wont eat!!

[fallensquirrel]

My dad brought me a baby yesterday. I looked on the web and found out how to age it. Ifigure it is around 7 to 8 weeks old. I am taking it to the vet later if they can fit me in. But right now I dont know if it is eating or not. We gave him veggies and about a teaspoon of bird seed seeing as how you can never keep them out of that stuff. I tried the reunite thing ans it didn't work sat there for 2 and a half hours. I also want to know how do you sex them?

[MissDolittle]

Hi Fallensquirrel, here is a link that will give you some important guidelines:

http://www.squirrelsandmore.com/category.cfm?Category=38

In order to find out what gender your baby is...the genitals of the female
are very close together. The genitals of a male are further apart..it has been
pretty obvious to me what's a male and what not :). I'd wish there were
pictures around of that..maybe I have to take my own when I get a male and
a female baby in.

[fallensquirrel]

thank you for the info. This baby is a ctuie we named it Ka Thunk (after falling off a roof and hitting the concret). When I pick it up it makes these lil chattering noises it is cute.

[MissDolittle]

Those chattering noises are warning signals, when the baby sounds like a bird,
it's scared.

The first thing I would do is to check for dehydration, get some pedialyte into
a 1 cc syringe and offer some of that. In what kind of cage do you have the
baby? Any way you can post a picture?

[fallensquirrel]

I have it in a cat carrier right now i am going to buy a bigger cage tomorrow. I didnt want to spend all that money and have it not make it. I am try to post a pic but it might be hard seeing as how every time i pick it up it runs under my hair and hides there.

[MissDolittle]

Before you buy a cage, let the others tell you how big it needs it be and
what it all needs, because I'm not so sure how to explain it lol.

I have mine, when they are babies, in a small cage, but when they start
running and climbing around, I put them in a ferret cage with branches in it
to climb. Once they eat on their own, they go outside into the pre-release cage
that's 6x8x7.

There was a thread about this..:

http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45

Yours sounds ready for the ferret cage and some solid foods. Have you offered
solid foods and have a small shallow bowl of water available?

Here's a thread where we talked about diets...and please ignore mine, I
learned better here lol:

http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=205&highlight=diet

[fallensquirrel]

here is a pic of my baby

[SquirrelMcFurrly]

you probably need to but him on puppy formula in a srynige and maybe cheerios, but make sure he is not dehyrated:)

[MissDolittle]

Oh, what a darling :). I'd guess he's about 2 months old, maybe 10 weeks.
He defintely needs solid food, formula, and a t-shirt to cuddle up and hide in.

Also remember, squirrels need sun...closed windows don't count. He is beyond
the cuddling age, so try not to handle him too much and stay away as much
as possible. I've seen squirrels die from too much handling at that age.

[thundersquirrel]

awww, he looks a little lonely.

if you want to give him some comfort, get an old sock (make sure it's clean with no hanging threads though) and fill it with rice. tie off the top and put it in the microwave for thirty to 45 seconds. you can put it in his/her nest, and it can cuddle up to the warmth, and viola! fake sibling at your service!

sexing babies is fun. :) i can sex a baby now in about two seconds. if you're not sure, you could try and get a picture of its genitals lol. but really, if it's a male, the penis should be almost at the base of the stomach and he should be growing some testes :D . if it's a female, her vagina will be closer to her anus. it'll probably be hard to tell cause you can't really hold a baby that age very much.

veterinarians are bad news. :nono honestly, they seem to know what they're doing, but in the end, they really don't know much about squirrels unless they've raised them successfully. sometimes bad advice can lead to a baby's death. you can still visit a vet, esp. if a baby is sick or injured, but check the info with real experienced rehabbers first.

dehydration is a possibility. pedialyte is always good, and you probably don't have to heat it up for a baby of this age. you can give it to him via syringe or shallow bowl, and you can get regular flavor or apple flavor. :) but if he starts eating and drinking water, it's not necessary to get pedialyte.

if you give him hard nuts (walnuts, almonds, minimal peanuts), crack them open halfway, because he's probably not strong enough to do it himself yet. he might be rejecting the veggies and birdseed because he can't find fresh veggies like that in the wild and birdseed is...well, for birds, lol. if you cut up grapes in QUARTERS (no bigger cause he could choke) that's a favorite of my squirrels, also apple slices. :)

wow, i wrote a lot. i hope it doesn't overwhelm you! lol
keep us updated.
stay nutty :crazy
thundersquirrel
p.s. you DO plan on releasing him, right? just to clarify :peace

[fallensquirrel]

Heres the update it is a HE. When I took him to the vet I was told he is ok no ill effects from the fall(which is crazy he fell like 30 feet). He got out today I was scared but then I thought well if he wants to go let him. He ran up a tree and stopped around 3 feet up it. When I went after him he jumped on my shoulder and started to hide under my hair. I hope he will get over the fear of high places so I can release him. He is also eating the only draw back is I have to hand it to him. I also bought a big cage for him with two levels he has a nest on both floors. Now I another question he is making these lil noises he dont sound like a bird but like he is gruntin. What does that mean. He does it everytime I come in the room? Thank you for all ya'lls help Ka thunk and I am very thankful.:grouphug

[Secret Squirrel]

KaThunk is too young to release now. You said he is 7-8 weeks when you found him you need to keep him until he is 16 weeks old. He must be able to eat on his own, crack a Brazil Nut and chew small branches in two.
The grays I have are only 8 weeks old and still want formula daily. I would never dream of letting them go at this age.
As for the grunting, he is talking and letting you know he's there. As for him wanting you to hand feed I believe he is still scared and needs a momma to care for his boo boos.
Good luck with the lil man...you know how sensitive guys are???

