Weight

[Eejay]

Ive asked in various posts about weight. Im now concerned ive been over feeding, but am not certain.
Lilo is 5 months. 550g. Daily i offer 2 formula feedings morning and evening 30-40ml each time. 6or 7 home made blocks (she shreds most of it) 3 handfuls of arugula 1 strawberry 3 snap peas half mushroom 1 small brocolli top small slice of cucumber cut in 4 and a teaspoon of dry oatmeal in cage and her room for foraging ..i switch up different veggies and fruit weekly. But stick with the block formula and arugula daily.
I offer one nut in the evening. If i give a second nut it is always an almond in shell.
Is this enough or too much.. She seems to search for more food all the time. I figured maybe that is just the foraging instinct and that she isnt actually hungry.

[Eejay]

Also.. When i return home from work.. I gather the dhredded block and add it to a teaspoon of yogurt in order to make sure she is eatting enough block.
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She doesnt look over weight to me. I actually worry she looks lean compared to other squirrel pics.

[Nancy in New York]

I would double check your scale.
Your squirrel doesn't look like she weighs 550 grams. :dono
She's adorable, by the way! :klunk
If she's still acting hungry, I would offer more of the good stuff,
seems like she enjoys eating. :)

[Eejay]

I would double check your scale.
Your squirrel doesn't look like she weighs 550 grams. :dono
She's adorable, by the way! :klunk
If she's still acting hungry, I would offer more of the good stuff,
seems like she enjoys eating. :)
I agree. I just bought a new one. Ive weighed her everyday at the same time as well kinda expecting to get a different number but it is always in the same range. Ill fiddle with the scale when im home to see if it is in fact not accurate

[Nancy in New York]

I agree. I just bought a new one. Ive weighed her everyday at the same time as well kinda expecting to get a different number but it is always in the same range. Ill fiddle with the scale when im home to see if it is in fact not accurate

Yeah, try getting a can of "something" that has the weight on it, and compare.
Can you get a couple of shots from a distance ~ 5-6 feet away?

[Eejay]

I can try this evening yes. Ill also try to use something as a comparison with her as well

[Roxi's mom]

Also.. When i return home from work.. I gather the dhredded block and add it to a teaspoon of yogurt in order to make sure she is eatting enough block.
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She doesnt look over weight to me. I actually worry she looks lean compared to other squirrel pics.

Wow! This is the first time I have seen a fox squirrel up close with someone to compare size with. She is so big compared to the grays around my home lol! She does not look overweight to me either. Gorgeous!

[Eejay]

Wow! This is the first time I have seen a fox squirrel up close with someone to compare size with. She is so big compared to the grays around my home lol! She does not look overweight to me either. Gorgeous!
Is she a fox squirrel? Lol i thought was a gray..jist a black gray...i did read a rumour that canadian squirrels were a little bit bigger, but i wasnt certain..im new to this wonderful world of squirrels

[Nancy in New York]

Is she a fox squirrel? Lol i thought was a gray..jist a black gray...i did read a rumour that canadian squirrels were a little bit bigger, but i wasnt certain..im new to this wonderful world of squirrels

You're right she's a little grey "morph" aka black squirrel.
When they're babies we call them blinkines. :)
If that rumor is true about Canadian squirrels being larger,
this may attribute to her weight, but to me she doesn't look like
she weighs 550 grams. :dono

[Eejay]

And i am smallish, (5'1)so she looks big laying on me. She likes to pancake on my forearm and does cover the length of my arm..ill take some better pics of her this evening. And try the can weight trick on the scale

[synisterkat]

She does look big! 282401

I couldn't find a pic of Percy on me but you can see his size by the grid. He's about 775 grams here.

[Jen413]

That picture of her laying on her side and passed out on you is so stinking adorable I can barely stand it!!!!

[Nancy in New York]

She does look big! 282401

I couldn't find a pic of Percy on me but you can see his size by the grid. He's about 775 grams here.

I would never guess that Percy is 775 grams.
How old is he?
He looks long and lean, and oh so curious. :)
:Love_Icon Percy :Love_Icon

[synisterkat]

I would never guess that Percy is 775 grams.
How old is he?
He looks long and lean, and oh so curious. :)
:Love_Icon Percy :Love_Icon

He's 8 months.

[Nancy in New York]

He's 8 months.

