What do you do when a rescue-to-release animal doesnt ---

StrawberryHouseMouse

Songster
10 Years
Mar 23, 2009
1,349
12
173
Cleveland, Tennessee
Doesnt want to be released?
A couple weeks ago a boy in the neighborhood brought me 3 squirrels. They were very malnurished and dehydrated. He said the mother squirrel got killed by their cat and then he found the babies in his house's roof calling for her. She never came back though and he didn't know what to do with them. So he brought them to me. I'm about the only person in our neighborhood that has any other pets other then dogs or cats. So I guess it was a natural decision to pick me to bring them too. It was a good choice in my opinion. I use to live on Fort Mountain Wildlife Park in Georgia. For 16 years I lived there, helping raise and rehabilitate orphaned and injured animals then released them. But today I'm faced with something I'm not sure how to deal with.
No I don't mean how to take care of squirrels - I know how to do that. The problem is releasing one of them. 2 out of the 3 were released this week. But the 3rd just won't allow us to release it. When her siblings took off up the tree, well aware that they didn't want anything to do with me (cause I avoided contact with them the whole time as much as possible) she just would not leave.
I put her on the tree and turned around to walk away and she jumped off onto my back. Ok so I tried again, Setting her down on the ground and darting off. She ran after me and when I stopped she made it up my leg and onto my shoulder then burrowed herself in my shirt through the collar , making herself cozy in my bra.

Am I suppose to just keep her? I don't know what to do. I've never been faced with a wild animal that doesn't want to be wild.
 
I had the same thing with a raccoon and a possum.
The raccoon finally decided tyo go off on her own, after I didnt feed her or look her way.
The possum lives on my room,even though I have nothing to do with it. He just wont leave.
 
I keep her in a large multi storied ferret cage in the least occupied room in my house. With a blanket over most of the cage all cept for half which is pointing towards the window. I dont hold her, do anything other then put her water and food in the cage. It has a pull out tray so I dont need to mess with her in order to clean it out. Ive done it like this in the past and never had a trouble getting them to go. I usually have to wear gloves to get them out cause by the time they are ready to go they are like OH HECK NO chomp! But she doesn't. It's strange.
 
I raised 2 baby squirrels before. I love them, wish I had another. I would say, if she really doesn't want to go, then, if you wanted to, just keep her.
Squirrels are tooo cute! Keep us posted, okay?
 
As cute as they are, wild animals(even handriased ones) dont always make the best pets.
Make every attempt you can to let her go and if she doesnt want to, at least try to make her "home" like it would be in the wild. Dont be suprised when she reaches sexually materity. If you keep her, dont get your hopes up on her always being a pet.
(Hope, I dont sound rude, but since I have do wildlife conservation and hets calls everyday about a "pet" squirrel, raccoon, etc bites someone or so on)

It sounds like you are doing a great job with her though
smile.png
 
Quote:
Na you don't sound rude. I know exactly what you mean. I've rescued squirrels before (6 total) and other wild life. They are cute at first but when they get older, most the time they become agressive.
I've been trying for a week now to get her and the others to go. But she is the last one left and now I'm worried about her need for companionship. I will keep trying. But if all else fails and she just won't leave, I plan on making a cage outside just in case to try to push her a little harder to connect with the wild.
 
You do lots of this......... THIS is my mother and Selena, her baby.
smile.png
She and I raised 4 of them 2 years ago. Only ONE was willing to go wild. "My" two now live with my Uncle and she has her girl. Oh, and she would KILL me for showing this mad looking pic of her. LOL

7091_phone_pics_1957.jpg
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom