Free of Caged

[dextersmom]

I have two males.Oscar and Felix. They are 7 weeks old now,and adorable,playful and sooo loveable! I leave them in a basket where they jump in when the want to go to sleep.but during the day,I let them run and play,and follow me around the house. The problem is I dont always find where they are making. I do not want to keep them caged,can they be litter trained?

[gunpackingrandma]

From my personal experience, no. They are wild animals, therefore they go when and where they want. I tryed for several months to train my red to no avail. He did love the litter box, hid all his toys and nuts there!

[island rehabber]

No, they can't be litter trained. They also should not really have free run of the house -- very dangerous for them. There are 'classic' places in a home where squirrels have been injured or killed; behind the refrigerator is a MAJOR one. Open toilets are another. Bathroom floors where people tend to drop prescription pills and never pick them up.....I could go on.

A spare bedroom where they can have a 'tree room' or playroom is the best. Otherwise, as large a cage as you can possibly fit is the safest, wisest solution, with supervised playtime outside of it.

[redwuff]

I have two males.Oscar and Felix. They are 7 weeks old now,and adorable,playful and sooo loveable! I leave them in a basket where they jump in when the want to go to sleep.but during the day,I let them run and play,and follow me around the house. The problem is I dont always find where they are making. I do not want to keep them caged,can they be litter trained?

Are you preparing these boys for release? As IR said, it is much much much too dangerous to leave babies the run of the house!

[dextersmom]

Yes I am preparing them for release,but I am waiting until after the winter. Thanks for everyones comments. I will get a secure cage and let them out while I am with them

[cava]

I overwintered two last year and they stayed in a cage with out of cage exercise for 1-2 hours twice a day. I have a list of "Ways Frances is trying to kill herself" and it involves finding the packet that comes inside an Ibuprofen bottle to keep it fresh and prying off the lid of a flower shaped tin with her tiny fingers and chomping a Revolution in half while my back was turned to shoving stink bugs in her mouth while she coughed and sneezed. I can't begin to tell you how bored and destructive they can become as they grow up and wait for Spring.

Get a cage for their safety, your sanity and your cleanliness. (I'm still finding year old poops in the bottom of sock drawers) You'd kick yourself if you put all this love, money, and energy into them and they died from something preventable.

[dextersmom]

Thank you for that Cava. I will certainly take your experience and I was actually laughing out loud when you found their poop in your sock draw...

[Pipo]

Hi

Pipo was litter trained within his cage. I used a small litter box I think likely made for hampsters and used clean and fresh. I wiped up a tiny bit of his pee with a piece of toilet paper and put it in there. He went in the box from then on....WHILE in the cage. if not in the cage everything was free game.

[stosh2010]

Another DANGER is a small squirrel finding a hole/opening in a cabinet or wall space...and disappearing into the nether world.
PLEASE read this thread-----with photos & advice-- from many members
It may save you hours of heartache.
Even if you only let them run free for 30 minutes a day--
they can go AWOL in 30 seconds....!!!


click below:
https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?33486-KITCHEN-DANGERS-Cabinet-Nightmares-This-Is-for-YOU-!!!!&highlight=kitchen