A pretty little Penny
Hi there! Just wanted to pop in and finally introduce myself and baby girl Penny (a.k.a Queen P) What a great resource this board has been in keeping our little one alive so thank you all for your time and participation in helping us help our fuzzy friend.
Back story : We cut down a sick oak tree Feb 22nd. There were 3 nests that were checked before cutting but apparently one nest had two super quiet babies in it so we didn’t know until it that limb was lowered to the ground. My tree guys were great, there were no dramatic falls everything was lowered via a pulley system so they were fine! Mom took one baby that evening but didn’t come back for the other one. We spent the following two days in the morning and evening trying to reunite… and her mom definitely came and sat on the fence over her as she called but mom just never grabbed her. It was heartbreaking and we finally called it quits on trying. We’re in FL and all the rehabbers I called didn’t have room so finally just hit up google, found TSB and figured it out. She’s doing great by the way!!!
So I estimated her at 5-6 weeks when we got her 2/22 so if my math and aging were correct she’s going on 15-16 weeks now. We have an outdoor release cage we’re putting the finishing touches on (6H x 4D x 4W) but I’m thinking of expanding it since I feel like it’s too small. She has a double critter nation in a whole fairly baby proofed room that she gets full run of for most of the day. Actually the most she’s ever been locked up besides overnight is 4 hours and that’s rare, since I work from home and can keep an eye on her easily. So that’s why I feel the release cage is like a jail cell since she has a whole room right now. She’s very well behaved too, she has a nice little jungle gym play zone set up on top of her cage which is where she spends most of her time, bouncing between that a cat tree and the trees we make her.
Diet : Henry’s blocks!! We alternate the blocks because she’s fussy over which one she wants. I’d say she actually eats a full 1 a day. Boo balls made with Henry’s blocks and fox valley 20/50. She’s still on these, 2 a day. She weaned much earlier than I would have liked so I’m glad she still takes them. We also have HT2018 which she will sometimes munch but she’s definitely not a fan. Salads in the brunch time - 1 blueberry, 1 Brussel sprout, 1 small cauliflower floret, 3 sugar snap peas, 1 radish chip and we alternate greens between arugula, spring mix and radicchio. If I have them maybe some kale, romaine or leaf lettuce. Afternoon we try to do half wild foods (hibiscus flowers, oak sprouts minus the acorn, dandelions, sunflower seed sprouts (she loves those tiny leaves!), a small veggie from the garden - maybe a cherry tomato or a green bean, plus some fresh greens and usually another Brussel and cauli or broccoli floret. Usually for treats we do a frozen piece of acorn squash or her favorite a red grape, no skin. We limit actual nuts because they make her mean. I’d say she gets less than 1 nut every other day. She’s pretty happy with a frozen fruit treat so we just roll with that instead. I know the boo balls have ground nuts but they don’t seem to turn her into a uber B.
So here’s where I have some questions, I’m sorry if they’ve already been answered many times over. I have spent a lot of time searching prior threads but I just am not finding what all I need.
1- She’s definitely well behaved, no biting or bad behavior since we eliminated the nuts. I HAD been giving 1 almond as a treat at night. It took me two days of naughty behavior to figure she ate none of them and was having a dragon hoarding thing. That solved that quickly! But I also know to be released she should be able to open a nut plus it benefits her teeth. Once a week we try an in shell nut and she can’t open any besides a peanut. We tried hazelnut, black walnut & almonds. She will try to open them for 20 minutes or so then give up and hide them. Of course I remove them later and throw them outside for the wilds. Should she be able to open these?? I feel like a dummy asking but if she needs to be able to open them and she can’t what does that mean?
2- Speaking of teeth, I think maybe she only has one bottom front tooth. Is this concerning? It’s really hard to say for sure but it definitely looks like only one. Her top teeth are fine little nubs. As a follow up, how the heck do you look at their teeth? I tried sticking a dowel behind her teeth to look but she’s not really into being restrained. As good as she is, there’s no burrito happening, and I definitely can’t just manipulate her mouth / face. She gets a fresh large branch “tree” every three days so she’s definitely using them and I’m not very concerned they need to be cut but I would like to look without losing an eyeball or finger. Tips or tricks to handle her for a dental exam for a squirrel who is not into being held? If she only has one bottom tooth is this detrimental to her survival outside?
3- We started doing a few minutes outside with her on a screened in patio and she seems very scared. Like her heart is pounding through her chest and she runs for the door to get back in panicking at any sound level scared. Is that what I have to look forward to when we move her to the release cage? Is there an option to hold off on the release cage timeline without stunting her growth and ability to thrive outside? I want her to live her best life but she seems petrified with us there I can’t imagine leaving her alone like that. She shows no urge to explore for very long, 5 minutes max and I must be within jumping distance.
4-Also release related she is not building a nest despite my leaving her supplies and attempting to show her and interact and make it a game by offering random stuff and showing her spots I think would be a good place to practice (like in a basket / hammock). She also has a nest box we built and she will not go in it. It’s stuffed halfway with fleece and paper towels and I’ve had her sit on my arm and put more stuff in it and she appears to think its scary. She does like to chew on the top though. Is this normal? I thought that was something she should be able to do before starting the release process. She’s currently sleeping in a hanging pouch at night and semi interested a new big hammock but prefers for naps to sleep on a stuffed animal on top of her cage out in the open.
Thanks in advance for any and all advice. She’s absolutely got a place in our hearts and our home as long as she wants or needs it. I just want to make sure before we throw her out into the wild (properly of course!) she is as physically and mentally prepared as we can get her. If you were ask me if I believed she were I would say absolutely not so I need some expert advice from those with more experience. I’m going to try to attach photos of 1-the day after we found her 2/23, a week after we found her and she showed us she can climb 2/28, a picture of bottom tooth 4/18 which may or may not be helpful, and then a few pictures from this week. She’s quite the character and now rides me hanging out of my pocket whenever possible.
Okay so all the pictures inserted sideways but they were right side up? The only proper one is #5 her reclining off of me. Sorry I can't figure out how to turn them
Reply With Quote
Maybe take a few short test trips with her first and will definitely get her to see the doc very soon. If I can get any teeth pictures on my own I will definitely put them up as well. Thanks again!!
