Hi everyone

[CritterMom]

Quick update, I contacted a friend of mine who works in the only zoo here in Dubai and they don't even have any squirrels... Suppose the public is only interested in the big stuff...

I am sorry - I so did not want to come off badly in that post. I didn't realize you had something on the way for him. Thinking about what shipping something from the US to UAE costs makes my head hurt, so when (if??) this pandemic ends, I still would suggest hanging around the zoo and speaking to the keepers. Mazuri makes food for EVERYthing - a partial list: bear, elephant, rhino, wolf, wild dog, lion, tiger, other big cats, kangaroo, wallaby, alpaca, llama, camel, parrot, lorikeet, softbill requiring low iron, fish eating birds, marine mammals, sea turtles, sharks, rays, deer, moose, goat, reindeer, sheep, zebra, insect, mini pig, waterfowl and more but I don't want to type them. Zoos are their primary customers; the pet trade is a teeny tiny bit of their business. If you could find out if there is a distributor that sells this to them that is at least in your part of the world, the cost to have it shipped might be a little more reasonable.

BTW, nobody has mentioned stuffed toys for Red. If new, you want to check them by squeezing them all over - lots have polystyrene "beads" that are heavy to make them sit up and have the "arms" hang better. Those you do not want, as squirrels chew and while the little idiots won't eat their healthy food, they will sure eat plastic. And buttons. And remote controls for your TV. You just want stuffing inside. Also, if they have plastic eyes, those need to go. There is nothing quite like standing on the chest of a sweet, fluffy teddy bear and ripping it's eyes out with a pair of pliers. I don't know if second hand stores even exist there but I usually get my stuffed toys at Goodwill here in the US. And honestly, one of my now late squirrel's favorite things (besides his big round pink pig) was a pillowcase I jammed a few old towels into, tied the top, and hung from a rope from the top of his cage so it hung about 6 inches from the floor. He LOVED that thing.

[Chirps]

Hi! Ah well. You sure tried though! Hopefully the food gets there soon.

Was going to say more but just saw CritterMom already did.

[Chirps]

I'll answer in more detail later but I have written before that the squirrel food has been ordered and is on it's way. It's taking a few days as, as I said, I don't live in the US and 'next day delivery' is not a thing. Especially now with the whole Covid-19 situation going on. Weekend here is Friday-Saturday, not Saturday-Sunday so I expect it tomorrow at it's earliest.

I know rabbit food is not ideal, I feel terrible about it but that's the only thing immediately available until the squirrel food arrives. The other option was not feeding him food at all.

Crazy times, you're doing your best. A few days of it probably won't bother him. God only knows what he's been eating up to now.

Regarding the harness, I'm obviously not going to force Red into a harness but if he allows me to put it on him that would be an option, I just wanted to know if it would be fair to him. I'm not planning to walk him around like a dog, I just want to be able to expand his habitat and explore...

Sorry, didn't want to come across as thinking you wouldn't be sensible about introducing or attempting that. I'm sure you will work on building your relationship, just like you did when you had the rabbit.

For the foreseeable future, the out-of-cage time you're giving him now is probably wonderful to him and as much as he may ever need. Maybe eventually stuff to climb on like people have for their cats.

[RedBen]

Hi guys, I didn't mean to come off as defensive (or offensive) at all. I'm just really worried about Red as I'm really trying to do my best and this country isn't helping. That's frustrating. I found a bag of Mazuri food; 170 dollar to buy + ship it here... It's crazy.

I think he'd love a stuffed animal, I'll look into that and make sure I'll dissect it carefully

Today he buried a nut inside my handbag, I think he's making sure I have some nice snacks for when I'm on the road. He als has a knack for finding ANY possible way to climb behind my couch, no matter how many blankets and pillows I stuff into all holes and peeks it has. (Insert image of my husband and I on our knees, couch upside down for the 5th(!!!) time that day to get the little mouse-with-thieves-hands out of there )

He also loves to jump on top of the bird playground and scare the cr*p out of the birds, makes me giggle. He's not bothering them at all though, just likes to rummage around the mess they make up there.

I'll definitely try to contact my friend again about what food they're giving the animals but so far all I heard is that they might have to euthanize some of them due to the pandemic... Lack of staff, lack of income... It's sad.


Oh before I forget! He did it again today; if I offer him some food from my hand, sometimes he'll take it, sometimes he'll just pounce at my hand and slap me? As if he's trying to slap the food from my hand. Does that mean I'm too 'in his face'?

Here he is, chillin' with his feathered friends, and pretending to be on a nice holiday to Bora Bora. I'd take him there, but as of now I'm pora pora.

[CritterMom]

Wow, what a cheeky, self assured little man! No low self esteem issues there!

Remember I described my put the squirrel to bed routine? Here it is with more detail: Place nighttime treat nut on platform inside cage. Return to my room, tell squirrel it is time for bed. Squirrel leaps, grabs my butt, climbs to shoulder, urging me to go faster. I open his door. Squirrel jumps to platform, grabs nut in mouth, whirls around, slaps me twice (just in case I am thinking of taking the nut I just got done putting there for him), whirls back around and begins to crack nut. Every night I get swatted this way. It is a squirrel thing.

Yeah, the shipping is insane, like I thought. I stocked up before my self imposed lockdown for my wild squirrels - bought 200 pounds of Mazuri for $100... Hopefully things will get better.

I have to say, he looks REAL comfortable in your place. You and your husband are, as we say in the US, toast!

[Chirps]

Hi guys, I didn't mean to come off as defensive (or offensive) at all. I'm just really worried about Red as I'm really trying to do my best and this country isn't helping. That's frustrating. I found a bag of Mazuri food; 170 dollar to buy + ship it here... It's crazy.

OMG, that's the food you have coming? No wonder you're "pora pora" now! At least it will last awhile.

I think he'd love a stuffed animal, I'll look into that and make sure I'll dissect it carefully

Today he buried a nut inside my handbag, I think he's making sure I have some nice snacks for when I'm on the road. He als has a knack for finding ANY possible way to climb behind my couch, no matter how many blankets and pillows I stuff into all holes and peeks it has. (Insert image of my husband and I on our knees, couch upside down for the 5th(!!!) time that day to get the little mouse-with-thieves-hands out of there )

Love your sense of humor! You sound like you're going to be great squirrel parents.

He also loves to jump on top of the bird playground and scare the cr*p out of the birds, makes me giggle. He's not bothering them at all though, just likes to rummage around the mess they make up there.

Hard to tell from just a pic, but they don't seem afraid or especially watchful of him. Looks like the children will "play nice together." That's a plus.

I'll definitely try to contact my friend again about what food they're giving the animals but so far all I heard is that they might have to euthanize some of them due to the pandemic... Lack of staff, lack of income... It's sad.

So sad to read this, but not surprising either I guess. There is NO facet of society or the world untouched by this virus.

Oh before I forget! He did it again today; if I offer him some food from my hand, sometimes he'll take it, sometimes he'll just pounce at my hand and slap me? As if he's trying to slap the food from my hand. Does that mean I'm too 'in his face'?

CritterMom or someone will know.

Here he is, chillin' with his feathered friends, and pretending to be on a nice holiday to Bora Bora. I'd take him there, but as of now I'm pora pora.

Oh, meant to ask about that plant. Is it real? Looks like he can get to it. Can he? Plants can kill.

[CritterMom]

Nice catch, Chirps. That plant looks like a dracena of some kind - toxic to dogs and cats (and likely squirrels).

[RedBen]

I hope he's comfy! As for now he's just racing around in loops and backflips around his cage, taking an occasional 15 second nap on top of his bed-box. Especially then he likes to lunge at me when I put my hands close to him. He's not biting though, that's reassuring!

I haven't ordered the 170$ food but I'm still looking around for something similar for AT LEAST half the price, cause that's insane...

The plant is real, he doesn't tend to it but I'll move it while he's loose if it's dangerous for him. He can't reach it from his cage, only when he's out and he's way too busy roaming around hahaha. He's not much of a destroyer (yet) either.

The birds aren't scared of him, more confused as of why I let the little Tasmanian Devil (nyoooommmm!) loose, but they don't even do so much as moving branches when he zooms past again. I know them well; if they eat, they're chill. They eat. A lot.

I saw a video on the internet of a girl who turned eggshells into powder as a calcium source. To sprinkle over food. Could that be a way of keeping his calcium up for the time being? I doubt he's had a lot before he came to me...

Is there any way to see if Red is a boy or a girl apart from the obvious 'check between the legs'? He doesn't let me do that yet, hehe...

[CritterMom]

I hope he's comfy! As for now he's just racing around in loops and backflips around his cage, taking an occasional 15 second nap on top of his bed-box. Especially then he likes to lunge at me when I put my hands close to him. He's not biting though, that's reassuring!

I haven't ordered the 170$ food but I'm still looking around for something similar for AT LEAST half the price, cause that's insane...

The plant is real, he doesn't tend to it but I'll move it while he's loose if it's dangerous for him. He can't reach it from his cage, only when he's out and he's way too busy roaming around hahaha. He's not much of a destroyer (yet) either.

The birds aren't scared of him, more confused as of why I let the little Tasmanian Devil (nyoooommmm!) loose, but they don't even do so much as moving branches when he zooms past again. I know them well; if they eat, they're chill. They eat. A lot.

I saw a video on the internet of a girl who turned eggshells into powder as a calcium source. To sprinkle over food. Could that be a way of keeping his calcium up for the time being? I doubt he's had a lot before he came to me...

Is there any way to see if Red is a boy or a girl apart from the obvious 'check between the legs'? He doesn't let me do that yet, hehe...

Yes, absolutely on the eggshell calcium. You need to grind it as fine as you possibly can. A slightly rounded 1/4 teaspoon a day would be plenty.

Do watch the little twirp around your budgies. It is not unheard of for wild squirrels to eat birds - normally they go for eggs and wee babies when it happens but still.

The next time he (?) does his hang upside down to stretch move, check him out. A male squirrel's goods will be visible whether he is sitting up on his haunches, or from behind if his tail is up. I always point out to my boy that I can see his dingle dangles because I am like 8 years old. Peenie will be visible when he is up on his haunches, too. The testicles change size with hormones based on breeding seasons and when not in possible use they retract into the tummy, but not completely - you will still be able to tell.

[RedBen]

He's always under careful eyes when he's loose, but thanks for the heads up! I didn't know squirrels would eat birds!
I'll get the eggshells ground (grinded?) tomorrow and add that to his diet! Or... if his privates should be that obvious, I think Red might be a girl...
I'll have a good look tomorrow when (s)he's stretching but I doubt I'll change his pronouns, it snuck in, haha!

You made me giggle, I'm just as immature

[RedBen]

Quick update while my eggshells are boiling.
Red's new squirrel food came in today, that's a good thing! I hope he likes it, I took the snack bits out.

I do get kind of hopeless at times, as he keeps trying to find ways to get under and inside the couch. I completely closed off all the corners, crooks and edges like some kind of Alcatraz situation but he still knows how to sneak in and he does it literally in the blink of an eye; like a magic show he disappears in front of my eyes. (I'm thinking of filming that as an advertisement video and then selling empty cages with 'invisible squirrels' to unknowing bystanders)

While that wouldn't be a problem, my couch is kind of make-shift. It's a corner couch and we are using the corner piece on the balcony, so the remaining pieces are not leveled and are being held up by pieces of card board. I'm very scared that he either pushes/nibbles at a piece of card board, or one of us sits down a bit too enthusiastically and the whole set up will crash down- maybe on top of him.

It wouldn't be an issue if the couch was squared, but that part of the couch is rounded and thus it's hard to really push pillows and blankets into every little gap there is (apparently, as I always think it's squirrel-proof and then it happens again).

I completely understand this is his nature and before we'd make loud noises to scare him away from that specific area on the couch, but I also get that in the wild, if another squirrel would scare him away that would probably mean there's a tasty treat or cute babies hidden; negative attention is ALSO attention.

But this does mean that he goes out on a mission to
specifically find a hole to climb in, it's not like I accidentally left a big enough open space that he runs into by chance.

He digs around until he finds a way, walks away from it to not seem suspicious and then speedy-gonzales-es into it from a distance when I have the nerve to blink.

If it wasn't so distressing it would almost be funny to see.

Until I can turn the area around the couch in some type of Guantanamo Bay, he unfortunately will have to stay inside his cage.

Does anyone have any ideas to get the little thief away from there except for stuffing even more blankets and pillows underneath?

Here you can see how I shielded the oven from him by a huge canvas I painted (it's a chimpanzee smoking a cigar, lol) and how I put a blanket around a water cabinet he sneaked into before.



Here he lies down as if he didn't just figure out his Houdini-prison break-mastermind plan to go behind the couch. He chills, runs away and comes back diving straight into the gap that he found (and I have yet to discover)


He is really handsome though quite the stunner.

[Chirps]

Awww, so adorable! The only thing coming to mind is maybe some hidey-holes in "legal" places. Even a cardboard box here and there that he can use as a bolt-hole, maybe closed up but with a hole cut in or even just a flap up? I don't know if you have the capability there of suspending something from higher up, but maybe just boxes on the floor could do for now?

I love the "Who, ME?" look on his face in the top pic.

[CritterMom]

Yeah, well this is an awesome game now and he is way better at it than you are so WIN, so you need to come up with someplace more fun and legal or start building your Guantanamo. The box idea is good. Make sure you get upset and shoo him away from it once he goes into the new hidey hole or it won't be any fun. Did anyone mention to you that they are challenging little jerks? We may have forgotten that. Our bad.

Don't forget to bake your shells too. Make sure the membrane in the egg is bone dry or grinding it will be a nightmare. Don't try to peel the membrane off - first, you really can't, second, you are adding a bit of protein by leaving it and that is a good thing.

[RedBen]

Boxes are a great idea! I could possibly make him a fort with holes connecting etc... Fun quarantine idea while we are on complete lockdown! Thanks guys!

He doesn't seem to play much with what he has in his cage, except for running around (making backflips... something I wished he'd stopped after getting out of his hamster cage as it seems almost compulsive at this point, until he's laying on his tree branch panting). So I like to take him out of his cage. Even then he just makes the same round... (Out of the cage, to the shoe bench, into the kitchen, up the couch aaaand behind it) but he seems less neurotic when he's loose.

He growled at me this morning while I tried to pet him, sometimes he doesn't mind and lies still, sometimes he takes food from my hands and sometimes he growls and jumps from his position. Squirrel body language is hard But we're getting there!

He's cute right, his innocent face... Handsome kid, I've gotten really attached to him in such a short time. Now it's his turn to return that, hehe

[Chirps]

He doesn't seem to play much with what he has in his cage, except for running around (making backflips... something I wished he'd stopped after getting out of his hamster cage as it seems almost compulsive at this point, until he's laying on his tree branch panting). So I like to take him out of his cage. Even then he just makes the same round... (Out of the cage, to the shoe bench, into the kitchen, up the couch aaaand behind it) but he seems less neurotic when he's loose.

I know repetitive behaviors are a concern in confined animals (thinking of horses that weave or stall-walk or crib-bite) and there has been discussion about it on TSB. Hopefully the people who know best will chime in. But I think at least SOME of "patterned" behavior is practice. Maybe instinctive, like memorizing a route in case one has to flee suddenly, or just becoming familiar with it, like our daily walk around the neighborhood or whatever.

I only raised one baby, but I remember how she would do the same moves when exploring and learning how her body worked, and have seen it in babies just venturing from the nest. Of course that's different from an adult, but maybe not so much if Red is learning about his environment with you. Like I said, the people with house squirrels know how they behave best. They can tell you if their squirrels always follow a "route" when first let out. Actually I'm curious to know the same thing now.

Anyway, I can't wait to see what kind of playhouse things you make for Red. If you can do video, that would be awesome! Can help us ALL keep from going crazy during lockdown.