[fallensquirrel]

Thanks for all the info he is helpfull. I just have one more question for now. Is it ok if he eats sugar cookies(the flavored kind with icing). My daughter was eating one while i was changing the litter in the cage and Ka Thunk stole it from her... and he would not give it back. I have a picture of him haning upsie down from the cookie. he is such a lil :icon_devil

[MissDolittle]

There is a rule of thumb:

Do NOT feed squirrels any human food.

Sure there are exceptions such as Cheerios, but sugar cookies can't be good.

Are you playing a lot with the squirrel? How old is your daughter?

[island rehabber]

Miss Dolittle is right on target -- no people foods except maybe Cheerios and 7-grain bread. As a treat you can give KaThunk pieces of apple and pear, or a peeled grape. When blueberries come in you can try those too -- some squirrels really love them. Sure, when he's older and wiser he will pick up a cookie or a potato chip and eat it, but these are not good for him while he is a growing boy :)

[thundersquirrel]

yay for boys. arrrrgh i need some squirrels this spring.
wow, it sounds like he likes you a lot! :)
still, i think you should back off a little. it's ok that you've been close to him, cause it's not too late to make him wild, but at this point you need to minimize human contact. if he becomes too tame, releasing him would basically be putting him through a slow death. don't pick him up unless you have to, put food in his cage when he's sleeping or not interested in you. if you want to feed him formula, you can do it through the cage bars. it might take some getting used to, but he'll figure it out. ;)

hehehe i wouldn't worry about the sugar cookie. it's not good to give him human food, but he probably won't get ill from one cookie. just don't let it happen again :nono lol.

hehe don't let him get out again. bad news, he'd be easy hawk food. you can put his cage outside during the day, but make sure it is securely shut!

i think it's cute that he make noises when you come. just make sure he's not flicking his tail when he's making them, cause that means BACK OFF HUMAN!!!
hope it all works out. he sounds like a real sweetie, and your daughter must be lovin him.
stay nutty :crazy
thundersquirrel

[rygel1hardt]

Almost all of my greys and the one foxer I raised have purred when they saw me coming to feed them. I bet that is where the term cat squirrels came from. Maybe that is what your baby is doing. Mine also vibrated when they purred




=fallensquirrel]Heres the update it is a HE. When I took him to the vet I was told he is ok no ill effects from the fall(which is crazy he fell like 30 feet). He got out today I was scared but then I thought well if he wants to go let him. He ran up a tree and stopped around 3 feet up it. When I went after him he jumped on my shoulder and started to hide under my hair. I hope he will get over the fear of high places so I can release him. He is also eating the only draw back is I have to hand it to him. I also bought a big cage for him with two levels he has a nest on both floors. Now I another question he is making these lil noises he dont sound like a bird but like he is gruntin. What does that mean. He does it everytime I come in the room? Thank you for all ya'lls help Ka thunk and I am very thankful.:grouphug[/QUOTE]

[fallensquirrel]

well today i talked to the zoo and they will take him for the school. But they dont have any room for him right now so i get to keep him for a few more months. No more cookies i got that. he is funny as can be he sits on his butt and hangs on the bars like he is in jail. as for flicking his tail when he makes the noise nope he just runs to the door. right now sitting on the computer he is banging on the door wanting out.
i will post a pic or two of him soon, maybe later tonight

[fallensquirrel]

here he is with the cookie sorry it is so big

329

[MissDolittle]

Those wafers are almost pure sugar....:shakehead, I hope this was a one time
occurrence.

[MissDolittle]

Aaah sorry, I missed the post with the zoo..why does he have to go to a zoo
and can't be released?

[thundersquirrel]

the ZOO?

i'm getting baaaaad vibes here. i think this guy should be raised and released, not sent to captivity. why would he go to the zoo of all places?

heck, send him to michigan, i'll raise him. anything is better than a cage to a wild squirrel.
stay nutty :crazy
thundersquirrel

[Secret Squirrel]

That goes for me too!!! I'll pay the shipping to get him here ASAP!! Giving him to a zoo would be a living hell...not a good idea.

[Squerly]

Yep, he's welcome here too. Let me know when I can expect him, I'll set up the guest room. :)

[Cruella]

[QUOTE=fallensquirrel]well today i talked to the zoo and they will take him for the school.
Why are you putting him in a school Zoo.. He is not a show and tell Item..
Once you have weaned him, set him free. If you want I will pay to have him shipped here. I have 8 acres of woods and very few squirrels. When he is ready I will set him free. I know your intension are good. But don't sentence him caged for the rest of his life.:nono