I don't know if this helps at all when you have squirrel pals who no longer show up, but my experience has taught me they will often go elsewhere even when your place is paradise. Case in point: Moses, a little black squirrel I released at Tomo's along with about 8 others. For whatever reason, Moses left Tomo's and took up residence down the block at her neighbor's place. He visited Tomo's once in awhile but basically 'moved down the block'. Now we know that there is no buffet like Tomo's, and nest boxes, and everything a squirrel could want, yet Moses chose to cross the desert :D. He's still there almost three years later! :thinking :dono

[JLM27]

Yeah but Little Boy was my sweetie. He would come in and hold my hand and nudge it aside and almost climb up my shirt while searching my face. I thought we were bonded. I guess I'm a) hurt that he left me ---and he's probably hurt that he couldn't have me to himself--- b) scared that he's met with harm. He's come and gone before. I have a suspicion it is because he does not like to fight and there are just too many feisty males out there right now. I think Squeaky, my little guy with the airplane ears, left for that reason. He certainly let me know in no uncertain terms that he was displeased with so many others being tolerated in HIS tree. Also Big Stella (Miss Piggy Pie) and her mother Fatty Mama are chasing others away. Maybe when baby season hits, a lot of these guys will go away and Little Boy will sneak back. I once thought I lost One-Handed Mama to the Reaper, only to hear a girl telling some little boys that there was a one-handed squirrel that lived down the block that was always out in front of their house begging food (I had her well-trained) and that she had little ones, too. It's just not knowing, and squirrels don't say goodbye.

[JLM27]

Update: I got a good look at my little fella with the hurt eye today. He is looking good. He is all healed up, but his left eye is still just a bit cloudy. He can see movement out of it though, because he started away when I moved and his good eye was turned away from me completely. I have no idea how much sight loss he has, but I'm glad he can see movement. He looks husky and healthy and is running and climbing and otherwise acting like his old self.

[JLM27]

:D

[SkweeksMom]

:jump :jump :wott :wott

[astra]

Update: I got a good look at my little fella with the hurt eye today. He is looking good. He is all healed up, but his left eye is still just a bit cloudy. He can see movement out of it though, because he started away when I moved and his good eye was turned away from me completely. I have no idea how much sight loss he has, but I'm glad he can see movement. He looks husky and healthy and is running and climbing and otherwise acting like his old self.
:wahoo :wahoo

[island rehabber]

OK that's the kind of good news I want to see when I log onto TSB after being out all day -- yayyy!! :wott