Missing Squirrel

[amanda43marie]

Frank had fallen out of the palm tree in my front yard when he was a baby, he had a hurt leg and no mom in sight so I took him in and raised him in august. I came to the conclusion that he was 3-4 weeks old when I found him. He was definitely spoiled and had an entire room to roam but recently he very obviously wanted to be outside. About a month ago I started the soft release process with him in my front yard. A week ago was his first full night outside. I was worried, but sure enough the next morning he came staright to the door and when we opened it he trotted to his room to his bed. When I put him back outside the later he was happy. But i haven't seen him near my house since then. Its been three days and I am very worried. We have lots of cats and an owl in my neighborhood.

[amanda43marie]

Please, if you can just please pray for Frank.

[HRT4SQRLS]

Hi Amanda
It's pretty common for them to go missing for a few days or even a few weeks BUT I do have to say the cats are a big problem. Do you have trees in your yard? If Frank spends most of his time in the trees he will be safer BUT if he is on the ground a lot he is at great risk from the cats. I have found that 'human raised' squirrels take queues from the wilds. The wild squirrels will alarm bark loudly when they see a cat. Frank will pay attention to this but honestly the cats ARE a problem.

The owls are not as big a problem because I think that are more nocturnal, right? Squirrels are asleep at night when the owls hunt. Owls are a huge risk to flying squirrels which are also nocturnal.

Are these feral cats? Or neighbors cats?

[amanda43marie]

There are plenty of trees in my front yard and throughout the neighborhood. I would usually see him run to the differnt trees in the neighborhood but he would run on the ground too. The main cat I am worried about is my neighbors cat. They just let her run loose and do whatever. The other cats in neighborhood I see scarcely

[HRT4SQRLS]

:grouphug Amanda, I will pray that Frank comes home. :Love_Icon

[HRT4SQRLS]

Amanda, if you have a lot of trees, more than likely you also have wild squirrels that live in your yard. Squirrels are very territorial. Sometimes they will chase another squirrel away from their territory. It's possible that Frank got chased by a wild squirrel and was afraid to come around. If this is the case, he will more than likely return. These same squirrels that might chase him can also be an asset to him. They should alarm when they see the cat. This will alert Frank about danger. I have noticed that when a squirrel alarms ALL of the squirrels HIT THE TREES. It just seems to be instinct.

This will help Frank deal with the cat problem.

Honey, it's a story we hear almost daily. A new release is missing and mama is frantic. I will say this MOST of the time they do return.... not before you have a 'breakdown' but they do return. :tilt Keep the faith. Be outside early and call him.

[amanda43marie]

Yes I am definitely a frantic Momma here having a breakdown. We do have quite a few squirrels around so I hope that was just the case. Thank you for easing me a bit. :Love_Icon

[amanda43marie]

I saw Frank today!! He was on the tree that i used to put him on to play!:dance He was veeery apprehensive of me though. Is there any reason for this? He was such a mamas boy before always sleeping and playing with me. Sorry for all the questions, this is the first squirrel i have ever raised and released. And thank you for the prayers

[HRT4SQRLS]

:bliss That's great news Amanda. I'm so happy for you. Actually, apprehensive is GOOD. It's part of the 'wilding up' process. It's never a good thing when you have a release that is too people friendly, especially if you have neighbors. A release that is too friendly to people is at great risk for being injured or killed. A release without appropriate fear of people will run right up a stranger's leg. Trust me, that's a very bad thing. People would react as though a rabid squirrel has just attacked them.

I'm sure that Frank still knows you but his apprehension of people in general will go a long way toward his survival outside. Again, I am SO happy for you. :dance

[TubeDriver]

:w00t

Glad that Frank made an appearance!:)

[SammysMom]

This is wonderful news!!! :Love_Icon