Suddenly distant squirrel

[shllyrse]

So I've been practicing the tough love approach with Thumbelina for the past 3 days to try and get her to eat a better variety of vegetables, instead of the select few she will normally only eat. She hasn't been very happy with this.

Also, the other day I was browsing on the forum and read that you should get your squirrel used to being held by you, and to try and do it at least 20 minutes a day. She always let me pet her and cup her in my hand in her cage, where she would go to sleep, just never hold her. She would also climb all over me willingly, and want to play all the time, wrestling with my hand, and with my hand and her stuffies.
Well, on Thursday, the first day I initiated this new feeding routine, I also tried to hold her for about 20 minutes. I wrapped her burrito style, and tried petting her head and calming her down. She HATED it. She got free, or close to it constantly. I continued though for the full 20 minutes. With the new diet, I also cut out her fruit and nut at night so that she wouldn't wait for those all day and not eat her healthy veggies.
The problem is, now she runs away from my hand every time I put it in the cage. It's breaking my heart. She seems to not want anything to do with me. She'll play for maybe 2 minutes out of the whole day with me, and instead of coming to me when I open the cage doors, she just tries to sneak by me and get out. She gets at least 3 hours of out-of-cage time everyday, and now tries to stay away from me then as well.
I'm not sure if this was caused by forcing her to be held, or by not giving her the food she wants anymore.
Please, does anyone have any advice?:shakehead

[astra]

our experts will share their expert experience...

I will just say that yes, it is important that your squirrel is comfortable being held by you, but... it is not meant quite so literally :). What is meant, in a broader sense, is that your squirrel is trusting and you have a bond, and it does not mind you touching it (not necessarily grabbing it), so that when you do have to grab her to burrito her to give her meds, for instance, it will be easier for you, compared to if she does not know your touch and is not used to close interaction with you.

Close interaction, again, does not mean actually holding her for hours (or even minutes ;)). It includes, but not limited to: a lot of playing, hand wrestling, feeding, petting, stroking, talking etc etc etc - again, all those things that create the bond and trust between you. So, again, when / if you do need to grab her to give her meds or something, she will not be as stressed out and upset because she will trust you, you know.

Your girl is old enough not to enjoy being burritoed. At about 12wks and on they prefer not to be grabbed. There might be something of a predator grip in the way they may feel when grabbed. Then, grabbing might also feel like restricting freedom (just imagine if someone grabbed and burritoed you ;)).
We do not know for sure, we can only speculate or make educated guesses.
But the bottom line is - most squirrels do not enjoy being grabbed and burritoed like that.
So, instead of having "burrito-sessions" :), just interact with her a lot, stroke her, pet her, hand - wrestle (if she is not too rough), you know.
Sometimes, she may even let you hold her literally... she may progress to that as they time goes by

Also, generally, reds are less cuddly than greys and foxers.
And some are more so than others.
And some squirrels are by nature more cuddly than others.
Ultimately, it is very individual and you need to listen to what she is trying to tell you, read her signs and learn to recognize her preferences.

I would say that her avoidance of you most likely is the result of your burritoing her... than the diet... although, she might be a bit pouty because of the food, but... still, I think it might be more of the 20min burrito moments :)

Don't worry, she will come around if you stop trying to burrito her daily. Just encourage more interactions and some ways where you hands won't mean "burritoing is coming", you know ;)
Give her some time to recognize that (e.g., when you reach towards her, it is only to pet, not to burrito her etc).
Just stay patient, in tune with her and everything will be fine

That's what I came to know.

But as I said, the experts here will be able to share more

:grouphug

[shllyrse]

Hahaha, ok too much burrito. Boy am I glad I only did that once :D
So I'm guessing a bonding pouch is only for flyers?

See, now I feel so horrible, because we had all of what you described that we should, and now it's gone. She really trusted me, and now she kind of runs away. She'll still let me pet her when she's sleeping, and sometimes when she's just pancaking, but it's not like it was. Do I just back off and leave her be for a bit, or do I just keep calmly petting and playing with her and hope she realizes that I will burrito no more?
Thanks so much for taking the time to respond, this issue has been making me so upset.

[astra]

Hahaha, ok too much burrito. Boy am I glad I only did that once :D
So I'm guessing a bonding pouch is only for flyers?

