Casual Question

[Maxrn09]

Aloha Squirrel Boarders,

I have a year old female grey squirrel named Roxxy..she is 95% blind, may only see shadows...and she cannot be released to the wild. I'm seeing more behavior from her that I understand to be normal when she is ready to have a "soft release". She has a right handed circle issue....(always to the right)..she relaxes and pancakes on the couch occasionally to rest but seems to be doing this circling more often instead of roaming and playing...she is very healthy and I'm sure a young adult that would be breeding in the wild by now if possible. My problem is we cant release her...we don't want to contain /cage her all the time but give her a way to alleviate the anxiety she must be having to need run circles. I do see some things that make it worse, like more noise in the house. Her diet is correct, we follow the recommendations faithfully. She has a quiet cage in a quiet area and she sleeps in there only as she has been allowed to roam safely. My husband is a self employed man who has been with her all her life...hes quiet and calm with her and she trusts him most.261413
I have followed the advice here on the board to keep her healthy and happy as possible. We are not sure how to help her.
Mahalo and Blessings to you all.....Maxine

[PeeWee's Mom]

What a cutie pie!!
Would you be open to adding a few things in her room that she can play in/with? Like a bucket of dirt she can dig in? We have 1 that Peewee just loves playing in. Every few days we bury a treat in it. It's so adorable watching them dig!

[CritterMom]

Roxxy is beautiful - and she is a fox squirrel, not a gray squirrel.

The circling behavior is usually associated with neurological damage. Was she blind when she came to you? Any other signs of neurological issues?

Does she make big circles or little ones? When normal, healthy squirrels start having the hormones pumping through them at this age, a lot of times you see them either pacing in front of one window or running frantically from window to window over and over again. I assume her circling is her version of this. A lot of time you can snap them out of it by simply placing things in their path, like a pile of stuffed animals or toys or whatever. If these are tight circles, you may need to just let her do her thing - it is a lot more distressing to you than her, believe me. She figures it is normal!

[Maxrn09]

ROXXY IS A FOXXY!LOL
Thank you for the information...it does seem that it may be neurological damage...she fell from a very high pine tree when she was really young..and she walked at a funky-head-hurt-tilt...she couldn't walk straight for some time, to me, a working RN, I agree...she had a traumatic brain injury and she is blind in my opinion due to the fall...I honestly don't know how she survived, I thought she was a goner.
As for her patterns of circles..they vary in size, from circling around one table leg to circling the perimeter of the living room...always clockwise...always...we wonder if it is due to vision or injury to the brain in the fall. we think she has a slit worth of vision on the left side and pretty sure the right side is completely blind, as the pupil does not at all respond in anyway to a penlight, nor does it seem to elicit any response from her to directly shine into that side.
I often wonder if she is too well nourished and has so much excess energy that she does this alot...she doesn't act as though she has no control of the need to circle, as she stops when she is tired or hungry or distracted..don't think she behaves if she is driven or has OCD...
I feel better knowing this is not a super bad thing...maybe redirecting more, more climbing and exploring? thank you all for your time. Maxine

[Maxrn09]

What a cutie pie!!
Would you be open to adding a few things in her room that she can play in/with? Like a bucket of dirt she can dig in? We have 1 that Peewee just loves playing in. Every few days we bury a treat in it. It's so adorable watching them dig!

That is a great idea...we will try it and see if she likes it. Mahalo!!!

[island rehabber]

Other fun things to keep her occupied: branches, especially those with buds and new leaves on them. Toilet paper tubes and paper towel tubes -- a HUGE hit. Put a treat in the middle, then stuff either end with Kleenex. Treasure hunt! Toys on bungee cords -- they love 'em!

[lennysmom]

I might add, make sure she has plently to chew on too - black walnuts in the shell are a huge hit at my house and usually take awhile for them to crack as they are very hard nuts. Antlers are great too and provide extra calcium. And most of mine also love to wrestle with small stuffed animals with me. By the way, your Roxie is a beautiful girl!:Love_Icon