KILL ALL THE SQUIRRELS!

[Ohnobro]

Just kidding! Now that I have your attention... let me introduce myself. (Sorry hope I didn't scare you too bad!)
So about a month ago, the hubby was trimming our fir tree and out bailed a baby and the mother. Mom took off, baby plummeted and we couldn't find it afterwards. (Hopefully mama sq found him and took him away...) but there was two babies in the nest, and hubs instinctively grabbed the last little girl before she fell 40+feet... oh no bro...
Side note... "only two babies? I saw the mother move at least 5 to the nest? (Cue crows cawing in the background) so sad!
Anyways, here we are. NOW for a little back story. My title is actually a little honest, because up until the baby I was just so hateful of squirrels! (I am a gardener, afterall) they just loved destroying my hard work! Agghh!
But then oh my goodness, this baby. Changed our whole opinions on things, and changed our lives! Now I can't even pass roadkill without letting out a sad "oh nooo". This is Rediculous!! How could this little furry thing change our icy hearts like this! But alas, I am in love.
So fast forward to more recent times.
She burrowed into our hearts and (after trying to find mom, for two days) we decided to raise her for release on our own. Now I am quite the animal person and have raised rescues from everything from deer to pythons, and our local rehabber is a total jerk! So don't be too worried, I'm new to squees but absolutely obsessed with raising her right and with the help of TSB I'm sure we can do this.
So we named our bundle of joy:.....
Squirrel.
I know I know, so creative right? Nothing seemed to fit her right, but I do sometimes address her as beebee, squee, or furryosa lol
She is a love. Started her on FV right away, and she just recently started solid foods so Henry blocks it was. Plus some veggies and herbs from my garden, oh the irony...
Anyways, hubs loves her too, and built her a giant Taj Ma Squirrel to live in. We keep her away from the dog (he's weirded out by weird things so he stays away on his own too lol) and after this coming winter she will be soft released on our 3 acres.
To note, I have been lurking the forums for a while and so glad to finally join the community, because you are all so helpful and supportive, thank you! And wish me luck! I'll need it...
Yours truly,
The converted

[SammysMom]

Welcome to TSB! You and Squirrel will be very happy here! We LOVE pictures!!!:w00t

[Ohnobro]

Thank you! Glad to be welcomed :w00t
I've put up some pics in a public album so you guys can see my sweetie and how much she's grown up already, and there should be a pic of her enclosure which is now full of fun squirrely things :grin2

[SammysMom]

Thank you! Glad to be welcomed :w00t
I've put up some pics in a public album so you guys can see my sweetie and how much she's grown up already, and there should be a pic of her enclosure which is now full of fun squirrely things :grin2
Where? :dono

[Tai]

wow, look at those ears!

[Ohnobro]

Should be in the album spot of my profile... I'm new to the whole forum thing but I'll put some on the msg board for your viewing pleasure

[Shewhosweptforest]

:wave123 :Welcome :laugh2 oh my goodness....a person with a death wish :eek speaking of the title :facepalm I loved your introduction....brutally honest :grin3 and yes we allllll understand "squirrel magic" once bitten you are forever a carrier...and long after Squirrel is released and visiting you in your yard...the Taj Ma Squirrel will be blinking it's Vacancy sign :great thank you for letting your heart grow....it changes every part of your life....your interpretation of the world:serene you are among fellow "Nuts" now :hug :bliss

Oh and kudos for all your research and good work with Squirrel :highfive :bowdown

[Mel1959]

:Welcome:Welcome. I love it when another one bites the dust......of squirrel magic, that is! There's is NOTHING like it. Can't wait to hear all about Squirrel. :blowkiss

[island rehabber]

ohnobro, is your Squirrel a Western Grey? She is beautiful and so pearly-grey...!

[HRT4SQRLS]

:Welcome to TheSquirrelBoard

Yeah, that title will raise a few eyebrows.
Nice name... Squirrel. :rotfl
I've been told the condition is incurable so accept your fate... you're hooked.

I, too grieve for road kill and God help us if a squirrel darts into the road in front of me. :eek
My mom shouted... Are you going to kill us over a squirrel? ... to which I replied... Well DUH... YES!!!! :peace

[PennyCash]

:Welcome Ohnobro and pretty pearly squirrel! You definitely got my attention! I almost didn't even open the thread...
Now I'm glad that I did whew! :serene

[Gardentoes11]

Welcome to the weird & wonderful subculture of squirrels! You are infected now, but you won't ever want to be cured of your new love for squirrels! I'm a gardener too (hence the name), but the wilds around here don't do enough damage to make themselves a nuisance. The occasional marigold or bulb dug up; a bigger problem is the stupid black walnut trees that are growing everywhere & are impossible to get rid of thanks to the squees planting them. First world problems.....

Anyhow, your baby Squirrel is such a lovely frosty color! Feel free to overload us with pix. Really, OVERLOAD. One can never get enough squirrel pix! Can't wait to read all about her adventures as she grows up!

[cava]

Cute pics and did hubby build that cage for you? I gotta get me one of those (cage, not hubby).:grin3 Your photos are super cute and as for the harness, what the??? :rolf Quick is right, I'm sure!

Keep up the :Squirrel:Love_Icon

[Ohnobro]

Yes I believe she is a Western Grey and thank you everyone! I'm sorry if I freaked anyone out, but yes it's a weird kind of love and at times I feel soooo silly- "make sure her formula is warm, but not too warm! You plugged in the heating pad right? No nuts till she eats her vegetables! Quiet! The baby is sleeping!" Etc...:the_wife
Yes he did, and the neighbor fell in love too and helped a lot with the cage. It's horribly gigantic for our tiny house... but will make a great outdoor cage when and if the time comes, and her nest box is detachable so we can put it up in a tree on the property. I say IF because holy moly is she spoiled, and it wouldn't surprise me, being a singleton and all, if she didn't want to leave right away-but we will see! I'm prepared either way!

[Ohnobro]

Oh, and about the harness... she wasn't sure about it at first but realized "harness comes with treats" and when not in use it's hanging in her space so she can climb on it and get her smell all over it.
The reason for the silly harness and leash is so we can go outside together and get some sunlight! She gets to climb on the pine in the deck and just loves it. I can tell cause she goes all "squarnado" on it and nuk nuk nuks like crazy. But when it's time to go inside she's ready on the shoulder and anticipating her "after walk treat."
Ok, as I'm writing this I realize how nutty I/we are. Oh goodness.

[ALittleNutty]

Welcome to the craziness and total :Love_Icon of squirrels. I got into this due to my hubby shooting a momma and my first baby was hers, so in a search for information I found TSB. Now hubby won't shoot any since he has fallen in love with the squirrels and has gradually overcome his fierce possesiveness of his pecan trees. We've had many successful releases on our property and just this year we had James and Della. She hung around for about 2 weeks after release then hit the woods and won't let us get within 10 feet of her. James is homesteading and comes for food and water everyday. I can go to the edge of the woods and call him and he will come running. He'll follow us around and even spend time on the back porch couch with us just hanging out. Mine don't bother the garden much since they have so much to forage for in the woods. Have fun with your new buddy.

[cava]

Welcome to the craziness and total :Love_Icon of squirrels. I got into this due to my hubby shooting a momma and my first baby was hers, so in a search for information I found TSB. Now hubby won't shoot any since he has fallen in love with the squirrels and has gradually overcome his fierce possesiveness of his pecan trees.

My sister-in-law's two nieces from Texas were visiting a month ago and came over to see the baby squirrels. They hunt snakes, frogs, squirrels and other small animals back home. They had tons of pictures of dead animals on their phones. The one girl started crying. She said she would never kill another squirrel for the rest of her life. If that is TRUE then wow, was that visit worth it!

[Ohnobro]

Oh my it's so true! Whenever anyone lays eyes on her up close they're instantly changed forever. For example, I have a friend who is basically exactly like Bill Murray in Caddy shack. Same job, same attitude toward the critters... Anyways, he came over one day when she was still doing "squirrel ball" often, and I told him, here hold this tight with love and put her in his hands. Once he realized he was holding a sweet snuggly baby squee, he was lost forever.

[Cesta]

:wave123
Hi!
What a fantastic introduction to your squirrel love story!! :Love_Icon Welcome to the world of fellow squirrel lovers!! Sorry I'm a little late to the party...

Your research is impressive, I so wish everyone took a few minutes to learn basic squirrel care before feeding their rescued babies. True feeding stories, all seen by local rehabbers -- human baby formula, skim cow milk, "raw" goat milk (for some reason she thought the raw part was very important), cashew milk, almond milk and my favorite, breast milk! The 'breastfed baby' mum generously offered to send some of her milk with the squirrel. :tilt I believe that baby ended up with the name Hooters. :rotfl

So it's super exciting to meet you, a convert, and one who educated herself at that! I love it! Thank you for saving your baby, and if it's up for any kind of vote, I love the name Furryosa.:grin3

I don't know how baby squirrels instantly bury themselves in our hearts, but they sure do! Thanks for sharing the love with others who sound like they're converts now, too.

You're going to save a lot of money on squirrel veggies with that garden! You might want to add sugar snap peas, radicchio, and avocado if you aren't growing them already! :thumbsup

Can't wait to read through this thread and hear all about your little one. Congratulations and welcome!
:grouphug