Results 1 to 6 of 6

Thread: Advice with grey orphan very attached to me!

  1. #1
    Dixie139 Guest

    Default Advice with grey orphan very attached to me!

    Hi, I just wanted some advice please, I have hand reared an orphaned grey squirrel since she was roughly 7 weeks old, she is now coming up to 10 weeks and is weaned and doing brilliantly. However, she has become very attached to me even though I haven't deliberately spent loads of time with her, just the syringe feeds and now that she is very active she has been coming out of her cage to play regularly. I live in the UK and as we are in autumn the weather is very much on the turn and getting pretty cold for a tiny squirrel who has spent the last 3 weeks in a warm house! I am aware of the current legislation and that it is potentially about to be tightened even for rescue centres who rehabilitate greys.

    My question is, will she cope being released when she is so attached to me? My wish would be for her to return to the wild but the timing isn't great particularly with the change in season.

    Thanks

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    eastcoast
    Posts
    4,810
    Thanked: 5578

    Default Re: Advice with grey orphan very attached to me!

    Hi,

    Everyone rehabs and releases differently but the prevailing thought here is that we release when the babies are 6 weeks older than your baby is now. We will put them in the release cage at 14 weeks old. Sometimes when a baby is more immature, as singletons often are, we might wait a bit longer, or keep them over the winter and release in the spring. I think 10 weeks old is too young to release.
    redwuff
    State Licensed
    Master Wildlife Rehabilitator

  3. 2 TSBers pass along the fuzzy thanks to redwuff:

    Mel1959 (10-09-2019), RockyPops (10-08-2019)

  4. #3
    Dixie139 Guest

    Default Re: Advice with grey orphan very attached to me!

    Ok thanks, so as far as her attachment to me will she be ok being released?

  5. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Northeast
    Posts
    20,012
    Thanked: 9441

    Default Re: Advice with grey orphan very attached to me!

    Quote Originally Posted by Dixie139 View Post
    Ok thanks, so as far as her attachment to me will she be ok being released?
    She should be. Do you have a way to release where you live? This is the kind of little girl who may just stick around and maybe if you are really lucky, will include you in her life. Once they meet other squirrels the wild starts to call and they start to become squirrels.

  6. #5
    Dixie139 Guest

    Default Re: Advice with grey orphan very attached to me!

    Yeh I can release her where I live, there is woodland and trees etc around although I am worried about local cats so as much as I would love her to stick around it may be that I need to give her to a wildlife centre to release for me. It's hard to know!

  7. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    eastcoast
    Posts
    4,810
    Thanked: 5578

    Default Re: Advice with grey orphan very attached to me!

    If this is a grey squirrel, a rehabilitation center will euthanize. At 10 weeks old she is a sitting duck for a cat.
    redwuff
    State Licensed
    Master Wildlife Rehabilitator

  8. Serious fuzzy thank you's to redwuff from:

    RockyPops (10-09-2019)

Members who have read this thread: 1

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •