What about transporting Eastern Gray in airplanes...

[Trooper]

Hello Forum:

An acquaintance of mine who has a 6 months old female eastern gray squirrel is moving back to England from her home in West Virgina. Knowing she would not be able to take her baby with her, she asked if I would like to take her in. Of course I would in a heartbeat, the question I have is:

1) I know that some places in the USA have flown sugar gliders via "air" means, that is through airplanes.
2) Is it O.K. to fly eastern grays via airplanes? Continental and Delta have packages to transport mammals with health certificates form vets across the country. My question is a biological and stress-related one. can eastern's handle the trip??

If the answer is NO, can anyone of you out there point me to a West Virginia outlet that would take this little beauty?

Thanks,

Trooper's dad.

[Milo's Mom]

Not sure about the stress or the airline policies...my question would be TSA & Customs...those are the two that always give me issues no matter what.

[cuteascnb]

HMMM...I hope someone can help with this but I would say probably not! I don't think they would allow an unnative squirrel to be transported to another part of the world...incase it would get loose in the wild or something...I COULD BE WRONG...its a good question!


As for finding a home...Im sure theres someone in that area I gotta think for a minute!!!:thumbsup


Now my finace says they may be able to fly it but once arriving in England they may want to quarentine her for a short period of time??? HMMMM DONT KNOW!

[astra]

Difficult situation.:grouphug

You won't be able to fly a gray squirrel - they are illegal to keep in most states. I am not sure about WV - check the laws, but I doubt.

Also, if you bring it to a wildlife centre, there is a chance they will simply euthanize it. Of course, there is a chance that they will try to release it, but if they decide that it is too used to humans and if it does not wild up fast enough, they will put it to sleep.
Again, these regulations vary from state to state, but certain states have a day limit on how long an animal can be at the centre/with a rehabber. In some states, it's either 90 days or 180 days (or something like that), and if the animal does not wild up and become releasable by then, it is to be euthanized.

Again, as I said, there is a chance that someone will take it to release, but there is also a good chance that they will take it to euthanize.
Especially, because Eastern gray squirrels are not the kind of exotic animal that centers want to build their reputation on. It's just a squirrel to them, so they won't think long and hard before putting it to sleep for whatever reason.

If there was a chance that she would be going back to England, it might have been a better idea to have brought the baby to a rehabber when she found it - more chances and it would have been raised with other babies of her age.

Anyways, unless her state and your state are legal states for keeping squirrels, there is no chance at all to fly it. (and to be honest, I doubt it is possible whether your states are legal or not, but do check).

Can she drive?... How far is she from you?.... Is there a possibility of organizing some kind of train? (e.g., if you have friends/family in-between states who could help with moving the squirrel).

Of course, if nothing else works out, she will need to bring the squirrel to a centre or a rehabber, but do try to find other ways before doing that , and tell her to be very selective about the centre/rehabber she will bring her squirrel to. Of course, they won't give you guarantees, but still, sometimes, you can get a sense of what's to come.

I hope other people will have more useful and hopeful suggestions.:grouphug
Maybe there is a way to fly a squirrel... maybe, I just don't know...:thinking :dono
or, maybe, someone lives nearby and could take the squirrel....

[astra]

Now my finace says they may be able to fly it but once arriving in England they may want to quarentine her for a short period of time??? HMMMM DONT KNOW!
grays are considered pests in England. They WILL NOT let a foreign grey squirrel in due to possible viruses and illnesses and diseases it might pass.

And since grey squirrels are not legal to keep in England, they will simply not let her bring it.

[Scooterzmom]

grays are considered pests in England. They WILL NOT let a foreign grey squirrel in due to possible viruses and illnesses and diseases it might pass.

And since grey squirrels are not legal to keep in England, they will simply not let her bring it.

... Furthermore, they are considered a threat to the red squirrels and people are allowed to hunt them. It is certain that they will not let in a grey, unfortunately :(

[cuteascnb]

grays are considered pests in England. They WILL NOT let a foreign grey squirrel in due to possible viruses and illnesses and diseases it might pass.

And since grey squirrels are not legal to keep in England, they will simply not let her bring it.



thats what i originally thought...didnt know for sure if they actually had "our" kind of grays or not?

[astra]

thats what i originally thought...didnt know for sure if they actually had "our" kind of grays or not?
yes, they do, but greys are considered an invasive species, non-native species, who were brought in by humans and, supposedly (a very, very debatable issue) caused the death of the native red squirrels, whose numbers are diminishing.
So, no mercy for greys in England:shakehead

[Trooper]

Thank you all for the replies. A bit of clarification, my apologies for not being specific in my original post, today my Trooper came back from a 5 day outing AWOL and I'm still revved-up.

1) My friend cannot take her baby to England for some of the reasons you pointed out and personal ones.
2) Airlines I mentioned before (Delta and Continental) will fly mammals, inlcuding squirrels if they have a health certificate signed by a vet. I know this is true as I bought 2 Dalmatians puppies in New Jersey and flew them to the west coast and the above mentioned was required.
3) The idea to fly her baby was so I would take her, not to go to England.
4) My friend is elderly and does not realize some of these topics, so I offered to take her squirrel if I could check first the issues of biology or otherwise stress related issue of placing the gray in a plane for 4 to 5 hours.
5) Is there anyone out there that knows someone in West Virginia that would take the squirrel without worrying about euthanasia?
6) I just can sit down and let her beautiful creature exposed to the chances that she will be killed (let's face it we can call it with soft names like euthanasia, but in the end is extermination).