WOW, what will he be when he's full grown, watch out! :grin2

[Eejay]

So far i have verified scale is off a bit . damn it. One item that should weigh 96g says 103g and another that should weigh 395g says 413g ...uhg!! Its a brand new digital scale. I bought it soley to keep an eye on her weight.
Ill work on getting better pics next.

[Nancy in New York]

So far i have verified scale is off a bit . damn it. One item that should weigh 96g says 103g and another that should weigh 395g says 413g ...uhg!! Its a brand new digital scale. I bought it soley to keep an eye on her weight.
Ill work on getting better pics next.

So it's either off by7 grams or 18 grams. BUT the can has to weigh something, so you would
have to subtract that weight. I would imagine the can that weighs 413 is a larger/heavier can, thus the 18 gram difference.
Your scale may actually be spot on!
Hmmmmmmmmmm what's for dinner tonight? :)

[Eejay]

So it's either off by7 grams or 18 grams. BUT the can has to weigh something, so you would
have to subtract that weight. I would imagine the can that weighs 413 is a larger/heavier can, thus the 18 gram difference.
Your scale may actually be spot on!
Hmmmmmmmmmm what's for dinner tonight? :)
Lol i gave up with the can..and went to the snack puddings. Weighed one.. Then all 4 together.
Lol dinner was turkey soup..surprise surprise

[Nancy in New York]

Lol i gave up with the can..and went to the snack puddings. Weighed one.. Then all 4 together.
Lol dinner was turkey soup..surprise surprise

Did you weigh the empty can or was it homemade?

[Eejay]

Did you weight the empty can or was it homemade?

Home made.. Lol leftovers

[Eejay]

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Do these help at all. I tried to take from further away but the files were too large for upload so i jad to crop them

[Nancy in New York]

Oh they help a lot.
Lilo is a big girl, actually looks much bigger in these photos.
She looks perfect. She's not what I would call fat at all, she's just a big squirrel for
her age. I would NOT be concerned about her weight.
She doesn't look at all fat to me.
She looks gorgeously healthy, so I say keep up the great work,
and let that girl eat more of the good stuff
(meaning from the healthy food chart of course)if she wants. :w00t

[Eejay]

Thank you for your input. I worry a lot.lol. realizing how important nutrition and eatting habits are im constantly reading the forums learning all i possibly can.

[Nancy in New York]

Thank you for your input. I worry a lot.lol. realizing how important nutrition and eatting habits are im constantly reading the forums learning all i possibly can.
You're a great Mom! :w00t

[Andre]

You could weight money to check your scale
Like a us dollar bill is 1 gram. It's the easiest way to check the scale. A quick Google search will give you the correct wieght for any form of currency.

[Eejay]

You could weight money to check your scale
Like a us dollar bill is 1 gram. It's the easiest way to check the scale. A quick Google search will give you the correct wieght for any form of currency.
I totally forgot about using money. I have used coins in the past for this type of thing. Thanks!!

[Eejay]

thought Lilo was starting to look chunkier now. weighed her and it said 792g. will need to double check that damn scale again to make sure.
do they go through a growth spurt around 6 months? she seems to be getting big quickly.
still accepts formula twice a day thankfully.

[Nancy in New York]

thought Lilo was starting to look chunkier now. weighed her and it said 792g. will need to double check that damn scale again to make sure.
do they go through a growth spurt around 6 months? she seems to be getting big quickly.
still accepts formula twice a day thankfully.

On 12/27 you posted this.



Lilo is 5 months. 550g.

Unless your scale is wrong this would mean that Lilo gained 242 grams in 37 days. :eek
What are you feeding that girl. Double check the scale. :)

[Eejay]

On 12/27 you posted this.



Unless your scale is wrong this would mean that Lilo gained 242 grams in 37 days. :eek
What are you feeding that girl. Double check the scale. :)

yep going to. just bought new batteries today. will update as well. she does look a lot chunkier than last month.
daily rough example of what she is offered. doesnt always finish it all
30 ml formula. 3 blocks ( homemade each size of two dice) a lot gets shredded
4 blueberries.1 small brocolli flower.
2 handfulls arugula.
thumbsized slice of either pear or apple.
4 snap peas
teaspoon yogurt with 2 oxbow young rat blocks crushed into it
1/2 teaspoon dry oats 2 pinches of seasame seeds ( i put in areas for her to "forage")
30 ml formula. again
shelled almond, shelled hazelnut
i offer her fruit to keep her regular.. seems less fruit she has, she doesnt poop as much.
also add apple juice to her water, been trying to lessen the amount weekly to wean her from the juice. she wasnt drinking water much at all until i added juice to it

[Nancy in New York]

yep going to. just bought new batteries today. will update as well. she does look a lot chunkier than last month.
daily rough example of what she is offered. doesnt always finish it all
30 ml formula. 3 blocks ( homemade each size of two dice) a lot gets shredded
4 blueberries.1 small brocolli flower.
2 handfulls arugula.
thumbsized slice of either pear or apple.
4 snap peas
teaspoon yogurt with 2 oxbow young rat blocks crushed into it
1/2 teaspoon dry oats 2 pinches of seasame seeds ( i put in areas for her to "forage")
30 ml formula. again
shelled almond, shelled hazelnut
i offer her fruit to keep her regular.. seems less fruit she has, she doesnt poop as much.
also add apple juice to her water, been trying to lessen the amount weekly to wean her from the juice. she wasnt drinking water much at all until i added juice to it

Well her diet looks great.
I had an overwinter once that did the same thing, she really blew up.
When I tell you that she did NOT eat junk, I'm dead serious.
She would eat ALL of her salad, blocks and veggies, and if there was
even a crumb left over she would find it and eat it the following day
before I cleaned out her cage.
I will have to find a picture, she was HUGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Eejay]

scale is messed i think. sometimes it weighs correctly sometimes not. it gave 3 weights for her and coins i was using to test.. so she is between 665g-750g lol. im digging for receipt to switch at walmart. ill get a normal one next time. digital one is useless. battery is low so ill post pics when i can.. mind you she is starting to sport a body builder neck :laugh1

[Eejay]

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not easy to see here. ill post better ones tomorrow. last week was 5 months that she has been with me. first pic was her at 4.5 weeks i was guessing.

[Nancy in New York]

284125
not easy to see here. ill post better ones tomorrow. last week was 5 months that she has been with me. first pic was her at 4.5 weeks i was guessing.

WOW Lilo is BEAUTIFUL, just BEAUTIFUL.
Love that she has the same pose. :)
She looks nice and healthy. She has a great diet, she
must just metabolize foods differently.

This was my Eve at around the same age.
I remember praying the tunnel she was in didn't break
as one of her brothers was almost underneath. :)
https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-qJ4P2C4/0/M/i-qJ4P2C4-M.jpg

Keep up the great work Lilo looks gorgeous! :w00t

[Eejay]

lol Lilo has the same poofy body when sitting like that

[Nancy in New York]

lol Lilo has the same poofy body when sitting like that

It's almost laughable?
Seriously the way that Eve looked you would have
thought she sat on the couch all day eating bon bons. :rolf
Love the term poofy body.
Lilo is gorgeous and the poof will go once she has to find
her own food.
Are you planning on release?

[Eejay]

yes im hoping for a spring release. i hope she wilds up when the time comes. i have a large cage for her in the garage, but i couldnt bring myself to leave her in the garage all winter, so she still has her room.and a smaller cage in there. her urge to explore is getting stronger so i think thats a good sign. lol her room is large and it seems she needs more space. i let her roam when nobody else is around. she isnt friendly to anyone else and she hasnt been exposed to our cat or dog and they have never seen her. she stays upstairs at all times. winter here can drag on into april possibly. so fingers crossed the temperatures go up in march and i can get her outside.. worst case scenario though i will keep her if she doesnt want the outside life., but i hope she does. im scared for her, but she needs a chance to have a squirrelly life.

[Nancy in New York]

yes im hoping for a spring release. i hope she wilds up when the time comes. i have a large cage for her in the garage, but i couldnt bring myself to leave her in the garage all winter, so she still has her room.and a smaller cage in there. her urge to explore is getting stronger so i think thats a good sign. lol her room is large and it seems she needs more space. i let her roam when nobody else is around. she isnt friendly to anyone else and she hasnt been exposed to our cat or dog and they have never seen her. she stays upstairs at all times. winter here can drag on into april possibly. so fingers crossed the temperatures go up in march and i can get her outside.. worst case scenario though i will keep her if she doesnt want the outside life., but i hope she does. im scared for her, but she needs a chance to have a squirrelly life.