[Mel1959]

Your little guy is adorable...and looks soooo innocent! I’m sure it’s very frustrating at how quickly he’s able to access what you don’t want him to. You might consider buying him a wheel that mounts inside his cage. It’s hard to tell how big your guy is but the larger the wheel the better. I’m not sure if this company ships to your location but this website, https://www.exoticnutrition.com/Prod...SABEgIsm_D_BwE has a 15” wheel which it says is suitable for squirrels and prairie dogs. Someone else might know of a source that sells a bigger wheel. If so, I hope they’ll post the link. If he will use a wheel it may stop the endless backflips.

[RedBen]

A wheel sounds like a good idea! I think he'd like that, let me see if I can find one online so he can play in it instead of shaking up the cage and turning my budgies into birdshakes!

I can imagine the roaming around the room in a pattern can be instinctive as he also sometimes comes to check out the balcony door (my husband sits outside to smoke) or hops up on the couch to say hi to me and nibble at my toes (yum!). The backflips, though, in my opinion are either an addiction or stress/boredom as that's what he did in the petmarket too.

When his boxcastle is done I'll try to catch him on camera! I have to collect some stuff, maybe I can use his old cage for that too!

Regarding the backflips and naughty behavior, I was considering doing the following and I'd like to hear if you guys would think it works:

If he's naughty, I'll pick him up without any vocal or eye contact and put him in the cage until he stops being naughty. Only thing I don't want is that he associates his cage with punishment...

I think he uses the backflips as a way to tell us he wants out, so I will only let him out if he's not doing backflips, and if he does them I will wait until he stops before I let him out of the cage. Maybe he will learn that backflipping won't get him anywhere and being a good boy in his cage will.

This is what worked for my naughty rabbit who ate cables behind the TV and now knows very well that that is not allowed. Same with biting, if he bit us and we'd pull our hand, he'd know that is how he gets what he wants. To the point that he would scare my mom out of her armchair and nibble at my dad's back to force him to move, so he could pass by.

I'm not a fan of nose-tapping, neck-grabbing and voice-raising (the latter because negative attention is attention, too)

Now I know Red is not a rabbit, that's why I'd love to hear your ideas! He's not very food driven (yet?) so rewarding him with treats doesn't work as the big big world around him is way more interesting than a nut or avocado!

[RedBen]

Also, if I'm asking too much, feel free to let me know

[CritterMom]

A wheel sounds like a good idea! I think he'd like that, let me see if I can find one online so he can play in it instead of shaking up the cage and turning my budgies into birdshakes!

I can imagine the roaming around the room in a pattern can be instinctive as he also sometimes comes to check out the balcony door (my husband sits outside to smoke) or hops up on the couch to say hi to me and nibble at my toes (yum!). The backflips, though, in my opinion are either an addiction or stress/boredom as that's what he did in the petmarket too.

When his boxcastle is done I'll try to catch him on camera! I have to collect some stuff, maybe I can use his old cage for that too!

Regarding the backflips and naughty behavior, I was considering doing the following and I'd like to hear if you guys would think it works:

If he's naughty, I'll pick him up without any vocal or eye contact and put him in the cage until he stops being naughty. Only thing I don't want is that he associates his cage with punishment...

I think he uses the backflips as a way to tell us he wants out, so I will only let him out if he's not doing backflips, and if he does them I will wait until he stops before I let him out of the cage. Maybe he will learn that backflipping won't get him anywhere and being a good boy in his cage will.

This is what worked for my naughty rabbit who ate cables behind the TV and now knows very well that that is not allowed. Same with biting, if he bit us and we'd pull our hand, he'd know that is how he gets what he wants. To the point that he would scare my mom out of her armchair and nibble at my dad's back to force him to move, so he could pass by.

I'm not a fan of nose-tapping, neck-grabbing and voice-raising (the latter because negative attention is attention, too)

Now I know Red is not a rabbit, that's why I'd love to hear your ideas! He's not very food driven (yet?) so rewarding him with treats doesn't work as the big big world around him is way more interesting than a nut or avocado!

