And chippy makes three?

[SqueakinJellybeans]

Good evening, folks. My husband and I received a rescue call from friends of ours about a white rat clinging to the side of a building. They said it had been there for about a day, and asked if we'd come get it.

Imagine our surprise when it turned out to be this little guy/gal instead:
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e292/BabiesAteMyDingo/Critter1.jpg

After much searching, the closest thing we were able to find was a picture of a white Siberian chipmunk. It's Sunday, so our usual vet isn't open; with any luck, we'll be able to get the wee critter in tomorrow morning for a look over and a confirmation on the species. There's no smell and his or her fur is very clean, so that seems to be a good sign.

My estimate is that he or she-- Peewee-- is about 7-8 weeks old. Peewee is currently asleep in a small igloo under a heap of nestcloth, belly full of Harlan Teklad blocks, apple, and sunflower seeds.

We've been owned by a variety of creatures over the years, but a chipmunk is new to us. Please pardon my ignorance as I work on learning what it will take to give Peewee everything a chippy (we think?) needs for a long and happy life.

[NaturesGift]

wonders if someones pet escaped! would explain why he/she remained frozen on a wall. :sanp3

great rescue!!!! hope it all turns out well!

[Chipmunk_lover]

Hi, thanks for rescuing the little critter.

Looks very young, could this be a Eastern Chipmunk since you do have them wild in Canada and they sometimes are born in a White version just like you get White Squirrels. I've not seen a White Siberian that looks like that with the brown on the face and i've got quite a few of my own.

Does he/she have cream stripes
Does he/she have red pupils (they look black from distance but up close are a deep red). Irises are light blue.
Can't see the tail in the photo, in a Chippie that age it will be quite fluffy and a pink piece of skin can be clearly seen down the tail.

I've added some pics of mine to see what you think

If she/he is a Chipmunk you will need a large cage they are very like Squirrels need space to climb. Diet needs extra calcium than other rodents, a cuttlebone or mineral block. Yoghurt several times a week, plenty of fruits and veg. Mealworms and scrambled egg since they are omnivores and do need some meat i usually give some cooked chicken. Also you need a good rodent block.
Like Squirrels they are prone to Metabolic Bone Disease so its a good idea to limit peanuts and sunflower seeds like you do with tree Squirrels but don't eliminate completely since Chippies are more seed eaters than tree Squirrels. I give a few monkey nuts as treats or sometimes another type of nut.

Good luck with him or her, i agree she does look very Chipmunk like :thumbsup

[SqueakinJellybeans]

@Chipmunk_lover-- The pink piece of skin can, I think, be attributed either to some hair loss from being grabbed by something that may have resulted in damage to the tail (it seems about half the length it ought to be) or to her being poofly in fear, having just come from such a big outdoor adventure.

I'm pretty sure she was a pet or was at least hand-raised, since when I said good morning to her today, she peeked out of the house at me, responding to my voice, rather than cowering or ignoring me.

Thank you for the advice on diet; I've got a calcium/mineral wheel on the shopping list, and I'll make sure to have two dishes available-- one with Harlan Teklad rodent blocks, and the other with fresh foods. One of the sites I checked said that cuttlebone would be good for them, bot for calcium and gnawing. Just to cross-check my info, should I pick one of those up for her?

What brand of cage do you recommend? Do we need to go out right away and get that fridge-sized palace Charlie's person has him in, or can we go with something a little smaller to start with? We've got a whackload of spacious rat cages, but the bars are all too far apart for Peewee.

[veganhead1]

I keep learning new things on this forum. I've never seen a white chipmunk. What a cutie! I just love this forum for all the good folks, like yourself, who go out of their way to rescue and then care for our needy little brothers & sisters. You Rock! :thumbsup
Keep those pics coming please! Oh, and nice to meet you.

[Tickle's Mom]

The only two things I know extensively about chippies -

THEY ARE ESCAPE ARTISTS!!!! And they can do a lot of damage chewing things.

Disclaimer: I don't have one by choice and it was a pet who wilded up.


Sounds like you have a sweetheart there in Peewee :D

[gs1]

welcome!!! there's a couple of us in southern ontario ... (3 of us :D)

just wanted to say hi...

also private message me your location if you want ...

and we have a certified rehabber runestonez in guelph ... if you need help :D

must run...cls.

[SqueakinJellybeans]

Good to know there are others in the area. Finding a vet's office that isn't convinced on phone contact that we have a wild animal is proving very difficult. One even went so far as to say, "That can't be what you have, because we've never heard of anyone in this area having one, so you must have a wild animal and that's illegal." What's the legality in Ontario for having an obviously captive-bred Siberian chippie?

Peewee's been sleeping a lot, but came out for some sheep yogurt this morning. She's eating solid foods on her own and shows a preference for apple. I'll be picking up kale in a couple of hours, along with a UV light, mineral lick, wood gnaws, etc. Her cage is on a towel-wrapped heating pad and she seems cozy. There will be more pictures when I can a) get faster with the camera or b) get her to hold still for a moment while she's out.