See, now I feel so horrible, because we had all of what you described that we should, and now it's gone. She really trusted me, and now she kind of runs away. She'll still let me pet her when she's sleeping, and sometimes when she's just pancaking, but it's not like it was. Do I just back off and leave her be for a bit, or do I just keep calmly petting and playing with her and hope she realizes that I will burrito no more?
Thanks so much for taking the time to respond, this issue has been making me so upset.
don't worry - it can all go back to normal, just give her some time.
And yes, continue to pet her and stoke her so that she can learn again that you are not going to grab and incapacitate her by wrapping her in fleece ;).
But you will have to be in tune with her and watch her reaction.
Just continue your usual interaction minus the burrito moments.

She is a red, reds, generally, are especially not a super cuddly type :)
and you are right - use those moments (morning or before bed) when she is more mellow: stoke her, touch her then more and she will get used to being touched by you again, without having to be wrapped.... and eventually, she will be more comfortable with you touching her during the day (but it still may not be as much as during those more mellow moments)

Again, depending on a squirrel, maybe, occasionally, she may curl up on your lap, or stay longer in your hand and let you have your hands around her more - use those moments for more physical "hands on" ;) contact

Don't worry - with squirrels (esp. reds) you need to be patient, consistent, persistent and in tune with them :):grouphug

[astra]

So I'm guessing a bonding pouch is only for flyers?
no it can work with other squirrels and animals.
it works very well with baby squirrels and some squirrels who are much more mellow in temperament overall.

But, honestly, I cannot imagine a 12wk old red spending her time idly reclining in a pouch.
That's not what reds are normally like :D

[shllyrse]

no it can work with other squirrels and animals.
it works very well with baby squirrels and some squirrels who are much more mellow in temperament overall.

But, honestly, I cannot imagine a 12wk old red spending her time idly reclining in a pouch.
That's not what reds are normally like :D

I couldn't imagine it either! I was just wondering if I was doing something wrong by not doing it :rotfl

[shllyrse]

don't worry - it can all go back to normal, just give her some time.
And yes, continue to pet her and stoke her so that she can learn again that you are not going to grab and incapacitate her by wrapping her in fleece ;).
But you will have to be in tune with her and watch her reaction.
Just continue your usual interaction minus the burrito moments.

She is a red, reds, generally, are especially not a super cuddly type :)
and you are right - use those moments (morning or before bed) when she is more mellow: stoke her, touch her then more and she will get used to being touched by you again, without having to be wrapped.... and eventually, she will be more comfortable with you touching her during the day (but it still may not be as much as during those more mellow moments)

Again, depending on a squirrel, maybe, occasionally, she may curl up on your lap, or stay longer in your hand and let you have your hands around her more - use those moments for more physical "hands on" ;) contact

Don't worry - with squirrels (esp. reds) you need to be patient, consistent, persistent and in tune with them :):grouphug

Thanks so much again for taking the time to respond to this. I feel much better about the situation already. I still feel horrible about burritoing her but I hope that in time, when she sees my hand reaching towards her she'll feel safe with it. I'm definitely using the morning and evening time to get the hand snuggles in, and she still seems to love that, so I have hope that it will be alright eventually :)

[jbtartell]

I agreewith astra.. lol noooo burito..only for meds if nessasery, also I have a 13 wk but she was 12 wks when I got her. I found a way to cuddle her. she would not want me holding her but I gained the hand trust first then when she would play with my hand and let me pet her in her bed that is when I got the idea.. brace yourself..lol wait till it is her sleep time and she is out of it sleeping good.. and reach in rub her lovingly and then pick her up slow and gently and pull her close to your chest and continue to rub her. she will let you do this for a few min but then will realize what u did so then put her up dont force her. do this over and over she will start to respond. this wil be her calmest moments..lol because as I was told she is a baby and has lots of energy. that will pass some later but just dont force her play during the energy play time and during the sleepy time cuddle and it will get longer times as she gets used to it.. lol :rotfl soooo funny. I have done this for a week now and now dizzy is letting me hold her during play time and even some cuddling during that time. be patient,, yes I said it and I listend when it was told to me.:rotfl :osnap :wahoo

[crazysquirrels]

She may be mad at you as well. If you took my food away we would have a bunch of issues going on. Try cutting out some of her food. Give her a part of a nut in the morning so then she still is happy with the small treat. Like 1 almond. She will mow that down then go eat the rest of the food. And she may not be so angry with you.
Talula would let me know when she was mad. She would dig her hind claws into the back of my neck and use the fronts to drag herself forward. Hurt like hell. Then she would take off full speed down my body. She woud hit the floor and give me this look. I know this look. It usually ment I fed her something she hated. Now I have to figure it out.

