Young Squirrel Advice Needed

[MorrisonTheSquirrel]

Hi everyone first post and any help appreciated. Sorry if it’s long or badly written lol.

Rescued a baby grey today I estimate 5-6 weeks old however I’m unsure, he’s notably still young and his tail isn’t too bushy yet, but eyes open, seems healthy, unsure if there’s anything not obvious to look out for, can’t see any fleas. Very clingy to people, runs up peoples leg and will just stay there and very relaxed likes to just sit on my shoulder. Was worried as he kept going near food truck and wouldn’t stay in the woods at all instead would just cling to people. Brought him home and bout a big cage with some log toys climbing stuff and some hideaways although he keeps knocking them over instead of going inside.

Eyes opened and seems to be going to the toilet on his own although I might try the cotton pad trick just in case, anyone which advice on this please let me know. He’s drink water just fine and been eating seeds and nuts today, tomorrow I will go to the shops and buy some broccoli and such for him. Diet advice more than welcome especially for his age range.

We do have cats but I’ve read to keep them apart and the cats are outdoor so shouldn’t be too difficult, at most they’d see each other in passing if I was holding him and walked past a cat, is this ok? (Can avoid more diligently if needed) we have a shed which is made into a hangout spot he’s living in however I’m worried about the cold, I’ll cover him at night and he has a chunky knitted sleeve he can sleep inside.

Completely fine with people and not too fussed about all the new faces but the main issue is he doesn’t seem to be settling into his cage, obviously as it’s his first day I don’t expect him to Settle right away but is there anything I can do? I plan on taking him on walks and letting him out of the cage as much as possible but sometimes it just won’t be possible while everyone’s at work/uni. I plan on releasing him as soon as he’s grown up and able to fend for himself, I will do a soft release, plenty of good areas near by. Where I live no charity’s will take him at all and he will be euthanised so I want to do what I can for him to help him on his feet as soon as he can.

All advice appreciated thank you so much! He’s a great wee guy and I’m happy to release him as soon as he’s able, as much as I’d love to keep him forever he needs to be in the wild, so any advice on knowing it’s a good time and how to go about a release would be great. There’s a good area just behind my back garden with a good strip of trees and squirrels already, I’ll do more looking into it when the time comes however.

[Kimy]

Hola yo tengo 2 semanas con mis ardillas bebes, según chat gpt tienen entre 10 a 12 semanas de vida ya comen y hacen sus necesidades son muy alegres y exploradores se llevan con mis perros y mis conejos pero hay una que siempre huele mal y haca caca amarilla y aveces aguada no es siempre pero quisiera saber que puedo hacer por ella, cabe recalcar que no se mira enferma y juega y come !
También quisiera saber como puedo saber que sexos son ? Ya que no quiero embarazos no deseados, les agradezco su ayuda, y cualquier concejo es bienvenido ( las ardillas se están alimentando de frutas verduras y algunas nueces y debido a mi región lo más factible ah sido la leche de cachorro ... ) dejo una foto para que las conozcan 😍

[olorin19]

This guy looks maybe 7 weeks old, but certainly young enough that formula is needed.

Here are some good links -

https://henryspets.com/pages/baby-squirrel

https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...rrel-Questions

I would take no chances with cats - never let them be in the same room - cat bites or even scratches can be fatal due to infection.

I would not take your squirrel outdoors, as there is too much risk of wandering. This guy needs your care for a few months at least before being release for a soft release.

Back before I knew any better, I had a squirrel not much older than this wander off and not find his way back home for over 24 hours. Do not take any chances!

[olorin19]

Here is Mookie at just under 12 weeks - since I had him before his eyes were open, I know how old he is here.

He looks quite a bit older than your guy, and He was still on formula for about 4 weeks AFTER this photo.

Your guy absolutely needs formula - preferably Fox Valley 20/50, available from Henry's Healthy Pets (link in prior post) plus some sort of block (also available from Henry's).

