Keeping Squirel over Winter for Spring Release

[andrzejek]

Looking for advise. Especially from those who leave in Northern hemisphere - Ontario / Northern USA and who have experience keeping squirrels over the winter for release in the Spring.

First some info:

Squirrel was born in early August, so it has just grown up and we cannot release it as there are no leaves on the trees and it is not ready in terms of nest and experience gathering food.
We keep it in our sun room. So it is safe from wind, rain, snow and extreme temperatures, but it is getting colder there as season is changing.
Sun room is prepared as we have some dirt, leaves and a lot of interconnected branches for running and training.
It build it's own nest behind a cabinet.
We gathered a lot of natural food - acorns, maple seeds, hickory and black walnuts.

Questions:

- Is the setting OK for winter? Or it will be too cold? I don't think temperatures go below freezing and definitely not to -10, -15 degrees Celsius (14, 5 Fahrenheit)
- We plan release in April, probably the second part of April. Is it too soon? Should we wait for better weather? April can be cold. Should we wait for some leaves on the trees?
- We plan to keep minimal contact for 30 days before the release - any advise here?
- In regards to contact. Squirrel is very friendly and attached to us (my wife and myself). It is 12-13 weeks old now, so I think it is a grownup. And we worry about that. She may not be afraid of people. We have cats at home but there is no contact so I hope it will be afraid of other animals. At the moment this is our main concern. We don't want to take care of it and then release it completely not afraid and unprepared.
- We will open the door for the sun room in the spring and we will keep everything inside if it want to come back and hide during the transition.
- We also plan to leave some food near the sun room at the beginning.

So if you have any advise, pointers it will be appreciated.
Thank you.

[olorin19]

- Is the setting OK for winter? Or it will be too cold? I don't think temperatures go below freezing and definitely not to -10, -15 degrees Celsius (14, 5 Fahrenheit)
- We plan release in April, probably the second part of April. Is it too soon? Should we wait for better weather? April can be cold. Should we wait for some leaves on the trees?
- We plan to keep minimal contact for 30 days before the release - any advise here?
- In regards to contact. Squirrel is very friendly and attached to us (my wife and myself). It is 12-13 weeks old now, so I think it is a grownup. And we worry about that. She may not be afraid of people. We have cats at home but there is no contact so I hope it will be afraid of other animals. At the moment this is our main concern. We don't want to take care of it and then release it completely not afraid and unprepared.
- We will open the door for the sun room in the spring and we will keep everything inside if it want to come back and hide during the transition.
- We also plan to leave some food near the sun room at the beginning.

So if you have any advise, pointers it will be appreciated.
Thank you.

As long as it has plenty of bedding (strips of fleece are ideal) so that it can build a cozy warm nest, then it sounds to me like your sun porch should be warm enough. (Its age peers, after all, will be outdoors all winter.)

I would recommend, however, a proper release cage for at least 2-4 weeks rather than the sun porch prior to release. The purpose of the release cage is to get your guy used to its new outdoor environment AND get the local squirrels to accept your guy as belonging so the likelihood of getting run off is lessened.

I am a bit further south and do not release overwintered squirrels until early to mid May typically.

I have raised and released eight squirrels, and while most remained friendly with me and my family, they definitely know the difference between you and strangers. I have not had any issues with them being unafraid of other people.

We have a dog that does not chase squirrels, and while we take no chances, the squirrels we raise end up being relatively unafraid of our dog while being fully on alert and avoiding any other dogs. We can be walking our dog (on a leash) and our prior released squirrels (as well as quite a few wilds in the neighborhood) will run up to us for food with little fear of our dog despite avoiding all other dogs.

[andrzejek]

As long as it has plenty of bedding (strips of fleece are ideal) so that it can build a cozy warm nest, then it sounds to me like your sun porch should be warm enough. (Its age peers, after all, will be outdoors all winter.)

I would recommend, however, a proper release cage for at least 2-4 weeks rather than the sun porch prior to release. The purpose of the release cage is to get your guy used to its new outdoor environment AND get the local squirrels to accept your guy as belonging so the likelihood of getting run off is lessened.

I am a bit further south and do not release overwintered squirrels until early to mid May typically.

I have raised and released eight squirrels, and while most remained friendly with me and my family, they definitely know the difference between you and strangers. I have not had any issues with them being unafraid of other people.

We have a dog that does not chase squirrels, and while we take no chances, the squirrels we raise end up being relatively unafraid of our dog while being fully on alert and avoiding any other dogs. We can be walking our dog (on a leash) and our prior released squirrels (as well as quite a few wilds in the neighborhood) will run up to us for food with little fear of our dog despite avoiding all other dogs.

Thank you.
Release cage is an issue, as what I do in this province is illegal and one of my neighbours would definitely report me if he sees that. Not sure about other one as they are new. I will have to think about it. All other things are good.

[olorin19]

Does your sun porch have windows that open? Is there a way to set things up so the window is open but covered with wire to prevent escape but allow interaction between your guy and the local squirrels in the period prior to release?

[Tashahaven]

You can fashion together a panel to cover an open window or even a door, by making a wooden frame and stapling hardware cloth to it and putting it in place of the opening. As long as they have visibility of the “wild” environment and squirrel behavior, and can get to know the neighbor squirrels and smells and chatter, the porch could successfully act as a type of release cage successfully.

[andrzejek]

You can fashion together a panel to cover an open window or even a door, by making a wooden frame and stapling hardware cloth to it and putting it in place of the opening. As long as they have visibility of the “wild” environment and squirrel behavior, and can get to know the neighbor squirrels and smells and chatter, the porch could successfully act as a type of release cage successfully.

It has patio door, which we have opened few times. It has pet proof mesh (for cats - not sure how good it is for squirrel). It allows for some interaction, but I haven't seen other squirrels coming closely.