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View Full Version : HELP! A squirrel has adopted US!



jpakmedlin
04-23-2006, 11:57 PM
Hello! We need help and fast!

A juvenile squirrel has adopted our family. Let me give you a bit of background on this little cutie.

Last Wednesday, we noticed a large bundle of leaves, sticks etc on the ground in our front yard. We THEN noticed a small squirrel sitting in our natural area under the trees. The squirrel has a bushy tail (though it seems thin compared to mature adults), it's eyes are open and it was eating acorns. The squirrel continued to just sit there even when we got within a foot of it.

My kids thought it was hurt. It must be it's nest that fell out of the tree (they decided). So we were going to catch it in our small pet carrier and make sure it was taken care of (cats and dogs roam free in our neighborhood). In the process of doing this, the squirrel decided he'd had enough and took off up the tree. I told the kids he would be fine since he could climb the tree.

Sunday morning, my son was sitting out on the front porch watching all the spring babies (chipmunks, birds etc). All of a sudden, this juvenile squirrel hops up on the porch and sits RIGHT BESIDE my son. I am not kidding! This squirrel was within inches of him. He quickly called for me, I came out, put on leather gloves and picked the little guy up. I had decided in the back of my mind there must be something wrong with it if it would come right up like that.

I checked it out, there isn't anything outwardly wrong. No cuts, scratches, bleeding etc. He let me pet his stomach and his back without doing anything. He seemed relatively calm.

We got the pet carrier, put some shavings in it (the kind you use for hamster cages - unscented), put a lid with water and another lid with birdseed and some acorns in it, placed the squirrel inside and put the carrier beside the porch in a safe, shady area.

Now here's the thing. The squirrel has not come out of the carrier all day (the door is wide open). It hasn't eaten or drank anything. I did the skin pinch (tent) test to check for dehydration, he seems fine. He's been in basically the same spot in the carrier all day and appears to be currently sleeping very soundly. (I touched him, shined a light in - nothing! He doesn't move a muscle).

I'm worried there's something wrong! Can someone please advise on what to do?

It's illegal in our state to have squirrels, so I'm very hesitant to take it to the vet.

I'd appreciate any information and/or suggestions. I don't want anything to happen to our new friend!

island rehabber
04-24-2006, 06:41 AM
It is certainly possible that your little friend's nest fell into your yard, and now he's homeless. How is he this morning? The fact that he was sleeping for many hours is still typical of squirrels under 8-9 weeks old -- they sleep basically anytime they're not eating. Tell us if he's moving around this morning and hungry -- that would mean he's pretty much OK. Hard to give advice as to the best course of action (if any) until we get an update. Thanks for caring about him! :)

jpakmedlin
04-24-2006, 07:49 AM
Thanks for the info!

I checked on him this morning, and the cage is empty. We left it outside with the door open last night - left the food and water.

I'm wondering if he'll return if I leave the cage there?

I'm glad that he's ok and even if he's just touched our lives a very little, I'm grateful for it!

island rehabber
04-24-2006, 08:19 AM
Good! Hopefully you'll see him again later and he'll be OK....he's a juvenile and they are unfortunately very trusting and a little dumb -- that's why they end up being someone's lunch a lot of the time. If you want to keep interacting with him, do leave the food out for him. If you have predators around -- cats or dogs -- of course it wouldn't be wise to get him accustomed to coming for food.

MissDolittle
04-24-2006, 08:26 AM
We got the pet carrier, put some shavings in it (the kind you use for hamster cages - unscented), put a lid with water and another lid with birdseed and some acorns in it, placed the squirrel inside and put the carrier beside the porch in a safe, shady area.

If he comes back, take the birdseeds away and give him some rodent block,
birdseeds are for birds :).

This is what rodent block looks like:
http://www.thesquirrelstore.com/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=109