Refugees

Charley and Frances (don't ask which is which), refugees from Hurricane Frances. My neighbor and I found these squirrels still wrapped fairly snugly in the nest that had been blown from the tree. They were very chilled so I bundled them up and put them under a lamp on my desk. I've been feeding them round the clock. I'm so tired! LOL They're worth it.

Hundreds of babies were blown from trees, there are stories in the papers. One lady had over 200! She took their plight to the papers and all of the babies were adopted out to volunteers. She's still getting calls.

Close as we can figure these little ones were about 10-12 days old when we found them, hairless, toothless and their eyes still closed. Still are for that matter!

Here they are today, still looking identical, but it looks like they are starting to get some fur...

They snuggle all the time.

Freshly fed and falling asleep

ohmiword... in your hand they show their true size. No wonder they have to eat all the time. Good luck on keeping them going.

What are you feeding them?

OMG they are so cute. And you are an angel for working so hard to help them! :-)

-Julie

They are little darlins! Can you tell them apart yet? When I was much younger a friend had raised a baby squirrel too. She grew up to be a great pet extremely playful and really fun to be with (the squirrell not the friend).

No I can't tell them apart, not even close! LOL

They're getting a mixture of evaporated milk, egg yolk, water and mayonaisse. This recipe is from a wildlife rehabber website. They seem to be doing really well, they're active when awake and they have cute little round bellies. When they're eating they flip their little tails back and forth really fast like you see the adults do when they're on the alert.

They are tiny but already bigger than they were. Wish I had a set of scales that weigh in grams and ounces so I could really track their progress

We're off to do some hurricane preparation shopping...again

Floridian,

there are some prety inexpensive kitchen scales you can get taht measure in grams and ounces. Just an idea. I know it would be fun for you to know how much they grow while you have them :-)

-Julie

Maybe a vet. or SPCA shelter too?

C'mon Floridian, how are the babies?

Wow! This is awesome. I hope you are spared from the next one coming. Let us know how it goes. Our prayers are with all Floridians and their flora and fauna.

Good idea Julie, I hadn't thought of buying a kitchen scale

The babies are doing fine. One of our salesman says he can see the difference in them just since Friday. They certainly seem to be a bit bigger and have more fur but it's hard for me to tell. I don't handle them except to feed them. They spend most of their time sleeping on a padded heating pad.

I may still turn them over to a rehabber but gosh there are so many baby squirrels to care for right now. I'll post some new pictures a little later

How lucky for them that they were discovered before it was too late! What a joy it must be to see them grow. Have fun!

Look..they're getting furry! Ü

Look ar that! They are.

You are doing a great job!
Have they opened their eyes, yet?

They are still SO cute.

Awwwwww, they are so cute. That was so nice that you took the time to get them this far. If you decide to keep them a little longer, don't forget to show us their progress!

cute!

As a child my mother found a baby squirrel. We raised him for about a year. His name of course was Rocky. We all cried when we released him to the woods, but we knew it was best for him. Floridian I know its allot of work and also allot of fun too. Thank for the wonderful pictures and also for taking care of God's little furry creatures.

This message was edited Sep 15, 2004 10:07 AM

Yes, thank you.

They haven't opened their eyes yet, probably will be another 10-14 days, maybe a bit more. They open around 5-5.5 weeks. They are cutting their bottom teeth, the first ones a squirrel gets. They are also getting very active. They scooch along and try to stand up. They're so awkward.

I'll certainly take pictures as they progress. I'm very torn about taking them to a rehabber because they sure seem to be doing well. Rose you're right, It is hard work, I'm tired from getting up at night and my poor Rocky kitty sure has his nose out of joint about them. He pretty much ignores me and now we're going away for the KYRU and leaving all the 'kids' at home (except the squirrels). He'll be in a real snit by the time we get back! LOL
.

Yea, Wait until the Rocky becomes in heat . Now that is fun. At first we thought sometimes was wrong with him making all these strange noises.. Until we figured it out it was mating season.. LOL I will say he was a very a handsome squirrel. LOL
Good luck with your furry friends.

Once they're weaned we plan to acclimate them to the great outdoors via a cage with an opening. I've read that Mother Nature will kick in eventually and the squirrels will return to the wild.
One of them makes a funny short purring sound when I pick it up. Any idea what that sound is Rose??

How sweet. It probably thinks you are it mother.

Oh no! I've been trying so hard NOT to get attached!

I'm pretty sure I'm going to turn them over to a rehabber in the next day or so. I don't want to but as I think it through it's probably best. My dogs hate squirrels and that puts these little ones at risk for release in the neighborhood. Not to mention my neighbors 3 outdoor cats.

Please tell me that would be best for them and I'd be doing the right thing...
it already makes me teary ~

Stacey

Stacy, your thinking is sound as is your plan. ;-)

Thanks for that John...

Stacey,
I think you are doing a great job. They look very healthy. What do you keep them in? My Mom kept Rocky in a cage. It was made of chicken wire. It also kept other animale out. I would talk to the rehabbers . They may ask you to keep them for a little while longer,because allot of animals have lost their homes, and parents. I would never release them in the neighborhood. I would take them to a wooded area. If they have such things in Florida. I don't know I have never been there. LOL This is when your squirrles are big enough to feed themselves ,and big enough to defend themselves. I believe releasing them in to the wild when they are older is the best thing for them. I don't believe in keeping wild animals for pets. If the rehabber can take them that would be great. Don't beat yourself up over this. You are doing a great job. You have given them a chance to life, and that is allot more than they had before.
Patti

Hang in there Stacey...you really are doing the best for them. Better for the little ones to be released away from you..if they were to get too attached to you you'd be worried all the time that your dogs or neighbors cats would get them. They sure are cuties!

Stacey, enjoy them for the moment and then let them go, it will be best for all! They sure are cute though.

Just please .. be sure to post a few more pics of Charlie & Frances .. before you turn them over to a rehabber .. or, to the 'wilds' anywhere.

Kindly gotten used to checkin' in with you, on 'nese lil fellers here ..

Floridian .. a 'hardy and hearty' couply pats on your back .. for your dedication and diligence in seeing them thru their crisis.

Thank you .. for sharing their progress, your feelings, and the wonderful pics .. with all of us Floridian !!

This message was edited Sep 16, 2004 10:24 AM

Stacey, it sounds like you're going great. Most people don't even consider the factors, ex. what if they lose their fear of dogs, they're not pets, don't get attached etc. I'm really glad to hear that you did though, it's the best for them.

Thanks to all of you for being so supportive. Last night we took the babies to an emergency clinic that BuriedTreasures told me about. My husband took them inside (no way could I do it) and they told him the squirrels looked wonderful and that I'd done a great job of caring for them. They also said that a rehabber was enroute to collect them and they'd be just fine.
Waaaahhhhh!
They were about to open their eyes, they were starting to blink and move them around a lot. Last night when I fed them I noticed that the smaller one's ears were starting to stand up too...
Waaaahhhhh!
Here's one of them after feeding. We all ended up covered with formula. Afterwards I'd take a clean, warm, wet cloth and clean them up, dry them and put them back on the heating pad to sleep til the next meal.

Patti, they were kept on a padded heating pad inside a cat carrier. That of course was to keep the cat out as well as the babies in. They were getting pretty mobile!

This is one of my favorite pictures. Clean, fed and sleeping peacefully

Look at this fat little belly...

You did a good job....look at that round little belly! They'll have wonderful lives because of you....God Bless you!

Thank you mbock...my boss walked by a few minutes ago, took one look at me and asked me if I was having separation anxiety... Yes!