Hurricane orphan wild and woolly now!

[Eimhere]

Well, it’s been a week since I found this little guy cold, hungry and terrified. He is eating the puppy formula like a little pro. He won’t touch any fruit or veggies Ive given yet but is eating pecans and acorns. He is very strong and climbing all over- which leads to my first question.

How likely am I to get sick from his scratches and or skat and urine?
I read that all sorts of horrid diseases can be transmitted through these squirrel things. I accept that it’s possible and still want to get him to a healthy and safe release point, but do I need to take extreme precautions?

Second question- Do I need to keep him until spring?
I feel so bad to keep him caged up while I’m at work and sleeping and was hoping I could let him go to the trees in a few weeks but I know they work so hard all year to be ready for winter and don’t want him to be released to a death sentence.

Third- Do I need to bring him back to where I found him or can he live in my moms big awesome back yard six miles away?
I found him very close to a super busy highway. There are some large lovely trees and he obviously came from this area. It just seems to my human brain that he could be happier in a giant yard with woods behind. I want to do the best thing for him

Thanks to you all!

[Charley Chuckles]

Thanks for rescuing 👏
Squirrels do not carry rabies, their nails can make your skin itchy wash area and if need be use Neosporin. I really use nothing been dealing with squirrels since before 2004 been scratched bit yada yada sure it hurts but no other physical issues.
How old is he?
You'll want to continue formula till he weens himself. You want to stop nuts they rob their body of calcium and no acorns they can be harmful.
Yes you can release in your mom's yard 👍

[Eimhere]

I’m not sure of his age but I’m guessing 6 or 7 weeks. Is there anything I can do to get him to eat his vegetables and fruit?
Also, I will discontinue the nuts if I should but I’m confused how acorns can be bad if that’s what they eat in the wild?
Thanks so much for the advice. I tried to find a rehab er so he could get the best care but no one could take him. I’m doing what I can for him and it is AMAZING to have this experience but it feels so wrong to keep him trapped in my human world

[Charley Chuckles]

He's too young to be off formula.
Acorns in the wild squirrels know the good ones, even a well inspected acorn can have a small crack we can't detect and a mold sets in which can kill a squirrel.
I'm lucky way back in the day I didn't kill my Charley Chuckles because I never heard of it.

[Charley Chuckles]

328091

[Eimhere]

Oh wow! That’s interesting, thanks for the info. I’m definitely going to keep giving him formula but I thought he needs more by now.
Is there any way to more accurately gage his age?

[Charley Chuckles]

Ok looks like a Foxer.
Is there any chance you can get a weight on him. Using a gram scale? If you take a gram scale put it on grams, put a clear container ( I use clear food cover for microwave) place it empty then press the TARE button it will zero out the scale then put him in and you can get his weight.
That will give you a better gage of how much to fed using the chart I put up.
Maybe others will have a better idea of his age.

[Eimhere]

Thank you for sharing from your wealth of knowledge! I don’t have a scale but I will try to get on this weekend. Is there a technique for weighing him? He is very active
He has started eating avocado bits!
I wondered if plain roasted peanuts would be ok? Definitely won’t give anymore acorns or pecans yet.
And what do you think about having to or not having to keep him till spring?

He’s such an awesome little squirrel!!!

[Charley Chuckles]

Ok if he's that active he's probably passed the point of needing a weight.
You don't want to give peanuts even roasted it's ok for outdoor squirrels as a treat they will mostly bury them and they will eat healthy outside foods. They have no value for a squirrel and again can rob calcium.
Use the healthy food pyramid 👍
Depends on his age/ weened/ your weather if you should wait for a spring release. He'll need plenty of time to get use to his environment and plenty of leaves on trees not just for food but protection from predators.
Hopefully others in your area will know more on that 🤔

[Eimhere]

Great, thanks again so much!