Is it normal for young 'uns to sleep a great deal? My experience is with rats, so I don't know from chipmunk sleep.

[Runestonez]

I just got a chance to look at the markings in the photo...
I have never seen one...but what about a leucitic wild chippy?
Not enough brown to call it pibald.

[Chipmunk_lover]

@Chipmunk_lover-- The pink piece of skin can, I think, be attributed either to some hair loss from being grabbed by something that may have resulted in damage to the tail (it seems about half the length it ought to be) or to her being poofly in fear, having just come from such a big outdoor adventure.

I'm pretty sure she was a pet or was at least hand-raised, since when I said good morning to her today, she peeked out of the house at me, responding to my voice, rather than cowering or ignoring me.

Thank you for the advice on diet; I've got a calcium/mineral wheel on the shopping list, and I'll make sure to have two dishes available-- one with Harlan Teklad rodent blocks, and the other with fresh foods. One of the sites I checked said that cuttlebone would be good for them, bot for calcium and gnawing. Just to cross-check my info, should I pick one of those up for her?

What brand of cage do you recommend? Do we need to go out right away and get that fridge-sized palace Charlie's person has him in, or can we go with something a little smaller to start with? We've got a whackload of spacious rat cages, but the bars are all too far apart for Peewee.

If her tail is short she probably lost part of it in an accident or it was grabbed by a predator, the tails easily come off. Its normal for White Chipmunks to have visable skin in the tail, its because they have less fur on the tail than the normal colour Chipmunks.

If she is a Siberian she was definitely someones pet, they aren't native to the U.S. and as far as i know there aren't escaped colonies there. Chipmunks escape alot in the U.K. so seems likely she escaped from somewhere, maybe an outside aviary.
Yes cuttlebones are good, great calcium source and will help keep the teeth down so worth getting one.

I've found Chipmunks up to the age of four months can be kept in smaller cages say about three foot high but as they get older they get very bored in those cages and start displaying stereotypical behaviour, then you need to up grade to a much taller one at least five foot high but as big as you can afford really. I've just put one of my four month olds in a bigger bird cage he had out grown the smaller cage he was in. Also she will need time out the cage in a secure Chipmunk-proofed room.



Good to know there are others in the area. Finding a vet's office that isn't convinced on phone contact that we have a wild animal is proving very difficult. One even went so far as to say, "That can't be what you have, because we've never heard of anyone in this area having one, so you must have a wild animal and that's illegal." What's the legality in Ontario for having an obviously captive-bred Siberian chippie?

Peewee's been sleeping a lot, but came out for some sheep yogurt this morning. She's eating solid foods on her own and shows a preference for apple. I'll be picking up kale in a couple of hours, along with a UV light, mineral lick, wood gnaws, etc. Her cage is on a towel-wrapped heating pad and she seems cozy. There will be more pictures when I can a) get faster with the camera or b) get her to hold still for a moment while she's out.

Is it normal for young 'uns to sleep a great deal? My experience is with rats, so I don't know from chipmunk sleep.


I don't know if its legal to have Chipmunks where you live, i know some states its not so thats something you'll have to check and if its illegal you could have problems with vets seeing her.

Chipmunks are normally very active, my babies are awake just after dawn until early evening, they hardly stop sometimes. Maybe she is just abit nervous of her new surroundings and as she gets used to you she'll become more active.


I just got a chance to look at the markings in the photo...
I have never seen one...but what about a leucitic wild chippy?
Not enough brown to call it pibald

Yes i wondered about a leucistic wild Chippie they do appear sometimes but are quite rare i think, they can look just like the White Chipmunks i posted or be white with black eyes i've seen photos of both. Piebald Chipmunks as you say usually have more colour on them.
I found this photo of a Piebald. This one looks to be a wild Chipmunk but this pattern does appear in the captive Siberian but very few cases are known. Either way its very interesting for me, i would love a Piebald but they aren't currently available in the U.K.

Perhaps once SqueakinJellybeans gets some more photos it will become clearer whether she is a Dilute or a Piebald.

[Runestonez]

Just so everyone is up to date...
I talked on the phone with SqueaksinJellybean last night.
Awesome lady!:thumbsup

:)

[SqueakinJellybeans]

@Chipmunk_Lover-- That picture is Peewee almost exactly! He's a bit more responsive to people than a wild one would be, I think, but I'll let Runestonez make the final call on that. Either way, that colouring in the wild around here would be a death sentence. There are a number of hungry peregrines in our downtown area, and one occasionally scares the pants off our lawn inhabitants by hunting around here.

I suspect you're right on the money about Peewee being piebald.

[gs1]

:D :thumbsup

[SqueakinJellybeans]

Peewee is starting to settle in a little bit. My husband told me that the wee fellow was sitting on top of his house making what may have been "This is my territory!" noises at 5:30 in the morning.

[SqueakingJellybean]

Hello; back again. Had to change the nickname because I no longer have the email associated with the previous version (and I forgot the password).