I was watering the grass and a baby squirrel fell out of a tree. its still bald and its eyes are shut. what do they eat when theier younge....does milk suffice? help!!!!!!Found a baby squirrel what do I do?
First of all, warm the baby up. Contact this person http://users.hal-pc.org/~jbsum/squirrel.鈥?/a> I have a friend that does this and Clarissa is her mentor. She has the milk recipe on her website. Mammals do need milk to nurse on, but you need to be careful what kind. Milk designed for other animals, like kittens and puppies are not really adequate for promoting longevity in squirrels.
Someone mentioned a pet store, I must disagree and say no they don't know what to do--most can barely comprehend how to take care of the animals they do sell. And if you bring it to a rehab center, they euthanize them. Heck, our local one tells people to put them in a box outside over night...of course they are dead the next day. And someone mentioned waiting 3 days. I believe the baby would be dead by then.
Vets can't really see them either except to euthanize them, unless you have a permit.
Not much good news I'm afraid.Found a baby squirrel what do I do?
If you decide to keep the squirrel and take care of it please do not ';let it go'; when it becomes older because it wont know how to fend for itself in the wild.
Dont try to take it to a rescuer because they wont want to waste time and space on a squirrel if something like a hawk or anything else more interesting needs them : P If you know what i mean.
Perhaps do some researching on the net or check out a book about what to feed it im sure you will have to buy a syringe for milk though.
hears all u need a healthy baby squirrel while in the hairless state, is bright pink all over, with pink gums and lips; it squirms, responds to touchfeels warm, and is fat and round. A dehyrated or cold baby is grayish pink with grayish gums and lips; it will ball up, be unresponsive, sluggish or lie still; it will look thin and feel cold to your touch. A healthy furred baby will have very pink gums, respond appropriately to its environment, feel warm, and look round and full.
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Section-A
GET THE BABY WARM!
(Read and do now before going any further)
A baby squirrel should feel much warmer than your skin. If it feels cool to your touch then it is cold. Hypothermia will kill. Do not attempt to feed a cold baby. Until the baby is fully furred, he or she does not produce enough body heat to warm him or herself. A furred baby who is sick or injured will need a heating source. Wrapping it in a blanket will not suffice since the baby cannot warm the blanket. You must provide a constant heat source. The most dependable and accessible is an electric heating pad. Temporary heating, until a pad is found and the nest box warmed, can be supplied by filling a ziplock baggie with hot water and putting it under a blanket with the baby in the blanket. Do the following: turn the pad on low , place it on a table; get two bath towels: fold one in half and lay on the pad; rumple the second towel and put it in the nestbox (bigger and taller than a shoebox with flaps that can be folded over. No matter how small, these babies will climb and you may find it frozen in a corner of the room if there was no top on the nest). Make a pocket in the middle of the towel with your fist, put in the baby and gather the covers together over the baby. Placing the nest box half on and half off the pad will provide a cool place if the baby becomes too hot in one area. Now go on to step 2, Section-B.
Top
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Section-B
HYDRATE THAT BABY!
In addition to warmth, the most important first treatment you will give the baby squirrel you have found is rehydration. Any baby has encountered trauma by being separated from Mama: the separation may have been a few hours, or days. The younger the baby the greater the risk of dehydration and if you do not rehydrate you will lose it. Even the healthiest looking babies should first be rehydrated. Most people immediately give the new baby milk of some kind. DON锟絋 DO IT. A baby will not starve to death over a 24-hour period, but it can surely die of dehydration. Rehydrate first. I repeat: Do not start the baby immediately on formula, rehydrate first.
Why is rehydration so important? Water is essential for the digestion of food and enables the body to perform other functions that sustain life. Rehydration defined is a period of time wherein no food is given and electrolyte fluids are administered to repair damage from dehydration, refill reserves, and re-establish body chemistry. The extent of rehydration is based on the extent of dehydration.
Rehydration and digestion are mutually exclusive processes; they cannot be achieved at the same time. When food and water are introduced to the stomach, the water in the stomach is not used for digestion: the stomach makes a demand on the cells of the body to give up fluids to digest the food; the cells will give up fluid no matter how little the body has at the time of demand, leaving the body further depleted. The water in the stomach is not absorbed until it reaches the small intestines, after the digestive demand has been made; what is absorbed then, is not enough to repair and refill, so a downward spiral ensues with each feeding: food causes digestive demand followed by more fluid depletion followed by more severe dehydration, ending in death in a few days if not immediately.
There is absolutely nothing gained and much damage done by combining rehydration fluids with formula in a feeding. This is a fairly common practice and is not rehydration. At the end of a rehydration period using electrolyte fluids, when body function has been restored, formula can be introduced with a large volume of plain water, not electrolyte fluids, to increase water reserves and allow the body to slowly adjust to the digestion of food once again. Without initial rehydration, you will have a thin, dry, grayish little mummy, too weak to lift its head, instead of a precious, fat, round, wet, pink baby. If you have already given formula, then stop immediately and start over with rehydration. Again, rehydration and digestion cannot take place at the same time so rehydration has to be accomplished before food is given.
Remember that rehydration is a temporary measure meant to address deficiencies and should not be continued indefinitely.
Pink babies should be given a couple of feedings of plain water du
You need to locate a local wildlife rehabilitator. If you email me with your city and state I can help you. My email is holcombben@ymail.com
Right now you need to put it in a box with a towel, go to the pet store and buy kitten milk substitute along with a bottle, and feed every 3-4 hours (feed an ounce or two, depending on how much it will eat), don't feed at night, touch it as little as possible, and wait for me to tell you who to contact. HURRY!!!
Ring the vet. Don't go near it wait about an hour incase the mother comes back for it if she doesnt get the vet to take a look at it and he'll take it away to help it
dont touch it! its mother will never come back if you do. leave some food out by it but nothing else unless you see it suffering in 3 days then take it to the pet store they no what to do
Post it on Craigslist.com someone will see it and want to help.
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