Baby Oscar, Not Being Released

A very sleek Oscar.

Not until spring, that is. He was going to be released yesterday, actually, but it called for rain so the date was put off until today.

Although two of the female squirrels, Jackie and Missy, are probably ready, the younger female, Honey, is not. And as there was an unexpected snowfall yesterday that did not melt, it is deemed that the foursome should overwinter inside and then be released to the first warmth of spring.

See you back here in six months!

Such  a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables but Oscar still enjoys avocado the most.

Note the long white hairs in Oscar's tail. Maybe there's a bit of skunk in the family history.

Release Date Set

Yes, Oscar and his harem should be ready to be set free come October 30, 2010. The two older females, Jackie and Missy are ready to go and so's Oscar. However, Honey, is two weeks behind so if she's not ready, both Oscar and her will be wintered over inside. Hopefully, however, this won't be the case.

Oscar, the little escapee. Looks like a missile with really interesting feet.

We call him Big Foot, but not to his face!
Cheers, Shannon

The Sweetest Rodent in the World!

Oscar perches above where a dish of  his favourite food has been placed.

 Feast your eyes on these photos taken today. If in a couple of photos,  it looks like a squirrel is on the other side of the cage, you're guessing correctly. Oscar escaped! Lead us a merry chase.
Fun!

An overview of the two cages that are placed right up against one another so that the four squirrels become socialized.

See the tiny face peaking out?

Oops, Oscar dashed through the door when it was opened just enough to get a hand through when we went to pick him up. Here he is, on the outside looking in at Missy.

He wasn't keen on getting placed back in the cage.

Finally, he was tricked into going back inside. Five more minutes and it would have been time to net him.

Here he is with Missy and Jackie.  Honey, two weeks younger than Oscar  lives in the abutting cage.

Adorable!

Shannon in Ottawa

Visiting Oscar Tomorrow!

Updated photos and info. coming tomorrow on Baby Squirrel Oscar. I will be traveling to the outskirts of Ottawa where Oscar is in sanctuary due to draconian Ministry of Natural Resources dictates on the raising of wildlife by ordinary people.

Oscar has been living the life of Riley with three buddies, Missy, Jackie and  Honey. They have a palatial cage with superb care and all the delicious squirrel-type food they could ever desire.

 They have a nesting box in which they curl up and enjoy one another's body warmth. They are very happy little rodents!

Above are photos of Oscar from two weeks ago when I visited him. He was 12 weeks old at the time and amazingly, even though I hadn't seen him in more than a week, he remembered me. Imagine, that pea-sized brain recalling...a presence be it voice recognition or some visual clue or a smell locked in his head.

On the right is an alert and charming Oscar. Look at the long toenails on this critter! Click on photo to enlarge it.

And the photo of the teeny, naked, blind, and deaf embryo-like creature is Oscar as he was delivered to me by my cat in July. There are tiny puncture marks where the cat gripped him in his mouth, like a kitten, to bring him home. We think that the young mother squirrel may have given birth to Oscar two weeks prematurely which is why, for a long time, he was lagging behind in development.

Keep close by as I'll have photos and an update tomorrow on this amazing little being who has brought so much to so many people's lives.

All best, Shannon

Baby Squirrel Osar is Doing so Well

I saw Oscar today and he is doing extremely well with his two young girl squirrel friends, Missy and Jackie.
I find it amazing that a small rodent with a tiny brain would recognize someone they'd not seen for nearly two weeks but he did and there was no making strange. In fact, he didn't want to return to the cage despite the newly placed food and tree branch with succulent leaves.

For your enjoyment, here are more photos taken today.

Oscar is King of the Castle

Oscar has fawn-coloured fur on his belly and muzzle. He's similar to a black squirrel but with this colouration, he's what's called a honey bear.

ML and I visited baby squirrel Oscar this morning and spent a delightful hour with him and his current care-givers.

Being hand-raised from the get-go, he is OK with being handled. However, I understand that once released, he'll climb that tree to squirreldom and never look back. This is a good thing. A wild animal needs to say wild.

He's eating fruits and vegetables now, along with formula, and yesterday, a milestone! He cracked a sunflower seed!

Oscar can now balance on his hind-legs and grip food in his paws.

Oscar is eight weeks old but still lagging a bit. He is living in sanctuary, more like heaven, with two young females squirrels who make much of him and cosset him, play with him and try to attract his attention with their special bird-chirp call.

He's much smaller than what they are, given his premature birth, but he is holding his own and the three eat and sleep together and are appreciative of one another. He is with two wild squirrels who were found without their mothers, one in a parking lot, so needed human intervention. Thus, he is learning squirrel ways from the experts.

He was quire comfortable in our presence, more so than his cage mates.

Something Fun!

I was at a potluck supper this eve and there was someone present who's been following the Baby Squirrel Oscar story. K. has been a staunch reader of the blog and this evening, he presented me with an amazing model of a squirrel that he made that, someday, Oscar will resemble exactly.

Thank-you, K, for being so thoughtful.

I think what I'm going to do is to visit Oscar once a week or so and do an update for all his fans and friends.

Several people wrote letters of consolation when they heard that Oscar was moving to a new home and I am grateful that he touched so many.

Check back often or if you're a follower, you'll get the goods as soon as I post.