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Thread: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

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    Default Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Hi Everyone! Let me just start off by saying this site is amazing!! I have found so much great info and I love all of the support. I have been taking care of 2 baby boys for about the last 10 days, both are doing great, were pretty dehydrated when I first started with them (neighbor fell a tree and the nest came crashing down, one other sibling didn't make it unfortunately) We did our best to keep them warm that night and put them up high with the hopes mom would return. The next morning we were out there with rice bags getting them warmed up again and played baby cries for about an hour, no mom. So I brought them home and immediately started hydrating them and getting them comfy in a make shift nest. I think, 'the boys' as I've started calling them, are about 3.5-4 weeks old. Henry's has been a life saver with the syringes and miracle nipples. They are on 3cc syringes now eating about 4cc's every 3'ish hours or so. When I first brought them home they weighed 44g and 52g. As of last weight taken today they are up to 71g and 72g. They must be pretty content because I have only heard them cry the day the nest came down and one day when I wasn't going fast enough and one of the boys was waiting his turn to eat, lol. Anyhow, my questions that I have:

    Being a new squirrel mom, I want to make sure I have something on hand should one of them get AP for any reason. I don't foresee this happening as I am so scared of it happening my boys typically get upset with me because I go too slow for them, lol. I have Pennicilin VK 500MG on hand that I found and I also have Cephalexin 500MG. I just want to be safe rather than sorry. Will either of these work if one of them starts acting like he may have AP? I weigh them everyday with my food scale just to make sure everything is going in the right direction. I know the dosage will vary based on their weight, but wanted to make sure I have something on hand for that 'just in case' moment.

    I have not been forcing them to eat, (again, all my over reading, lol) I don't want them to bloat or anything, so some feedings they will only eat 2cc's and then act disinterested, so I move on to the other brother, and then check back after he has finished eating to see if the first one maybe is a little more awake or wants to finish off his meal. Is this ok? They seem to be putting on weight steadily and are definitely hydrated. (I've had pet rats in the past and horses, dogs, etc, so knew from the beginning what I was up against with dehydration) Usually I know when they are full because they both get milk drunk and literally lay in my hand with all of their legs and head just draped over it (totally relaxed)while I clean them up and help them go potty.

    Their pee has been mainly clear and no smell, poos are really good from what I can tell. I usually get 10-20 little pellets each time after they are fed that are a mustard type color- everything I have read this seems good. Just wanted to double check myself here...

    One of 'the boys' had some blood on his syringe nipple yesterday, but it only happened once and I figured it was from maybe his top teeth starting to come in. Didn't happen anymore and his appetite never diminished. They are starting to get more coordinated and quick!

    Currently they are on a mix of the FV 32/40 and 20/50. Slowly changing to 100% 20/50 since I read on here that the 32/40 has caused some problems in the past. They actually seem to be eating better with the 20/50 mix than just the straight 32/40 they were on when my squirrel starter kit came in. Any suggestions on this and the formula?

    I know I am probably being a helicopter squirrel mom, but I have gotten so attached to these little guys! It has been fun taking pictures and seeing their progress! Even my son has had a good time getting to see the process and learning from it. Thanks for taking the time to read my little story here and any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I have attached a few pictures of the day I got 'the boys' hydrating them and them sleeping the second night, to the last three pictures taken of them last night at their last night feeding. Let me know if anyone thinks their age might be different than what I am thinking. Thanks and happy to be here! 😊


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  2. #2
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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Hi eshepherd

    to TheSquirrelBoard

    Thank you for doing your homework. It sounds like you’re doing a great job!
    I would continue transitioning until they are on the Fox Valley 20:50.

    It is very common to see blood on the nipple when they are teething so no need to worry.

    Of the two antibiotics you have, the Cephalexin is the better one. The Penicillin won’t work. Ciprofloxacin would be better if you could get a pill from family or a friend. Now that you have a good system going and Miracle nipples, it’s unlikely they will aspirate. I do understand wanting to be prepared though.

    You’re doing an awesome job and they are the picture of health. Great job!!!

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    eshepard (09-11-2021)

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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Hi eshepard,

    You are in the right place to get information and express plenty of squirrel love.

    Your babies are beautiful! You said that you have had them for 11 days. The pictures look like they could be around 2.5 - 3 weeks and maybe about 4 weeks now? They need to be fed every four hours at 5 ish % of the days body wt. so at 96 grams you would be feeding 5 ml at every feeding.