[littlesquirt]

I have a 3 year old grey who does let me hold him and pet him but it has to be on his terms. That's one thing I've learned over the years, squirrels are incredibly smart and fast learners. I once tried to put him in a harness and he was mad at me for 3 days, and from then on, everytime I took the harness out he would freak and run away. Needless to say, I've given up on the harness. Squirrels are also very forgiving with a little bit of food reward (but don't reward them too much). For mine, whenever I clip his nails, he gets half a pecan as a reward. He forgets the whole ordeal while munching away.
When you take him out, maybe take a nut and break it into little pieces. Have him start to sit on your hand and feed him a bit by bit. Then when he's comfortable you can start petting him. Also, my squirrel won't lie still on me unless he's getting a nice rubdown. Try rubbing the ears, under the chin and the armpits (I find it sooo adorable how they raise their arms so you can scratch it). Anyways, hopefully these tips help!

[shllyrse]

I agreewith astra.. lol noooo burito..only for meds if nessasery, also I have a 13 wk but she was 12 wks when I got her. I found a way to cuddle her. she would not want me holding her but I gained the hand trust first then when she would play with my hand and let me pet her in her bed that is when I got the idea.. brace yourself..lol wait till it is her sleep time and she is out of it sleeping good.. and reach in rub her lovingly and then pick her up slow and gently and pull her close to your chest and continue to rub her. she will let you do this for a few min but then will realize what u did so then put her up dont force her. do this over and over she will start to respond. this wil be her calmest moments..lol because as I was told she is a baby and has lots of energy. that will pass some later but just dont force her play during the energy play time and during the sleepy time cuddle and it will get longer times as she gets used to it.. lol :rotfl soooo funny. I have done this for a week now and now dizzy is letting me hold her during play time and even some cuddling during that time. be patient,, yes I said it and I listend when it was told to me.:rotfl :osnap :wahoo
This sounds like a great approach! Thanks so much for the input, I am definitely going to try this with her, as I think it will work.:alright.gif
Today I was playing with her, hand wrestling, and she curled up in my palm. I kinda cupped my other hand on top of her and stroked her belly, and she went along with it and let me lift her up a few inches - completely suspended in my hands.. success :jump :wahoo

[shllyrse]

She may be mad at you as well. If you took my food away we would have a bunch of issues going on. Try cutting out some of her food. Give her a part of a nut in the morning so then she still is happy with the small treat. Like 1 almond. She will mow that down then go eat the rest of the food. And she may not be so angry with you.
Talula would let me know when she was mad. She would dig her hind claws into the back of my neck and use the fronts to drag herself forward. Hurt like hell. Then she would take off full speed down my body. She woud hit the floor and give me this look. I know this look. It usually ment I fed her something she hated. Now I have to figure it out.

Sounds painful!! Yeah, I've taken to giving her a little treat in the afternoon, and she's been way more friendly overall. Almost back to her old self :D
But I will try that too, thanks :thumbsup

[shllyrse]

I have a 3 year old grey who does let me hold him and pet him but it has to be on his terms. That's one thing I've learned over the years, squirrels are incredibly smart and fast learners. I once tried to put him in a harness and he was mad at me for 3 days, and from then on, everytime I took the harness out he would freak and run away. Needless to say, I've given up on the harness. Squirrels are also very forgiving with a little bit of food reward (but don't reward them too much). For mine, whenever I clip his nails, he gets half a pecan as a reward. He forgets the whole ordeal while munching away.
When you take him out, maybe take a nut and break it into little pieces. Have him start to sit on your hand and feed him a bit by bit. Then when he's comfortable you can start petting him. Also, my squirrel won't lie still on me unless he's getting a nice rubdown. Try rubbing the ears, under the chin and the armpits (I find it sooo adorable how they raise their arms so you can scratch it). Anyways, hopefully these tips help!

OK, will do. She definitely seems like the kinda girl that will work for food :rotfl
I'll start trying to get her on my hand like that today. The problem is, every time she gets a nut, she goes away to some corner in her cage to eat it. I can still pet her while she eats it, she just likes to go far away in case we want to steal it ;)
I always rub her ears/chin/armpits. She loves it when she's sleeping/snuggling in her nestbox, but I can't get her to stay still any other time.. She's crazy! :crazy