Advice from a rehabber?

[dda0221]

Very at new at this......I have a pair of orphaned squirrels...I believe them to be American Red Squirrels. Found them in the front yard on Sep 13. Problems started when one started suckling on the other. I had to separate them until I could get the wounds healed that the suckling created. When I tried to reunite them, the bigger of the two (the sucker) did not react well. He started biting the smaller squirrel and would not share the nest/bed. At this point, I have two beds in one large cage.
1. Should I try to force them together?
2. Is it healthy for them to not nest together?

Any advice would be welcomed and very much appreciated. Thank you in advance for any assistance!

[island rehabber]

:Welcometo the Squirrel Board!
First of all, you have two beautiful Fox Squirrel babies there (sciurus niger), not red squirrels. They will grow up to be three times as large and three times more mellow than red squirrels would :D.
Genital suckling is a big problem with baby squirrels and can usually be solved by feeding more ofen, less amounts at each time. Sometimes, however, it just can't be stopped and either babies must be separated or one must wear a little body armor: cut holes in a baby sock for the squirrel's arms & legs, and voila, he's protected!
At their age you can still get them together again. Take them out of their container and put them into another, or on your lap, so the territory is Neutral. Let them sniff and play and even fight each other a bit, so long as nobody gets too rough. Foxers are mellow by nature; you should be able to make them play nice-nice. :)

[Nancy in New York]

First you have little Fox Squirrels....and adorable ones at that.
How long have they been seperated?
Can you take them out of their cage into a neutral territory, preferably your bedroom floor, door closed and put them on a blanket together? If you have a smaller cage that you can bring in, put that in there also, in case they get scared of being out, they have something "safe" to run into.
If you do something fun with them instead of just trying to cage them together, they may become friends again, and the cage won't be a problem....:dono

EDIT.....Looks like Island Rehabber beat me to it again.....:rotfl :goodpost

[dda0221]

I separated them for about a week and a half. I tried using Bitter Apple, dressing the smaller one in a sock (amazing how quickly he could get out of it), feeding more often and giving the larger one something else to suck on - a small teddy bear. None of those things worked. Now that the swelling has gone down and I found some really stinky stuff to use, I thought I should get them back together. I'll try some additional together time. I take them out to get some sun/Vitamin D when it is warm enough and that should provide them with time together in a neutral area. I am trying not to handle them much, as I would like to release them in a couple of months.
Thanks for your assistance!

[Nancy in New York]

I separated them for about a week and a half. I tried using Bitter Apple, dressing the smaller one in a sock (amazing how quickly he could get out of it), feeding more often and giving the larger one something else to suck on - a small teddy bear. None of those things worked. Now that the swelling has gone down and I found some really stinky stuff to use, I thought I should get them back together. I'll try some additional together time. I take them out to get some sun/Vitamin D when it is warm enough and that should provide them with time together in a neutral area. I am trying not to handle them much, as I would like to release them in a couple of months.
Thanks for your assistance!

Can't believe that I forgot about this....but I heard that a slice of orange will stop the sucking....:dono
When you have them outside, they are in a cage right? Please don't let them out without being contained. These little ones can get away so easily and they clearly are too young for release....also hawks are notorious for grabbing before you can even blink.
Release in a couple of months is not advised. That would make it December, and even the rehabbers in Florida do not release in the winter. Is there anyway that you can overwinter them?
If not, we can try to help you relocate them...:grouphug

[dda0221]

Yes, I keep them in a cage when outside. I don't want them to wander off! I worked too hard to get them this far. :)

I contacted ALL my local wildlife rehab groups (Denver/Boulder CO area). They are overwhelmed with orphaned squirrels this year and could not or would not take these two. It was suggested that I do a 'soft' release? My understanding is that I should build a nice big cage for outside, provide a nesting box and food during the winter, letting the squirrels roam from dusk 'til dawn, but closing them in the cage to protect them from predators during the night.

Also, any estimates on how old my guys are? And how much they should weight? They opened their eyes on Sept. 30th and Oct 1st. Ears on Face, pic on the left, have popped up. Mr. T still has ears close to his head.

[Nancy in New York]

Sounds like you have a great plan. I know with the Eastern Greys their eyes open around 5 weeks old.

[dda0221]

Well, things seem to be going well so far. There has been quite a bit of wrestling, but the boys seem to be getting along better. And the stinky stuff I found (EMT Spray) has stopped the suckling and helped heal any previous wounds.
Thanks for your advice. I really appreciate it. I am a very nervous, first time foster parent!
:thankyou

[SammysMom]

My goodness they are too cute! Good job taking care of a really tough issue (sucking)! It seems really early even in December since they are so young now. Spring would make it so much safer for them. Even just venturing out during the day is risky when so young and inexperienced. Way better to stay warm and grow strong for the winter and be really ready for a soft release in the Spring. Keep up the good work! They are sure lucky to have found you!:grouphug :thumbsup :grouphug

[Busysqrl]

My goodness they are too cute! Good job taking care of a really tough issue (sucking)! It seems really early even in December since they are so young now. Spring would make it so much safer for them. Even just venturing out during the day is risky when so young and inexperienced. Way better to stay warm and grow strong for the winter and be really ready for a soft release in the Spring. Keep up the good work! They are sure lucky to have found you!:grouphug :thumbsup :grouphug
I agree with SammysMom, often times wildlife rehab facilitites recommend releasing WAY too early, primarily because they themselves do not have the facilities or funds to keep squirrels over the winter. Fall babies should never be released til Spring, particularly fox squirrels. They are much slower to develop than grays. Motor skills, nest building skills etc. If you have a cage to keep them in, overwintering is definately preferred.

Also, they look too young to be outside yet. Any baby who is still nursing should be inside and kept warm. When they wean, you can transition them to outside. My fox squirrel nursed until she was almost 14 weeks old.

Your babies are darling. Glad you got the nursing problem under control. Good luck with your babies.

[Mads]

Very at new at this......I have a pair of orphaned squirrels...I believe them to be American Red Squirrels. Found them in the front yard on Sep 13. Problems started when one started suckling on the other. I had to separate them until I could get the wounds healed that the suckling created. When I tried to reunite them, the bigger of the two (the sucker) did not react well. He started biting the smaller squirrel and would not share the nest/bed. At this point, I have two beds in one large cage.
1. Should I try to force them together?
2. Is it healthy for them to not nest together?

Any advice would be welcomed and very much appreciated. Thank you in advance for any assistance!

They are so cute. Makes me miss having babies. But I do support squirrel moms more...

:D

[dda0221]

Now that everyone helped me with my first question, I have another.

I am getting ready to build my squirrel nesting box tomorrow. I know that the two boys I have will winter together in that nest. Once they are released in the spring, I am guessing that only one of them will stay in the nest and my little guy will get shoved out? So should I be building two nesting boxes? And if so, how far away do the nests need to be from each other?

[madtowntom]

Now that everyone helped me with my first question, I have another.

I am getting ready to build my squirrel nesting box tomorrow. I know that the two boys I have will winter together in that nest. Once they are released in the spring, I am guessing that only one of them will stay in the nest and my little guy will get shoved out? So should I be building two nesting boxes? And if so, how far away do the nests need to be from each other?

If they hang out in the same nest box all winter - they will tolerate each other for at least a few weeks in the same box once you hang it outside. In my experience if you wait until it is getting fairly warm and there are plenty of trees with leaves on in the area you release them - they will likely only spend a couple of weeks in the nest box before they are off building their own dreys. Squirrels I release in the late fall tend to stay in the next box through the winter, but squirrels I release in the spring and summer usually don't stick around long. I have four nest boxes in my yard. They sit empty from June through February, but the last couple of years at least 3 of the 4 have had mothers move in between January-March to have their babies and they stay through weaning. Interestingly, they never use the nest boxes for their summer babies - obviously they feel comfortable in their leaf dreys.

Sorry that was more info that you asked for - in short I don't think you need two nest boxes. They will be OK in one until they get acclimated and build their own nests.