Too scared/stressed out when in an unfamiliar environment...

[Buddy]

Hi,

My Buddy, who is 7 weeks old, is quite comfortably in his cage, in his playground area and on our carpet in the living room; but as soon as I take him somewhere else; he is extremely scared and stressed out; even at home going to other rooms seem to be a very scary experience for him.

I try to take him outside for getting a bit of sunshine (when it's not too hot or sunny; like in the mornings or afternoon) and he is again beside himself outside. He was doing much better when his eyes were closed; he would just lay on the grass (I'd be of course next to him) and soak the sunshine.

Now, if he is outside, he tries to dig or run... he gets really scared and starts shaking... I understand he is trying to protect himself from predators and cover himself. I'm just not sure if his level of scaredness (to the point of shaking) is normal. Should I keep taking him out 5-10 min (with me next to him supervising) or not stress him out at all?

If I don't take him out and get him somewhat used to being outside, seeing the sky, hearing the noises of birds/cars/nature etc... would it be so much harder down the road?

Any thoughts/recommendations would be appreciated!

[Melvin]

I don't have any advice but mine is the same way. He gets spooked so easily. If we move his cage a foot to the left, he'll hide in his cage for the rest of the day. I thought it would get better with time but I think it's getting worse. At least, he manages to keep busy, keeping his eye on the outdoor squirrels, and ignores me pretty much all day.

I hope someone has some advice. Maybe it's a red squirrel thing

[Buddy]

Would be nice if there was anything we can do to ease their anxiety, or maybe it's just their nature and needs to be that way... If so, it's fine. I was just wondering if that's normal; since this is my first ever squirrel...

[Chirps]

Hi! Are you taking him out without some sort of cage or carrier? That's a recipe for disaster if he bolts and you can't get him before he gets hurt or killed. What's the long term plan? Are you planning to release him at your place? He'll need a prerelease cage, as big as you can make it. Check around the forums for ideas and designs. At his age there's nothing wrong with letting him do his activity inside. He wouldn't be venturing far anyway. The important thing is for him to be developing his body and coordination.

If he's 7 weeks now he has a ways to go before release. Read up on what others do. Hopefully an expert will chime in (I am not, have only done one baby, very similar to yours re. age and time of year.) In your climate they might recommend you overwinter the baby. Lots of info and stories on the forum. Read up on it to formulate a plan.

But just know there's no hurry to be getting him outside, especially if you aren't containing him. Let him run and play where he feels safe doing so. Confidence will come.

Oh, what kind of squirrel is Buddy? I assumed grey, but Melvin's post has me wondering. Is he a red?

[Buddy]

Hi Chirps! Thanks for the comments and questions.

I used to take him out when he was much younger (eyes closed) in a cage, with fleeces etc. when the weather was nice, so he can get some sunshine (like 10-15 min). He seemed to really like the sun.

As he grows up, he is more anxious. Just taking him out in my hand; like while I hang out in the backyard, I keep him in my lap/hands. He is not going fast yet, so there was no incident of him running away or anything like that.

After my post, we've been keeping him at home and giving him practices in our living room. He has a pretty big cage at home too.

You can see some of the pictures on my profile. I have an album created. I added a few photos of his cage.

Yes, this forum has been absolutely a great place to get reliable information and a life-saver! I keep reading and learning.

We're keeping him at home over the winter; because he is still small and he is a singleton.

Next spring, I'll try to build him a big cage and we'll do a soft release (until then I'll keep reading more about release process). Yes, where we currently are and where we found him (a few blocks away). We live in a northwest suburb in Chicago/Illinois. We have pretty big trees around us and a lot squirrels. This is my first ever squirrel though. We love him very much and want to do the best for him!

[Buddy]

I also have another threat where I post pictures/videos of Buddy... Here are 2 videos from a week or so ago... He is now 165 grams.

Here's a video where he made some little noises... https://youtu.be/GgIZAUDnFzA (11 sec & 22 sec)

Another video of him being playful... https://youtu.be/E4lT1dif040

These are in his what I call "playground"... It's a big plastic box, where I let him run around. Of course I never leave him alone there. He can get out of it easily nowadays anyways, so when he is not in his cage, he is under our supervision.

[island rehabber]

When in doubt, refer to the squirrel's natural history:

Mamma squirrel does NOT allow the babies to see the light of day until they are eight weeks old. They are down the bottom of her deep nest and she does not allow them to so much as poke their heads out -- she smacks them down like a game of Whack-A-Mole. We know this by now because people have set up webcams near nests and watched the entire process of raising baby squirrels the "right way", by their own moms. They are on formula; they do NOT need sunlight yet. It's after weaning that we need to be concerned about calcium, UVB light, etc. You don't need to bring such young babies outdoors and, in fact, it's dangerous. They can pick up bacteria they have no immunity to, and they can get swooped up by a hawk. It's happened.

Hope this makes sense.

[Chirps]

When in doubt, refer to the squirrel's natural history:

Mamma squirrel does NOT allow the babies to see the light of day until they are eight weeks old. They are down the bottom of her deep nest and she does not allow them to so much as poke their heads out -- she smacks them down like a game of Whack-A-Mole. We know this by now because people have set up webcams near nests and watched the entire process of raising baby squirrels the "right way", by their own moms. They are on formula; they do NOT need sunlight yet. It's after weaning that we need to be concerned about calcium, UVB light, etc. You don't need to bring such young babies outdoors and, in fact, it's dangerous. They can pick up bacteria they have no immunity to, and they can get swooped up by a hawk. It's happened.

Hope this makes sense.

Thanks for that, I didn't bother mentioning keeping eyes-closed babies inside since they were already past that, and hadn't seen the videos either of how gangly and uncoordinated he still was. And I never thought of bacteria, just figured littles wouldn't be out in the sun anyway.

OMG I would love to see some of that. If I had the means I could set up a camera on TigerMom's box. I've never caught her doing that. Her current brood started poking their heads out around Labor Day and the bolder ones are starting to climb around in the yew. When she came from foraging to beg they would duck back inside, but she ignored them and came straight on to accost me. She must have decided they were ready, but they still weren't sure they wouldn't get in trouble. Or they ducked back because they weren't sure who was coming. Yesterday the two boldest stayed out in the yew while she had an altercation with her daughter from this past spring. They were both begging but I was ignoring them trying to get video of the new babies. So Merida (spring baby) was coming almost to me and TM would chase her away. The more timid new babies were watching from the doorway and ducked back in when TM jumped up to a branch near them, chomping at Merida.

[Rock Monkey]

The older Buddy gets, the stronger his instincts become. The increased anxiety as he ages about being outside is totally normal. Squirrels that just sit around in the open on the ground are dead squirrels. They are on the menu of many creatures.

So they are genetically wired not to engage in that behavior. We humans are apex predators so we are oblivious to such things for the most part, (though I have heard from plenty of women how they feel when alone and it is dark.) You can take him outside in a cage and maybe he will feel secure. In due time your squirrel will become very fast. You will turn your head and he will be gone and you will have no idea which direction which he went.

Anything that is strange or unknown is potentially dangerous. It might be something which will eat him. So the smart assumption is to assume that everything strange might be dangerous until proven otherwise. We know the vacuum cleaner won't kill us, but he doesn't know that.

A squirrel's primary defense is speed and agility and hyperawareness and caution. These are fundamental to their survival and should not be reprimanded.

He doesn't know what a vacuum cleaner is, doesn't understand tinfoil and its strange sounds, nor Velecro, etc.

The best way to help Buddy is be calm and relaxed as he explores and gets to know other rooms of the house. First walk around with him on your person and see what he pays attention to. Talk to him calmly. I explain things. I handle these objects and describe them. This shows that I am not afraid of these things. Then walk with him as he explores on his own, allowing him to retreat to you when he needs to.

Your house is filled with objects for which he has no genetic model because they are like nothing in the natural world.

[Buddy]

When in doubt, refer to the squirrel's natural history:

Mamma squirrel does NOT allow the babies to see the light of day until they are eight weeks old. They are down the bottom of her deep nest and she does not allow them to so much as poke their heads out -- she smacks them down like a game of Whack-A-Mole. We know this by now because people have set up webcams near nests and watched the entire process of raising baby squirrels the "right way", by their own moms. They are on formula; they do NOT need sunlight yet. It's after weaning that we need to be concerned about calcium, UVB light, etc. You don't need to bring such young babies outdoors and, in fact, it's dangerous. They can pick up bacteria they have no immunity to, and they can get swooped up by a hawk. It's happened.

Hope this makes sense.

I just saw this! Thank you so much! Didn't know any of that. We're very protective of him. This is very helpful! Thank you!

[Buddy]

The older Buddy gets, the stronger his instincts become. The increased anxiety as he ages about being outside is totally normal. Squirrels that just sit around in the open on the ground are dead squirrels. They are on the menu of many creatures.

So they are genetically wired not to engage in that behavior. We humans are apex predators so we are oblivious to such things for the most part, (though I have heard from plenty of women how they feel when alone and it is dark.) You can take him outside in a cage and maybe he will feel secure. In due time your squirrel will become very fast. You will turn your head and he will be gone and you will have no idea which direction which he went.

Anything that is strange or unknown is potentially dangerous. It might be something which will eat him. So the smart assumption is to assume that everything strange might be dangerous until proven otherwise. We know the vacuum cleaner won't kill us, but he doesn't know that.

A squirrel's primary defense is speed and agility and hyperawareness and caution. These are fundamental to their survival and should not be reprimanded.

He doesn't know what a vacuum cleaner is, doesn't understand tinfoil and its strange sounds, nor Velecro, etc.

The best way to help Buddy is be calm and relaxed as he explores and gets to know other rooms of the house. First walk around with him on your person and see what he pays attention to. Talk to him calmly. I explain things. I handle these objects and describe them. This shows that I am not afraid of these things. Then walk with him as he explores on his own, allowing him to retreat to you when he needs to.

Your house is filled with objects for which he has no genetic model because they are like nothing in the natural world.

That makes sense! Thank you! Yes, I'm particularly very gentle and calm with him. Can't say that everyone around the house is; but he seems to feel pretty comfortable when he is in the house and especially in his cage. Thanks for all the info/recommendation. I'm doing my best to learn as much as I can. This is my first every squirrel and there is A LOT to learn and think about.