Wednesday

Let me start by saying that I know absolutely nothing about baby squirrels….or any type of wildlife baby, for that matter.  This is the story of our attempt to rescue a baby squirrel.

As Kym and I were sitting on the porch and enjoying the weather, Auggie was standing by the back fence and started acting odd.  She was staring at the ground, laying down, sitting up, looking at us from across the yard, and refusing to come when we called her.  So we went to investigate what she was – clearly – alerting to.  She has never been trained to do any kind of “alerting” so we were not immediately aware of what she was doing.  It was a tiny, naked baby squirrel.  Imagine our surprise!!!!  We scooped him up and wiped all the ants off of his frail body.  We stood in the yard, somewhat dumbfounded about what we should do.  GOOGLE!!!  So we Googled for information and ultimately wrapped him in some warm towels on top of a cushioned bed that we molded into a mock nest, with an indentation in the middle for him to snuggle into.  We set him near the tree that has a nest in it, but his mom didn’t come for him before the sun went down so we brought him inside and continued to keep him warm in the laundry room.  We found a Slim Jim box to build him a nest in.  Raise your hand……how many of you are now calling him Slim Shady?  HaHa

 

We built a nest around him in the box and included a wrapped, and heated, stuffed toy to lay over him to give him the feel of security that he would get if his mom was in the nest.  We were careful to make sure he could move around and get airflow.  We have no prior knowledge or experience with this so we are doing the very best we can!!

We found some rescue info that stated to make sure we keep him hydrated with a mixture of water and small amounts of salt and sugar.  Using a small syringe dropper, we gave him the warm solution, one drop at a time, every 2 hours.  His tongue would come out and lick the water as we gave it to him.  It was adorable but so sad because we could not provide everything he needed.  We also had to stimulate him to use the bathroom.  This is completely foreign to me and I could only tell that we were doing it correctly because tiny drops of pee came out, and the tiniest poo was expelled.

He is the cutest baby and we love looking at his little fingers.  His eyes and ears were still closed.  I’m not exactly certain how to accurately describe how small he is.  We are guessing he is 2-3 weeks old.  I don’t know what could have caused this baby to fall from the nest but I hope his mom comes to get him tomorrow morning so he can get some nourishing milk.  We have fed him, helped him use the bathroom, kept him warm, and gently petted him so that he knows he is loved.

We set him on the dryer and kept it running,  used heated towels surrounding the box to create a heat bubble, and kept the doors to the laundry room closed to trap the heat inside.  He was nestled on the little bed, curled up into an itty bitty ball.  We took turns feeding him and making him use the bathroom throughout the night.  He always seemed agitated.  Can’t blame the little guy!!  I mean, he is nestled in a warm comfy bed and someone keeps coming in and waking him up to check on him, give him fluids, and take him to the bathroom.  It sounds exactly like my last hospital stay!!

 

Thursday

He was weaker today than he was yesterday.   Following his first feeding after sunrise, we put him back outside in his box on the tree, in hopes that his mom would come get him.  After several hours, the weather started to get cooler and looked as though it might rain so I brought him back in where we could keep him warm and continue hydrating him.  Instead of the dryer, we set up a heating pad and set his box on top to help keep him consistently warm.  There is a lot of conflicting information about the type of milk they can drink, and how it should be prepared, so we opted to only hydrate, knowing that as soon as we could find a wildlife specialist, they would be able to help.  We made numerous calls to local vet offices and finally ended up finding an angel on Texas Parks & Wildlife website.  Her name is Towana Graham and she specializes in racoons, squirrels, and skunks.  Her number is 903-526-9448 and her email is memescritters3rs@yahoo.com.   She gave us lots of information to help and worked with us to set up a time and place to meet so that we could transfer this baby to her care.

We drove 45 minutes and met her when she got off work.  She is such an amazing woman with an incredible amount of knowledge.  She gave us some information about what to use and what to do if we find another baby squirrel.  She picked him up from his box and gave him a quick examination.  She noticed a spot on his head that indicated a brain injury, probably sustained during his fall.  She also pointed out some bruising around his head.  We had never seen a baby squirrel that close so we had no idea it was bruised.  We assumed it was just part of his coloring.  She told us that he would not live through his injuries but that she would take care of him, nourish him, and keep him comfortable until he passes.  It was heartbreaking to know that he wouldn’t make it and we talked about him a lot on the 45 minute drive home.

 

Friday

Kym talked to Towana and found out that he passed away at 3am.  She kept him warm, nourished, and loved until his last breath.  Like I said – she is an angel.

It hurts to know that we couldn’t save him but that pain will not prevent us from rescuing the next squirrel that we find.  No matter how dismal the outcome was going to be, we continued to give him our best effort.  I do not know if squirrels cross over the Rainbow Bridge like dogs, I kinda feel like they climb the Rainbow Tree to Heaven.   I cried for him but I know he is better and no longer in pain.

This journey was rewarding and heartbreaking.

If you have any information or would like to share a rescue story, I would love to hear about it!!  If you live near East Texas and happen to find a baby squirrel, racoon, or skunk that needs rescuing, I would highly recommend Towana.  You would be handing the animal to someone who is highly knowledgeable and has a passion for saving these animals.