Sunday afternoon found Jesse outside in Grandad and Grandma’s backyard. In the heat of the afternoon, Jesse strolled across the lawn when he noticed a little creature in the grass. He looked down and there was a little baby squirrel. Jesse hurried inside and sounded the alarm that there was a little squirrel outside. We walked out and sure enough it lay in the grass. Every once in a while it tried to crawl around, but it seemed very wobbly. It had a noticeable face of an adult squirrel, and was covered in reddish/brown fur. It also had a tail that was about 4 inches long. After observing it for a little bit, we decided to take our Sunday afternoon naps. We thought that maybe his mom would come and carry him back to the nest [which was up in the tree].
Once we were awake from our naps we decided to check on the squirrel again. It was still there. After getting permission from Dad, Joseph went outside to pick him up so that he could be put into a little box. While trying to get the squirrel in the box he (meaning the squirrel) decided to go for a little run. He raced down Joseph onto the tile floor. Thankfully, he didn’t have enough traction to run fast and we were able to catch him. We decided to give him some Pedialyte in a syringe to see if he could recover from sitting outside all afternoon in the heat.
Monday we got him some milk, which he loves. We decided to give him the name Chippey. John called several places and the best advice they told John was to keep him until he could climb a tree and fend for himself. That is what we decided to do.
Posted by: Anna
Our family once cared for a baby squirrel, too. It was lots of fun and a great memory. We had named our’s “Chatter” because that’s what he did most of the time! My husband actually anchored a small dog crate up onto a tree limb that the squirrel used for his bed at night and was free to come and go as he pleased. (I believe our’s was slightly older than your’s as he managed to climb the tree fairly well.) He was very friendly with us and we are grateful that the Lord let us have that wonderful experience with one of his creatures!
Awww, how sweet! You probably saved that little squirrels life. I was thinking the same thing, that he was probably pretty dehydrated, sitting out there so long in the sun.
Hello, my name is Liat. I really enjoyed the book that your family wrote about the Moodys. I just love books. I saw your pictures about Chippy, the squirrel you cared for. My favorite animal is a squirrel. Would you please send me a copy of the photograph of Chippy being held in hand and fed?
In God’s grace, Liat
I took in a baby squrel once I ♥them
I FOUND A BABY SQUIRREL IN MY YARD. HE HAS FUR BUT HIS EYES ARE STILL CLOSED. I BOUGHT JUST BORN AND MIX IT WITH WARM WATER AND FEED HIM WITH A DROPPER. I ALSO KEEP HIM WARM WITH A HEATING PAD. I KNOW THEY OPEN EYES AT 5 1/2 WKS. HE PUSHES AND PULLS WITH HIS LITTLE LEGS BUT HE IS A BIT WOBBLY STILL. I WILL TRY TO PUT HIM IN A TREE AROUND 10 WKS TO SEE IF HE TAKES OFF. HE IS SO PRECIOUS AND I KNOW HE WILL MAKE IT……
I found some baby squirrels as well, I fed them for 5 days, and they came to think I was their mom, but they did not make it…I just wanted to say it…cuz I am sad.
I’ve always loved baby squirrels and if I had to I’d protect one like in that story. [Which I hope was true].
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It’s true Josh!
SM
Hope that wasn’t cows milk you fed the baby squirrel. It can make them mighty sick.
I found a baby squirrel on our driveway yesterday, nowhere near any trees. It was writhing around, so I kept it warm and took it to a wildlife rehab center, where they know how to properly care for abandoned babies.
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no it wasn’t cow’s milk.
My husband is a Tree surgeon, he found a baby squirrel all alone on Friday, he bought him home where we are caring for him until he is big enough to fend for himself…. we have called him…. BEN…… its so hard not to fall in love with him….. we hope him will be strong enough to survive as he is very young……..
i just found a baby squirel today and i have him on a heating pad he seems to like it alot hes not squerming around as much…but he is still alive and healthy cause if u pick him up he moves all around and gets mad…but what i was wondering was what milk did u give yours? cause i have no vclue what to feed him…. he doesnt have his eyes open yet if that helps
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You can buy a formula for puppies at WalMart.
Steve
Also just found a baby unable to climb, seems to be about 7-10 weeks old, eye wide open, full fur coat – will baby formula work ok until we find a rehab center?
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I really don’t know. We asked someone that knew about this and they recommended puppy milk to us. We were able to get it at WalMart.
Steve
what kind of milk do you feed it?
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Canned puppy milk
I am trying to figure out how old my henry is, for he is slightly smaller than his brother and sisters outside. He looks just your Chippers age when feeding from the syringe. This will really help me out!!
thanks
niki
I hope this little guy’ll be okay!
I love baby animals so much and I would do anything to help them!
They are so cute and fun and funny to watch and play with!
So,bye,and I hope he is ok.
P.S. If the person taking care of the baby sees this,please keep up the good work!
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We only had him a short time. He is gone now.
SM
PLEASE contact your local wildlife rehabilitator if you find an infant. 85% of the ‘advice’ that I’ve read online will kill a baby. I’ve brought some babies back from the brink of death brought about by people’s best loving intentions. Most rehabbers won’t mind your calls to check up on your little one or having you present for the release.
I have found two baby squirrels sitting in my doorway, I tried feeding cow.milk but they are not keen on the feed, I am worried and want them to have some fuid.What happens if they do not drink? They tend to sleep alot and remain inside tucked up? how often can I feed them in aday? how much and do I keep trying and hope they start drinking?
Pl. help
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The Humane Society can direct you to people who are trained in helping them survive.
Cow’s milk is not good for them. I think we used milk that is given to puppies and we bought it at Walmart. We didn’t have to work to get them to eat, they wanted to several times a day.
Steve
I just went through a similar experience as others. My wife and I found a lonely terrified baby squirrel in our driveway. He is now in the safe hands of an experienced wildlife rehabber recommended to me by the Dept of Fish & Wildlife. I learned a lot from this experience. There is a lot of faulty and contradictory info on the web. The first thing you want to do if you find a baby squirrel is to keep a watchful eye on it from a distance and wait/hope the mother comes to retrieve the baby. It’s important to stay far enough away so you don’t deter the mother but close enough to shoo away predators. The baby will screech a high pitch call for his mother. If it is dusk and the mother has not returned it is time to intervene. She will not be out at night and the baby will likely not survive a night alone. The first step is to warm the body temperature with a heating pad under blankets or warm water in plastic bottles. It’s important to leave half the cage or box the squirrel is in off the heat source so the squirrel doesn’t overheat. The second step is rehydration. Pedialyte is best from what I have found, use a small syringe (1-3cc). Baby squirrels have a tendency to suck down too much fluid and it can get in their lungs and give them pneumonia. Then you want to feed the squirrel. The safest thing to feed baby squirrels is Esbilac – which is a product made for canine puppies intended as a mother’s milk replacement formula. Sorry to run on so long! We had an amazing two days with our little friend (found on Easter Sunday!) and were relieved to hand him off to an experienced, licensed wildlife rehabber.