Potty training

[DEB]

Hi everyone! I assessed the situation in my neighbor's yard & decided to bring home 2 baby boy "Rocky's". That was last Saturday. I got Great instruction from Lee & gail on how to mix Clavamox for one of the "clicking" squirrels. Unfortunately, it was too late & after the initial dose he passed away tuesday a.m. :( We cried. The other one started clicking Wed that next day so is on the 10 day med dosing. I figure they were just 4 wks old last Sat so today he is 5 wks old. Was doing extremely well, eating happily but today he chocked a little & now the clicking is back. Still on meds & 1/2 cage on heating pad. My question is HAS ANY ONE OUT HERE PUT IN A SEPERATE POTTY BOX for them & if so what kind of material should I put in it. An extra large cage will be delivered Monday to keep him comfortable in while he is in the vulnerable stage. This is my 3rd go around raising Squirrels. I thank you in advance for any advice to my question. :serene

[olorin19]

I have lots of bark mulch in my yard - not treated or dyed, just trees that have been through a chipper. I buy a load of this from a landscaper every so often.

I simply take a shallow container and put a few inches of this bark mulch in it. This has worked well with quite a few squirrels over the years, where they quickly start using the mulch to pee and poop. I change the mulch periodically.

By the way, out in my yard this bark mulch is very popular with squirrels and bunnies. They did little holes in it and then roll around in the mulch.

[olorin19]

Here is another thread on same topic -

https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?67386-indoor-litter

[olorin19]

And a related thread I started -

https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?63464-Litter-trained-baby-squirrels

[MissSuzie]

i do use a litter box. i use pine litter pellets. i have one in her enclosure and one at the base of her cat tree/play area in the living room. she uses both for urine though poops don't always make it in. i'm fine with that. urine is what smells so i am over the moon that she uses the box to pee.

besides putting it in with her, i helped her learn to use it by just paying attention and noticing her signals. this is what i have also done with regard to feeding. i keep her close during all my waking hours so i have become very in tune with her signals. when i would see that she was probably about to potty i would put her in the box and say potty about a thousand times. once she did i would make a big happy fuss about it. within a week she was urinating in the box exclusively. i began caring for her when she was 5 weeks. she is now ten weeks. even when she is out scampering about the living room on her cat tree and branches (or the sofa, or the beanbag, or whatever!) she will go to the box to use it. that really makes things easier!

all the best with your potty learning. :)

by the way, i know she's about to pee because she will root around, then take a very wide legged stance in the rear. then she holds her tail a certain way and gets very still, maybe with tail twitching. she pees for a very long time!

[mkemnitz]

Sorry, I know this is the wrong place to post, but how do I start a post? Cannot figure out who to send thread to...