    What size syringe are you feeding with? Is it an o ring syringe? Go ahead and get them switched over to FV 20/50. They can stay on that till they are weaned.

    Since you have time to get better antibiotics I would. They are pretty easy to find cos they are widely prescribed for people. The best antibiotic is Baytril/Cipro. Also widely used is Clavamox/Augmentin.

    Would love to se utd pics of the boys now.
    redwuff
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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Quote Originally Posted by redwuff View Post
    Hi eshepard,

    You are in the right place to get information and express plenty of squirrel love.

    Your babies are beautiful! You said that you have had them for 11 days. The pictures look like they could be around 2.5 - 3 weeks and maybe about 4 weeks now? They need to be fed every four hours at 5 ish % of the days body wt. so at 96 grams you would be feeding 5 ml at every feeding.

    What size syringe are you feeding with? Is it an o ring syringe? Go ahead and get them switched over to FV 20/50. They can stay on that till they are weaned.

    Since you have time to get better antibiotics I would. They are pretty easy to find cos they are widely prescribed for people. The best antibiotic is Baytril/Cipro. Also widely used is Clavamox/Augmentin.

    Would love to se utd pics of the boys now.

    Hi! So the first two pictures I posted above are from the first day I got them. The last three pictures are from two nights ago. They weighed in this morning at 75g each. They both have bottom teeth, but it's a little challenging to tell if the top teeth have cut through yet or not. They are finally starting to look squirrely lol. Tummy has some white hair growing and tails have a lot more hair on them.

    Currently they are fed with a 3cc O-ring syringe with the miracle nipples. I have been calculating and preparing them about 4cc each per feeding. Sometimes they want less than that though, is that normal? I don't want to underfeed them, but I also don't feel right trying to make them eat it if they don't want it and are blatantly refusing to eat the remainder (and when I say remainder it's like maybe .5cc that they don't want). Just trying to make sure I get it all right.

  6. Serious fuzzy thank you's to eshepard from:

    redwuff (09-11-2021)

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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Also, I have been feeding them every 3hrs, maybe if I increase it to every 4hrs that will make the difference in their eating amounts and refusal of some of their formula? Like I said, not once have they cried out that they are hungry or cold or anything. I will take some more pics at their next feeding to share.

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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Yes to everything. Your doing good work with those babies!
    redwuff
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    Question Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Quote Originally Posted by redwuff View Post
    Yes to everything. Your doing good work with those babies!
    Soooo, go figure, I have been caring for the boys round the clock for the last like 13 days and I had to work today so my hubby did one round of feedings on them and my one boy decided to open his eyes! They aren't completely open, just the one side is open and the other side is trying to open, so adorable! I didn't believe him at first when he called me and told me because I don't think they seem old enough yet to have their eyes open. His brother's are still closed but he is blinking a lot. They also both seem to be extremely hungry, even after they have finished their 4.5cc each.

    I have a question, I saw, I think on here, that if they open their eyes to count that as their 5week birthday, but these guys are just starting to get fuzzy on their tummies. Do they seem a little early? If I calculated them right at about 2 weeks roughly when I got them and two weeks of us taking care of them this coming Tuesday, that really only puts them at about 4-4.5 weeks.

    I am also wondering if I should up their food intake since they aren't falling asleep after feedings like they were. They are still trying to chase down and find the nipple. I know I read somewhere that once their eyes open they will be really hungry and to feed them up to 8% of their body weight for about a week or so. I don't want to over feed them, when they eat their 4.5cc they seem really full belly wise, but as of yet, we haven't had any problems with getting bloated or anything. They are fully digesting between meals. I moved their feedings out to the 4hrs and it has made a lot of difference. So great advice on that!! Thank you!

    They also are still not showing as dehydrated at all, but should I be supplementing with just some plain water between meals to make sure they stay hydrated or will their formula take care of that? Today's weigh in this morning was at 83g and 81g. As of this evening after feeding, when I weighed them they are at 89g and 93g.

    At what time should I plan on them becoming like super mobile and need to be in their larger cage? I don't want any accidental escapes. I am sure my Shepherds would like that, but I would NOT. lol. Thanks for any advice!! I am still trying to get some good updated pictures, they are so 'Squirrely'!! Hard to get them to stay still unless they are asleep

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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    The amount you feed should be adjusted each day as they gain weight. At their current weights the 89gr baby should be eating between 4.5cc-6.25cc. And the 93gr baby eating 4.65-6.5cc. So if you are feeding them 4.5cc you are feeding on the lower end and they may want more. What’s most important is to GRADUALLY let them have more. Don’t just jump to an additional 2ccs at a feeding. As they grow they may want to take 10% of their weight at a feeding, but it will be a gradual increase. This is how you prevent them from getting diarrhea from over feeding.

    You should watch for any suckling of each other’s genitalia. This is usually a sign of being hungry and is very dangerous.

    They won’t be ready for a large cage for a few more weeks….when you see them trying to jump out of the bin. Many folks use an intermediate sized cage before moving them to a large critter nation cage so they have a chance to navigate the cage in a slightly more confined area.

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    eshepard (09-13-2021)

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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    5 weeks is a pretty good average for when the eyes open. Some will open them earlier and others a little later. I would take the average between the two openings and age them at 5 weeks.

    When you mentioned Shepherds, I assume you mean German Shepherds.
    I’m sure you know but I wanted to warn you that baby squirrels and dogs are a deadly combo. There are some pretty gruesome stories on TSB about accidents that happened. Many people think their dog wouldn’t ever kill or injury a baby but let me assure you, they will. Even a playful ‘pawing’ is enough to kill or maim. Interaction with domestic pets should be avoided because your babies don’t need to get the idea that dogs are their friends. When released, they need their predator instinct intact.

    You are doing an awesome job with these babies.

    Edit… water between formula feeds is not necessary if they are fully hydrated. We only do that in the early days if/when they need the extra hydration.

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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Quote Originally Posted by Mel1959 View Post
    The amount you feed should be adjusted each day as they gain weight. At their current weights the 89gr baby should be eating between 4.5cc-6.25cc. And the 93gr baby eating 4.65-6.5cc. So if you are feeding them 4.5cc you are feeding on the lower end and they may want more. What’s most important is to GRADUALLY let them have more. Don’t just jump to an additional 2ccs at a feeding. As they grow they may want to take 10% of their weight at a feeding, but it will be a gradual increase. This is how you prevent them from getting diarrhea from over feeding.

    You should watch for any suckling of each other’s genitalia. This is usually a sign of being hungry and is very dangerous.

    They won’t be ready for a large cage for a few more weeks….when you see them trying to jump out of the bin. Many folks use an intermediate sized cage before moving them to a large critter nation cage so they have a chance to navigate the cage in a slightly more confined area.
    Thank you! I have been watching for them suckling on each other, I read about that and definitely do not want that problem, lol! Today I bumped them up on their food intake, so the smaller guy got about 5.5cc before he started kind of falling asleep while eating, and the bigger boy got almost 6cc before he started acting full and sleepy. I try to weigh them once in the morning and at their last feeding so I have an idea of what I need to have prepared in the morning for them.

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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Quote Originally Posted by HRT4SQRLS View Post
    5 weeks is a pretty good average for when the eyes open. Some will open them earlier and others a little later. I would take the average between the two openings and age them at 5 weeks.

    When you mentioned Shepherds, I assume you mean German Shepherds.
    I’m sure you know but I wanted to warn you that baby squirrels and dogs are a deadly combo. There are some pretty gruesome stories on TSB about accidents that happened. Many people think their dog wouldn’t ever kill or injury a baby but let me assure you, they will. Even a playful ‘pawing’ is enough to kill or maim. Interaction with domestic pets should be avoided because your babies don’t need to get the idea that dogs are their friends. When released, they need their predator instinct intact.

    You are doing an awesome job with these babies.

    Edit… water between formula feeds is not necessary if they are fully hydrated. We only do that in the early days if/when they need the extra hydration.
    Yes, German Shepherds, and I would never mix the two of them together. My girls are really well behaved but I do not trust them with these little ones and I don't want, like you said, the boys to think that dogs are friendly to them by any means. Thats why I wanted to make sure I got them into a more secure cage at the right time. Definitely being safe about that.

    And great about the water, just wanted to make sure that they aren't supposed to be getting that all the time as long as they are staying hydrated. They are doing really good on the 20/50 FV and are fully transitioned to that now. Thank you to everyone for your great advice and help!

    Updated pic from last night of one of the boys

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  16. #12
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    Default Re: Hi All! First time Squirrel Mom of two boys! Questions!

    Just precious!

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