Thank you all for the comments!

Trooper's dad.

[CritterMom]

Confusion here. Trooper is trying to get her to HIS home (SW US??), not to fly her to England... Cross country, not trans ocean...

[astra]

Yes, I got that this is not cross ocean flight (was just explaining the details to cuteascnb ;)).

My concern, even with the vet paperwork, what will it be like to fly this squirrel into an illegal state?.... That's my main question and that's what I do not know.
What's the formal procedure for the animals when they land?
Are they inspected by the local Dept. of Wildlife and whatever else it is called?
If they are inspected by the said Dept., they will not let a squirrel in if it is an illegal state.
It's one thing that airlines can fly it, it's a different thing when it comes to the squirrel being illegal in a given state.
So, you might have to find out the exact procedure for the animals upon arrival.
If they are not inspected by any local Dept. of wildlife/fish and whatever else they call themselves, and you just pick your animals, then, it might work.

You may have cleared paperwork and all, but will the squirrel be allowed to "enter" the illegal state?...

As for stress, I am sure, it will be stressful. Any transportation will be stressful.
Some squirrels handle it better than others. Will it be terminally stressful? - don't know... don't think so, but again, don't know...

[Mrs Skul]

You Need to Start a Squirrel Train to get the Squirrel to you. :thumbsup3
Keeping Eastern Gray, or Squirrels in General as Pets is Illegal. :nono Be Careful calling around! :thinking :shakehead
Post a new thread! Need Help with Transportation from Virgina to where ever it will be going.
We have several members every where. It is Possible. CHOO CHOO Train!!!:D
PS
If this Squirrel is a Non Releasable and the Vet will wright out a Health certificate and State it is a NR.
That might make a difference with the airlines. "Just Not Sure."
I think you would have to Fly with the Squirrel in the Cabin. :thinking JMO

[Milo's Mom]

To the best of my knowledge, there are NO laws in West Virginia related to keeping a grey squirrel as a pet. As a matter of fact, I believe that West Virginia has NO laws about rehabbing in general. I may be wrong and if I am PLEASE correct me.

Personally, I would NOT fly a squirrel anywhere. Car rides are stressful enough...cannot imagine an airplane.

[astra]

To the best of my knowledge, there are NO laws in West Virginia related to keeping a grey squirrel as a pet. As a matter of fact, I believe that West Virginia has NO laws about rehabbing in general. I may be wrong and if I am PLEASE correct me.
.
what about Trooper's state?...:thinking because that's where the squirrel lands (IF they decide to fly it)
I think, a train would be better:thinking

[Scooterzmom]

I hate to sound like the voice of doom here but please... a word of caution when it comes to transportation by plane. I worked for airlines for over 17 years and I can tell you that

1. as we all know not everyone is a fan of squirrels
2. even when it comes to cats and dogs some ramp personel takes liberties with the animals - have had instances where they opened the cage to play with the animal and the animal ran off, got lost; have had instances whre some have tormented animals in their cages (instances that were caught on camera)
3. it is VERY noisy and scary for an animal in the pressurized baggage compartment and the noise level upon landing and unloading the plane would be enough to stress even me

Just MHO but... all in all, if you could organize a train to get your little friend where it is going it would be far better and a lot let risky than flying it there.

[astra]

I hate to sound like the voice of doom here but please... a word of caution when it comes to transportation by plane. I worked for airlines for over 17 years and I can tell you that

1. as we all know not everyone is a fan of squirrels
2. even when it comes to cats and dogs some ramp personel takes liberties with the animals - have had instances where they opened the cage to play with the animal and the animal ran off, got lost; have had instances whre some have tormented animals in their cages (instances that were caught on camera)
3. it is VERY noisy and scary for an animal in the pressurized baggage compartment and the noise level upon landing and unloading the plane would be enough to stress even me

Just MHO but... all in all, if you could organize a train to get your little friend where it is going it would be far better and a lot let risky than flying it there.
thank you for sharing, this SM! Good to know...

[rocky63]

I hate to sound like the voice of doom here but please... a word of caution when it comes to transportation by plane. I worked for airlines for over 17 years and I can tell you that

1. as we all know not everyone is a fan of squirrels
2. even when it comes to cats and dogs some ramp personel takes liberties with the animals - have had instances where they opened the cage to play with the animal and the animal ran off, got lost; have had instances whre some have tormented animals in their cages (instances that were caught on camera)
3. it is VERY noisy and scary for an animal in the pressurized baggage compartment and the noise level upon landing and unloading the plane would be enough to stress even me

Just MHO but... all in all, if you could organize a train to get your little friend where it is going it would be far better and a lot let risky than flying it there.

I agree with Scooterzmom. The plane niose alone would stress the squirrel to a point that my not be healthy. :nono
I think the best way is by car(squirrel train):alright.gif

[crazysquirrels]

You say West Coast so I am assuming California. Correct??? If so that squirrel will NEVER make it into this state. Trust me on this one. The state of Ca HATES squirrels. By car it is possible to hide him or her through a check point.