[Kimy]

Que hermoso !! Gracias a Dios que encontré ese sitio solo quiero darle los mejor a mis ardillas en cuanto ala pequeña diarrea que mencione tienen algún concejo ? Pues aquí no hay veterinarios que quieran atenderla, también como puedo saber si son machos o hembras quiero ponerles nombre 😅

[Kimy]

Y tomare en cuenta el alejarlos de los perros entiendo perfectamente, mis perros son de apoyo a otros animales también rescatados pero siempre es mejor evitar . También las ardillas no salen al exterior ellas pasas completando adentro de casa

[olorin19]

My suggestion would be to translate your post into English, as the proportion of TSB members who are fluent in Spanish is likely not that high.

Mi sugerencia sería traducir su publicación al inglés, ya que la proporción de miembros de TSB que hablan español con fluidez probablemente no sea tan alta.

[Kimy]

ohhh sorry for some reason everything is coming out in Spanish for me 🤔 ..... it said it's beautiful!! Thank God I found that site I just want to give the best to my squirrels regarding the little diarrhea I mentioned, do you have any advice? Well there are no vets here who want to treat her, also how can I tell if they are male or female I want to name them 😅 And I will take into account keeping them away from dogs, understanding perfectly, my dogs are support dogs for other animals also rescued but it is always better to avoid them. Also squirrels do not go outside they spend complete time inside the house 🏡

[olorin19]

When young, the male penis and female vulva look similar but are located in different places. The vulva is quite near the anus, whereas the penis is up the abdomen. If you happen to have one of each, the difference is fairly obvious.

Or as my rehabber mother would have said, "If the pee hole is next to the poo hole, it's a girl. If not, it's a boy."

[Kimy]

Hahaha ok I'll check that out! 😅

[supersquirrelgirl]

Hello Kimy,

Please start a new thread for your squirrel so TSB does not get cross-threaded between other squirrels. This is best to help you.

We can have admins change/delete comments here as needed.

Mr.SSG

[Mel1959]

Hi everyone first post and any help appreciated. Sorry if it’s long or badly written lol.

Rescued a baby grey today I estimate 5-6 weeks old however I’m unsure, he’s notably still young and his tail isn’t too bushy yet, but eyes open, seems healthy, unsure if there’s anything not obvious to look out for, can’t see any fleas. Very clingy to people, runs up peoples leg and will just stay there and very relaxed likes to just sit on my shoulder. Was worried as he kept going near food truck and wouldn’t stay in the woods at all instead would just cling to people. Brought him home and bout a big cage with some log toys climbing stuff and some hideaways although he keeps knocking them over instead of going inside.

Eyes opened and seems to be going to the toilet on his own although I might try the cotton pad trick just in case, anyone which advice on this please let me know. He’s drink water just fine and been eating seeds and nuts today, tomorrow I will go to the shops and buy some broccoli and such for him. Diet advice more than welcome especially for his age range.

We do have cats but I’ve read to keep them apart and the cats are outdoor so shouldn’t be too difficult, at most they’d see each other in passing if I was holding him and walked past a cat, is this ok? (Can avoid more diligently if needed) we have a shed which is made into a hangout spot he’s living in however I’m worried about the cold, I’ll cover him at night and he has a chunky knitted sleeve he can sleep inside.

Completely fine with people and not too fussed about all the new faces but the main issue is he doesn’t seem to be settling into his cage, obviously as it’s his first day I don’t expect him to Settle right away but is there anything I can do? I plan on taking him on walks and letting him out of the cage as much as possible but sometimes it just won’t be possible while everyone’s at work/uni. I plan on releasing him as soon as he’s grown up and able to fend for himself, I will do a soft release, plenty of good areas near by. Where I live no charity’s will take him at all and he will be euthanised so I want to do what I can for him to help him on his feet as soon as he can.

All advice appreciated thank you so much! He’s a great wee guy and I’m happy to release him as soon as he’s able, as much as I’d love to keep him forever he needs to be in the wild, so any advice on knowing it’s a good time and how to go about a release would be great. There’s a good area just behind my back garden with a good strip of trees and squirrels already, I’ll do more looking into it when the time comes however.

In the UK you want to feed Royal Canin Baby Dog powdered formula mixed according to label. Most squirrels will consume formula till approx 12 weeks of age….some longer.