5 wk old questions: heating pad, solids, pre-release

[agora1031]

I have two babies: Shaq (5 weeks old; opened his eyes 3-4 days ago) and Fatty (4 weeks old; about to open his eyes, but weighs more and eats more than Shaq). I just upgraded them to a bigger cage near the window where they will be able to see outside and can crawl around on a limb or two inside the cage. I also just ordered some squirrel blocks from Henry's. I would like y'all's advice on the following:

1. When should they be completely off the heating pad? I have the pad only on half of their cage and they seem to sleep on that side less and less. I put another blanket on top of it (between the pad and cage bottom) to lessen the low heat setting. I would like to just start turning it off during the day.

2. When can I start feeding them solids? I'm planning to put the squirrel blocks in their cage next week. But should I also start introducing veggies and a few fruits/nuts. If so, when?

3. My sister just rescued a baby squirrel that's 7-8 weeks old. She's fully capable of caring for him and while I'm still feeding Shaq and Fatty multiple times a day we'd both prefer if she cared for him for awhile. Once my two can graduate up to a big cage, we'll put them all together outside in the backyard. Do you think they will have any problems getting along if we wait a few more weeks? Also, when can I start putting mine in a bigger cage at the edge of our backyard? I was planning to start putting them outside during the day in about 2-4 weeks when they don't need the heating pad anymore. My goal is to have them fully released by Christmas. We live in South Georgia so it should not be too cold then (40s - 60s F).

Thanks in advance!
instagram.com/shaqandfatty

[Spanky]

I have two babies: Shaq (5 weeks old; opened his eyes 3-4 days ago) and Fatty (4 weeks old; about to open his eyes, but weighs more and eats more than Shaq). I just upgraded them to a bigger cage near the window where they will be able to see outside and can crawl around on a limb or two inside the cage. I also just ordered some squirrel blocks from Henry's.

Be careful about the direct sunlight and their getting too hot, they can overheat quickly especially after they get fully furred.


I would like y'all's advice on the following:

1. When should they be completely off the heating pad? I have the pad only on half of their cage and they seem to sleep on that side less and less. I put another blanket on top of it (between the pad and cage bottom) to lessen the low heat setting. I would like to just start turning it off during the day.

They need to be fully furred and since they are inside, that also will help. I think yours may still be a little young yet. But I typically let them tell me, like yours are starting to tell you, they no longer need the heating pad. Do you have a nest box or cubby for them? Usually mine move into the cubby (hanging) or nest box in the upper parts of the cage. Once they are routinely sleeping in the cubbies / boxes off the floor of the cage... then I know!


2. When can I start feeding them solids? I'm planning to put the squirrel blocks in their cage next week. But should I also start introducing veggies and a few fruits/nuts. If so, when?

I have best luck starting them off on blocks... I put them in the cage about at about 6 - 7 weeks or when I think they are ready (if they are chewing the branches in their cage). They may ignore them for a while (which requires throwing them out after 2 days). They usually start by simply chewing them up ("shredding") and not actually eating them. I wait until they are eating block, then introduce the other foods only after they have eaten their block. Block should be their primary food.. if they eat two a day they will be healthy and happy! If you offer other food before the block, they may refuse the blocks and become "picky eaters". Better, and easier, for them to get hooked on the block instead of the other way around. And only a couple nuts a day as treats.. only after the healthy food!

BTW: Store Henry's blocks in the freezer to make them last much longer! They will mold after a week or so if not in the freezer.



3. My sister just rescued a baby squirrel that's 7-8 weeks old. She's fully capable of caring for him and while I'm still feeding Shaq and Fatty multiple times a day we'd both prefer if she cared for him for awhile. Once my two can graduate up to a big cage, we'll put them all together outside in the backyard. Do you think they will have any problems getting along if we wait a few more weeks? Also, when can I start putting mine in a bigger cage at the edge of our backyard? I was planning to start putting them outside during the day in about 2-4 weeks when they don't need the heating pad anymore. My goal is to have them fully released by Christmas. We live in South Georgia so it should not be too cold then (40s - 60s F).

Thanks in advance!
instagram.com/shaqandfatty

I have no experience introducing babies that many weeks apart.. hopefully someone with experience will weigh in. I would think it may be difficult and will depend on each squirrel's personality. I would think they would be "around" each other, in separate cages in the same room, for a while before putting them together. :dono

I do believe if you do, you need to place them all in the release cage all at the same time.. so your older ones should not go out ahead of the others! That way none would consider it their territory to defend and the others "intruders". I'd put 3 nest boxes in the release cage too... they may double or triple up, but in the beginning they won't have to fight over boxes. And definitely you'd need to watch them for hours to see that they are okay together!

Good Luck!

[magna]

Hi...welcome to the board. You will find a wealth of knowledge here as well as varying answers from people with a lot of experience. The answer above is a a great start for you. We feed dry primate food as a treat for them to munch on while they grow. It is not sufficient in nutrients to be a stable diet but it is better than a lot of nuts. All our little's get introduced to rodent blocks early on. Some eat them every day and others will not touch them. We are only about fifty or sixty miles from you and we will overwinter our crew prior to release. You can chunk as many as you like in together so long as it is at the same time and everything in the new cage is fresh and hasn't belonged to one of them. We just put 9 in together of varying ages no more than two weeks difference, there is always a whiner and one or two grouches but they sort it out if the cage is big enough to allow them running room. We have 20 more to go out into another enclosure in several weeks. Our guys can probably make it on their own if released but it would be December so we wait until March and buds are popping out. Remember glass magnifies so do check on the overheat issue with them sitting in the sun. Once again WELCOME!!!!! If you only have a few the Henry's blocks are great!!!!