The wheel needs to be as large as possible. If it is small enough that his back bends when he runs on it, it is dangerous and can injure his back. It is very hard to find a wheel large enough for a squirrel. They make them for cats but they are INSANELY expensive. Also, he may NEVER use it. I believe they need to be introduced when they are really young, and I think that some breeds of squirrels are more agreeable to a wheel than others. It is a crapshoot at best. I made a big wheel and I believe my squirrel may have accidentally touched it once or twice but he sure never used it for anything!

I would ignore the backflips totally. It may be a habit that will never be broken - he likely began doing it to try to release energy inside his tiny cage. If he is backflipping, just wait until he stops and THEN get him out. As he gets more comfortable in his new home and with you guys, he may reduce this on his own. I also wouldn't use his cage for any kind of punishment - it is his home and should be associated with fun and comfort, not time outs.

I don't address any behavior that is normal for a squirrel in any way other than to try to physically block it. My little guy Zeke chews wood. The windowsills in my bedroom are a freaking disaster area - they look like someone took a chainsaw to them. I cover them with fabric that I wedge under the closed windows to try to keep him away from them, and I bring safe wood twigs inside for him to chew so I can redirect him to stuff that I don't mind being chewed. Popsicle sticks are good, too. But squirrels chew wood and I know that so I am totally responsible for my windowsills. One day he will be gone and I will be sobbing over those stupid sills and begging him to come back and chew them just one more time...

The only thing I don't tolerate is HARD, deliberate biting. Accidentally nipping because I have gotten him all wound up wrestling does NOT count. He knows perfectly well how hard he can bite without injuring me. It has only happened with him one time. I just picked him up and we went back to his room where his big enclosure is and put him away and didn't return to the room at all for a few hours. I think of it as "shunning." When he loves you he will want to spend his time with you, so not being able to do that because he did something he knows was mean is very powerful. He is 3 now and this has happened only ONE time.

I built a wooden structure behind my stupid computer armoire in my room that completely encloses ALL of the wires and cables and did the same thing on the entertainment center for the TV. When he began jumping from the top of the armoire (I only have it because HE loves it!) onto the entertainment center, I grabbed a few pieces of scrap lumber 1x3's and 1x4's and cut them into pieces ranging from 6" to a foot long, and stood them on end on the part he was jumping on. I named this "Lumberhenge" and the first time he jumped into it of course they flew all over the place, hitting the wall, tipping over, falling to the floor - and it scared the hell out of him, but it was never associated with me personally. He has never jumped onto it again. The cable guy saw it once and thought it was a sculpture!

So block off the stuff that will hurt him, move the things that are really valuable to another room, and cover the rest. You just can't really stop the things that are hard wired in their little brains, so you have to do work arounds.

And you can't ask too many questions here!

[RedBen]

Thanks for the long informative post, that's really helpful! The problem with Red is that he goes behind the couch even if I really close off every single corner there is. I just don't know how he does it. If he were to come out by himself I wouldn't have such a big issue with it, but we have to disassemble the whole thing multiple times a day to take him out from there. Even now that I put boxes etc. with connections in the room, he just runs...

I was thinking to let him out only in my bedroom and bathroom where there are no cables and dangerous things for him to go behind but that means I'll have to pick him up and he doesn't let me do that. He just clings to the bars of his cage and I think I'd pull off his tiny arms before he'd let go of the bars. That will have to wait until he is more tame.

He doesn't care much about me, he doesn't come to me for a snack and when he's backflipping he will just sneak past me to go out of the cage. I hope he will become more interested in me soon as that would help with the situation a lot.

My husband suggested getting a pair of gloves to handle him as we are both a little bit scared of what he's capable of, we are not sure IF he bites hard but we don't give him the chance to as we pull our hands away (and then he surely learns that biting will help with getting what he wants, which is our hands AWAY!!!) At least with the gloves we will learn his behavior and see if he truly bites or just nips, as you said. Maybe he's not doing anything but I wouldn't want to risk experimenting on my fingers and just 'try and see' without protective gear.

For now I'll try and find another way of closing down the couch holes, or even keep him away from it completely so he can stretch his furry little legs.