You're just the best!
You will know what she wants when the time comes! :hug

[Eejay]

https://youtu.be/FPGol5BWiJ8
she isnt very photogenic today. so i posted a video from last week :)
i could be off with her age, but she had bottom teeth and no top teeth when i found her. her eyes were closed but that could of been weakness too. cideo clip of her after 2 days with me. my guess she was 4 weeks.

https://youtu.be/SGlgTgbfGjE

[Nancy in New York]

https://youtu.be/FPGol5BWiJ8
she isnt very photogenic today. so i posted a video from last week :)
i could be off with her age, but she had bottom teeth and no top teeth when i found her. her eyes were closed but that could of been weakness too. cideo clip of her after 2 days with me. my guess she was 4 weeks.

https://youtu.be/SGlgTgbfGjE

That coconut video was so CUTE. WOW Lilo is strong!
Was that little sweetheart chattering her teeth at her treasure?
She certainly had no trouble tackling that one!:w00t
Cute video of Lilo as a baby.
How long after you got her did her eyes open?
They typically open at 5 weeks.
NEXT time you get a little one, because you know
you will get more, put the heating pad UNDER half the bin
set on low. It will feel "slightly"warm inside the bin, but
that is the perfect temperature for them.
She's gorgeous! You have done one heck of a job with
your little girl.

[Eejay]

That coconut video was so CUTE. WOW Lilo is strong!
Was that little sweetheart chattering her teeth at her treasure?
She certainly had no trouble tackling that one!:w00t
Cute video of Lilo as a baby.
How long after you got her did her eyes open?
They typically open at 5 weeks.
NEXT time you get a little one, because you know
you will get more, put the heating pad UNDER half the bin
set on low. It will feel "slightly"warm inside the bin, but
that is the perfect temperature for them.
She's gorgeous! You have done one heck of a job with
your little girl.
ah yes i kept pad under her bin at the time. i would keep it on my lap or bed under folded blanket when i had her out of the bin. it was only placed there in video to keep her warm when i had her moving about
her eyes opened a couple days after i had her so my guess was she was 4 weeks. her top teeth showed up within first 2 weeks

[Eejay]

ah and yes she was chattering. i realized after i was lucky that she didnt get angry with me.. a couple hours later she chattered and attacked the broom when i swept too close. whew! i was lucky and i am way more careful now

[Nancy in New York]

ah and yes she was chattering. i realized after i was lucky that she didnt get angry with me.. a couple hours later she chattered and attacked the broom when i swept too close. whew! i was lucky and i am way more careful now

:rolf I thought she was chattering, but then I wasn't sure as a couple of times you adjusted the coconut,
so I thought I couldn't be hearing what I "thought" I was hearing. :)

[Eejay]

:rolf I thought she was chattering, but then I wasn't sure as a couple of times you adjusted the coconut,
so I thought I couldn't be hearing what I "thought" I was hearing. :)
i wondered if that is her frustrated chatter, she has done it before. only with hazelnuts not with softer shell nuts.and has jumped on my lap with them before. and sat and chewed...when she attacked the broom it was a lot louder and even a growl noise when she attacked it

[Nancy in New York]

i wondered if that is her frustrated chatter, she has done it before. only with hazelnuts not with softer shell nuts.and has jumped on my lap with them before. and sat and chewed...when she attacked the broom it was a lot louder and even a growl noise when she attacked it

It could be a frustration chatter. All I know for sure is when
they do that chatter, I go on high alert. :tilt
My squirrels HATE the broom when I get near their cage.
I've resorted to using a hand broom and dustpan on my hands
and knees so as not to tick them off.
They have us trained well. :)

[Eejay]

lol she loves the broom ..she tries to climb it or chew the top..usually when im trying to sweep...but if it gets too close to her coconut it becomes her mortal enemy.lol

[Eejay]

You're just the best!
You will know what she wants when the time comes! :hug
this is her room. im hoping being raised like this wont cause too many issues when trying to get her used to being outside.
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[Nancy in New York]

this is her room. im hoping being raised like this wont cause too many issues when trying to get her used to being outside.
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Well it clearly mirrors what she'll find in nature. :poke
Love that room by the way! :w00t

What I find is that when they're ready, it doesn't really matter
too much how you've raised them. We offer them 3 meals served
daily on time, fresh water daily, tons of clean fleece, maid service :),
toys, treats, entertainment
health care, and love.

You would think they would all want to stay. :thinking

When I released here, I always told them, you can come home anytime,
and keep living the "good life".

Some have returned when they've been injured, most return for a while
for treats, but up until ~7 years ago, NOBODY wanted "the good life"
anymore.........they chose their own, in nature.