There's Something About Mary

Get ready for a dose of sweetness. I just melt into a puddle when I see these movies. Baby squirrel season is long over... it won't come again until Fall, but now I get to sort through various pictures and little video clips I've taken along the way. Too busy while they're in my charge to do it. It's just the most enormous privilege and I still can't quite believe that I get to care for these darling little beings. I dare you to look at these and call them Tree Rats!

I had a trio I've written about. Like any rehabber, I don't name them, because they're wild animals, not pets, and I'm just a temporary caregiver, there to serve their health and growth for a short time until they can be released back into nature. But for the purposes of telling a story on the blog, I usually attach names to animals and in this case, I called this one Mary -- as she was part of a trio with two brothers (Peter and Paul, natch). It's easier to read about PP&M than # 18 19, & 20 isn't it?

I've had infant squirrels, eyes as yet unopened, who lift up their little noses when I've raised the lid of their tank to peer in. Even if they are in a dead sleep, it seems the squirrel's highly developed sense of smell (which later serves them in locating nuts they've buried, even if the ground is covered with snow) lets them know "mom" is there. And since they don't interact with me for the most part except at feeding and cleaning time, mom really means MILK.

But there was something about Mary... she did something to-die-for cute, which was to start smacking her little mouth in anticipation when I'd lift her up. I got the camera one morning and managed to catch it. Here, I'd just put her brother who I'd just finished feeding into a fleece lined bowl with the other brother who I'd fed first. Mary was in a deep little sleep (they look like such angels) and like any sleepy baby, was not sure she wanted to get up for breakfast. I stroked her nose to try to give her a little warning. But once I lift her up she realizes what's happening and does her uh-dorable little smacking thing.

AND NOW YOU CAN SEE THESE MOVIES FULL SCREEN FINALLY!!!! Just click the little arrows in the lower left corner of the screen below.



Aaaaaahhhh so cute! Those little paws pushing out, like Heeeey wait, where are we going? Then a little clip of her sweetly drinking:



A few cc's later and she is conked out, trusting, innocent, peacefully sleeping in my hand. And you have NO idea how utterly soft and feather light these little ones are. And that thin little tail, curling up on reflex. I could watch these 1000 times, while my heart swells and a plethora of little cartoon hearts float around my head.



WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE?

Lunch!

I keep trying to capture the utter bliss and bonding that happens for squirrels and substitute moms alike when it's time to nurse, but I can never seem to hold the squirrel, the milk and the camera at the same time. This though, is one of the better attempts. It caught a little of the paw action, those cute little pads that are so warm and those long, long fingers with what looks like a very fancy kind of manicure.... those little nails.

But I think I like this one because it catches the little mouth movement that some do after drinking. A little smack of the mouth, moving the last of the milk around on that little tongue like it's the best milkshake ever. And there is a full on face shot that I hope conveys just how cute these little fellas are.





As you can see by the last few frames, it's only a few seconds before the little one is in motion again...

Actually, after milk they usually go down fast, crash right in your hand and are fast asleep in 10 seconds flat. I wish I could sleep like that!

My How Much You Have Grown

It's baby season again, and I brought home my first three of the year -- #17, 18, and 19.... or as they came to be known for the purposes of these posts -- Peter, Paul, and Mary.

You first saw them HERE and HERE --- and they are three weeks later, this is how far they've grown -- eyes open, tails beginning to fill out, still huddled together. Cute and curious they're well on their way. These three weren't sick when we took them in. They had just been found by someone redoing their attic. Despite a little insulation in their noses/mouths, they were easy eaters, well tempered, a breeze.



I returned them to The Center because it appears I've officially lived here long enough to get the horrible allergies associated with the city. They say if you don't have em before you live here it will only be a matter of time until you get them.

Last fall I thought I was suffering from variations of the seasonal colds and a flu that my husband brought home from the office. Since there are no squirrel babies from roughly November till February, I had a break from animal rehabbing and yet, it never cleared up. Now the Oak trees are spreading their filmy yellow-green haze on every surface. So when I brought home Peter, Paul and Mary, I really was struggling to breathe, sneezing, eyes watering...

I was so sad because squirrels had been the one animal (besides reptiles, I imagine) that I don't normally trigger my allergies, but now that I'm stirred up, it's a problem. Then my husband suggested I wear a heavy duty painting mask when I feed them. I look goofy but I do that and I change my shirt from what I'm wearing to a few shirts that I wear only when feeding, so the squirrel scent stays away from my nose. That got me by for a week, which was just long enough that they were able to go on The Center feeding schedule.

Thank goodness all I have to do is drive up the road 15 minutes to The Center to go see how they are progressing. I leave you with one more little look at one of the cuties in the trio of PP&M.... someone is VERY cute and curious.

Progress

In a matter of one week, Peter Paul and Mary's ears have come unpinned and have sprouted what will become little white tufts of oh-so-soft hair behind them. Hair on their chinny chin chins is getting longer and their bellies have gotten fuzzier. Their eyes continue to develop as two of them reacted by squeezing their still closed eyelids together when I blew on them or if I have them in bright light. They sleep and eat and really don't do much else at this stage. Soon they will be awake for parts of the day and crawling around, testing their legs.

But I did notice that in just 5 days, their bottom two teeth are now visible. Get ready for the picture (albeit blurry)...


I know. Little darlings. I have such love for these babies! Just like taking a walk under the blue sky and brilliant sunshine makes me aware that there really is something more going on in the universe than I remember when running around in daily life, when I tenderly care for these sweet little beings, well, this will tell you what I mean:

A woman approached the great Indian saint, Ramakrishna, and said:

‘I find that I do not love God. The concept does not move me.’

He asked her “Is there nothing in the world that you do love?”

And she said ‘Yes, I love my little nephew.’

Ramakrishna replied

“There He is.”

~~ Unknown ~~

PP&M

So I've been posting about three infant squirrels that I brought home Sunday. They are #17, 18 and 19 of my at home rehabs -- not supposed to name them. The feeling is, they aren't pets... They're wild, and since they will return to the wild you don't want to hamper them by imprinting your human-beingness on them too much.

(You want them to be afraid of humans, because too many of them do things like shooting them for sport or stew, running them over with their cars or feeding them things that aren't good for them. Stepping off soap box now)

However, for the sake of my stories, I shall hereby refer to these two little boys and a girl as Peter, Paul and Mary.

Here is a little movie of typical behavior. No matter that they can barely crawl, these babies have the strongest snouts! They like to push their noses under something -- a piece of fabric, a sibling's body, my neck or hair... Other behavior this shows is how they jerk while deeply asleep. We do this sometimes but these guys do it all the time. Amazing they don't wake themselves up.
(We shall not cackle that Mary is smashing her little nose past her brother's privates for a sec).

(I put my finger in there so you can judge their size)
My theory is that their little nervous systems are wired so tightly this is what happens. Just today I saw a little gray sitting in someone's driveway and he leapt straight up in the air. It wasn't because he was starting to run off somewhere. He was just sitting there, minding his own business when his body leapt straight up.

Here's an example of the little ones doing more of that. Like a little bowl of popcorn.. They look like peaceful and still - at first. One pops, then another (and that other, on the right, if you look really closely, seems to be dreaming of drinking milk... Watch her little mouth.)


Endless source of amusement!

Sleeping, Growing, Eating

In that order. Even though these three are probably about 3 1/2 weeks old, they do nothing but sleep and grow. I have to wake them up to eat and strangely, the bigger male has the least appetite. I'm experimenting with how far apart I feed this trio so they are truly hungry and yet getting enough nutrients to support the important work their little cells are doing.

Some baby animals are born fully furred, with eyes open, able to eat even solid foods. Squirrels are born as neonates --without hair, ears pinned back, eyes not yet developed... completely helpless. You'd think at this age they'd be walking around or have their eyes open, but they are clearly still developing, maybe like those other species do while still in the womb. When I watch them, they seem an awful lot like they're doing just that. They seem happiest when intertwined in a very snug, warm, soft space.

These photos are what made me think of how they must look -- and manage to all fit-- in the womb. It's hard to snap good photos of them, because they constantly jump in their sleep. I can barely get the lid of their tank up without losing the shot I saw that I wanted just seconds before. When I saw the below, all three spooning with each's arm draped around the other, it was so cute I tried to get the pic. Alas, the blanket is in the way at this angle but you get the drift.
(Notice remnant milk on the corner of the mouth!)

Within seconds the little one on the end had shifted position but look at his little legs in the second picture... crunched up and gripping the other one's haunches. Even more womb-like.

More to come.

You should be able to enlarge any of these pics by clicking on them.

Sleeping Cuties

Well, it's started again. Baby season. The Center got in several squirrels and baby ducklings, just a few possums so far (both fingers crossed there won't be as many as last year. Cute but stinky!!) and we're waiting for the boom of baby birds to hit. Three little gray squirrels came in late Sunday afternoon who were too young to stay at the center -- meaning they needed an additional feeding or two after hours. I guess someone was re-doing their attic and found a nest with them in it. *sigh* Renovations!

These three aren't sick at all like the ones I usually take. They just had some insulation I cleared out from their mouths and noses... so they are easy to feed and I don't get up 10 x a night because I'm worried about them. One's female, 54 grams, and the two males are 54 and 60 grams. I did have to separate them the first night because the bigger male started sucking on the others, which sometimes happens when they are this young. Everything is OK today though.

So while they're safe and sound --and as such, will definitely grow up and be released into the wild -- I did feel for the mother who probably came back to the nest and wondered where her babies were.

But then, I guess a mother can leave a nest and come back and find it empty thanks to a raptor raid too. Mother Nature can sometimes be as harsh as humankind.

Don't worry mama squirrel, I have your little ones.

I'm keeping them warm, well fed, and loved!