Buddy (12-13-2020), Diggie's Friend (12-18-2020)
No I dont
When the pacing occurs, does it occur at the same time of year?
They definitely undergo behavioral shifts based on the seasons. They are wired to engage in certain behaviors at certain times of the year. For instance starting a couple of months ago, their instincts lead them to start stock piling nuts because if they don't it is highly probable that they won't survive through the winter.
Have you given him some black walnuts or hickory nuts in the shell? These would help him fulfill that instinctual need.
Their drive to have multiple nests also becomes even stronger at this time of year.
Does Mr. Moby have multiple nests which he has created?
If these various instincts are frustrated you are going to get an agitated squirrel. Even though still living inside, you have to let him be a squirrel as much as possible.
There are great many things a squirrel does not understand about us humans: our work, our hygiene and our technology and various hazardous chemicals, etc. He doesn't understand that you need it to be quiet to work and it isn't fair for you to get mad at him for failing to be quiet.
Have you tried noise cancelling headphones?
I always look to my outside squirrels to try to figure out what is happening with those that live inside. I have never had issues with pacing but in the fall they always have 10 times the energy they normally have. I was speaking to a friend in England who has an NR that is mostly paralyzed in the back end and she casually mentioned that she is in "fall mode" right now, chasing everyone's feet and terrorizing her mom by climbing. My Zeke, who most of the time is a total little slacker who wants to sleep in starts getting up at 4AM and rattling his cage so I get my butt out of bed and cater to him. And in the fall, my wilds, who normally are eating me out of house and home and spending most of the day hanging around the Squirrel Cafe are mostly absent.
They are getting ready for winter. I live in a very cold place and gathering up enough leaves to stuff in their nests is a matter of life and death for them and they take it very seriously. Can you tear up a couple rolls of paper towels and just fling them everywhere for him to gather up and build with? It might just calm him down if he can do what his little brain is screaming at him to do.
Hi Guys- Thank you again for your feedback-
I also feed and sometimes rescue the wilds so I am very familiar with their behavior all year round. My boy is very different, He is going into his 7th year now and every year is the same as the year before, 90% of the year is spent like this, pacing, energy at 100% all the time, if I do not press the issue and start using the water sprayer bottle he will NEVER go into his bunker and chill.
Putting on noise cancelling headphones does me no good as he starts climbing stuff around the house that I already have put restrictions around and child proof but he still finds a way to get into them and the last thing I need is him finding something or getting into something that could harm him
Rocky, Stress is maybe 10% of this issue, but not the whole ordeal. This boy will just not grow up, things are fun and dandy sometimes, thats great, but I have a professional job and responsibilities to attend too and therefore I am asking for help.
Boxes, rolling papers, the amount of toys and time I spend playing with him (its all been done) Yes, I got him a nest box a few years ago (gives it no attention) I got him a really expensive and steady spinning wheel (gives it no attention) I get him new branches that he does not even touch but yet choses to go chew on the kitchen cabins and bedroom and bathroom door and dinning table.
Again I am very lost, and running out of both options and my mind
After 104 replies, quite a few of them offering what appears to be good advice, based on your responses it really looks like you have tried everything (diet, ear phones, distractions, etc.) and nothing has worked or will work.
I truly believe you are left with only two paths, 1. Live with this until he dies. 2. give him away.
If you cannot accept that fact, then in effect, you have chosen path #1.
So do you have a problem with me caring so much to get more ideas and hear from others about this issue? I mean is my thread bothering you in anyway shape or form, or did you just feel like belittling the issue and tell me that I just dont want to listen and keep beating at the tree?
If you feeling like you want to be judgmental, please find another thread to do that on, I am actually looking for help here
THANK YOU
I hope to see something offered to you in this thread that resolves your problem.
Exactly. Yes, in the fall they work diligently to maximize calorie intake in order to fatten up, building energy stores, and cache as much food as possible. Then, when the cold really hits, they stay in their nests, lightly dozing, in order to minimize calories spent keeping warm or spent moving about. They don't know how long or how cold the winter will be so they minimize energy expenditure in order to ensure that the various foods that they have cached will be sufficient to keep them alive and healthy until more food become available in the spring. Females have the added burden of spending calories to nurse young and keeping them warm.
If they become depleted they are much more vulnerable to predators, pests and disease. So, yes, it is very much a matter of life and death for them and these instinctual needs are genetically wired into them. These instincts cannot be wished away because they are inconvenient or unwanted.
When Helen starts showing an interest in building a nest, I start providing her materials that I don't care about what becomes of them (paper towels, old t-shirts, bits of plain brown paper) so that she doesn't tear up something I do care about.
Diggie's Friend (12-18-2020), Squirreleesi (12-21-2020)
A squirrel will take negative attention if it cannot get positive attention. Mr. Moby goes after these things because he knows it is certain to get your attention. They are very intelligent observers of patterns.
When Helen starts chewing on something she is not supposed to I tell her "No" firmly, but not in a threatening way. Sometimes I will then present her a piece of branch. I praise her "Thank you" genuinely when she complies and stops chewing. When left alone, 99% of the time, when I come back I find that she hasn't chewed on what she isn't supposed to chew on and has chewed up these various pieces of branches.
That is one of the virtues of having a separate free space for the squirrel. There is a whole lot less destructive behavior because it doesn't result in immediate attention. There is no 'reward' for the behavior.
I hear ya Rocky, and its my fault that I have not moved thus far to a bigger place Life has been just one thing after the other! I have hard wood floor and now I am thinking of spending a good $500 to get the place carpeted so that I dont hear the horse like running sounds he makes when running-
On the other hand it is much harder to clean up pee and poop on carpet. You likely won't even notice the pee until that particular spot has been used for a long time.
Also, hardwood floors are more valuable. If you own the place you will be reducing its value. If you don't, you probably will seriously irk the landlord.
How about area rugs? You might even be able to find some at a Habitat for Humanity store for very little.
I rent the place, I have a few area rugs but the devil of a boy I have makes sure to run around them not on them Haha- We dont have that store in my area and it seems you cant shop online
I was thinking of a 10 by 15 area rug to cover the entire living room where he does most his racing at least until I can move in May since thats when my lease ends
Good morning,
What a beautiful boy you have. Seriously he's Gorgeous.
I've read through this thread in its entirety, no advice but I do have a couple of questions.
You mentioned about him pacing and being in a loop. What is this like? Is he following the exact same path every time? Or is it more random?
You've also mentioned interfering with your working. Have you noticed that he's worse when you're trying to concentrate on work?
Sounds like he acts this way periodically, is that correct?
Does everything feel worse this time around?
Buddy (12-15-2020)
Some Goodwill stores might have such carpets.
Buddy (12-15-2020)
Hi Pennycash, thank you for your kind comments
80% of the time he runs the same path, I will try to upload a video of him soon doing that, but the rest of the time he is random, he will run to the window, 5-10 seconds then back down the sofa on the ground in a circle around the living room back to the window, and repeat, then he will come to the ground and start wrestling with his billion stuffed animals which triggers me to stop working and go play with him so he does not feel alone or that I am ignoring him ( I work 9-10 hours a day) then you have the next round of crazy (the other 20%) he goes to the kitchen, up the cabins and starts searching for god knows what, then to the bedroom under the bed and searching again for who knows what, then out to the living room and repeat- FYI its a small space my apartment is about 570sqf
PennyCash (12-15-2020)
Does Mr. Moby build nest?
Have you tried putting out loose paper towels and bits of browning packing paper?
Helen will spend many minutes on end running around with wadded up paper in her mouth, looking for the perfect spot. She hops on me occasionally to get a little lovein'. In her case, I believe the desired spot is in another room so she just continues to run around as the door is currently closed.
Have you given Mr. Moby some black walnuts and/or hickory nuts? Shuffling those to one place or another can occupy a fair amount of time and they seem happy in the process.
Both the nuts and the nest building allow them to satisfy their fundamental instincts.
Oh yes, just got him to 2 boxes, a whole thing of rolling paper and nothing- would not even try to build a nest and the weather is cold here now in the 20's and 30's and he just wont stop- I dont want to give him the nuts as its hard enough to get him to eat his veggies without the extra distractions