Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Awwww Geez

Stinking cats!!!

It's not unusual to find tons of little carcasses laying around this place. All over outside, in the garage, heck in the house back when the cats could come and go as they pleased. **That's another story on it's own(insert eyeroll over the 'cat drama')

But yesterday morning, Meg's cat showed up in the garage with something a little larger than usual...And it was still alive.

I cannot stand it if I happen to catch one of the cat's playing with their prey.

Yes, I know it's cat behavior. Cat's are definitely not the most humane of hunters.

But I don't like to watch it, so I usually capture the poor, tortured prey and give them a second chance in the field next door. Who knows if they make it. Who cares. As long as I don't have to see them being tortured anymore.

The cats are less than impressed with me when I do this. Wished I could have gotten a picture of Deuce's face when he came through the cat door and I was standing there. It was a total "Oh Crap...There goes my fun" look.

He spit this out...


Just G.R.E.A.T (read heavy sarcasm there)...


A baby squirrel.

When I caught it, I wasn't sure it was going to make it. There was no blood or torn skin, but I didn't know if it was crushed inside or not. It was pretty freaked out....

I would be too!!!

So I wrapped him in a towel and put that on a heating pad and left him alone for a couple of hours. Didn't know if he was dying or just in serious shock.

He's alert now and his little ribcage feels okay. No sign of internal bleeding.

Found a couple of fleas though.

Oh yayyy...(again with the sarcasm)

I had no idea which direction the cat came from and this little guy looks to be too young to be on his own yet. Probably his first venture out of the nest and Yikes...Nabbed by a hunting fool of a white cat.

Once I figured out he was going to live, Meg and I headed off to the store...Pedialyte, kitten milk, a bottle and a syringe. Meg kept giving him a little Pedialyte until he was re-hydrated and then got a little kitten milk into him and he had a warm bath(as recommended). Today, I will hit the pet store and see if they have any of the recommended milk replacer for wild animals, as he seems to be quite willing to eat.
I think we have a pretty good chance of getting him raised. According to what we have been reading up on, another couple of months and he will be big enough to re-release. Like all of the other wild animals I've raised over the years, they usually stick around for a little bit and revert back to the wild quite well.

12 comments:

Dena said...

Girl you are sooooooo screwed!!!LOL
Another tip to success. Warm and damp washcloth wiped on their privates to induce umm..movement.
They are very loving and grateful saves.
And you are so screwed...

BrownEyed Cowgirl said...

Didn't take the little stinker long to figure out what a bottle was. He's grabbing that thing and nursing very well.

Thankfully Dena, he seems to be doing his bowel movements on his own. But we're watching for bloat in case he gets bound up.

Screwed? Do these things not revert back to the wild?

Dena said...

That depends on your understanding of the wild.
Your shoulder could be considered a tree. And your cupboards as foraging in its natural habitat.
Kind of kidding. Raising squirrels is like raising babies of your own. Doesn't take the little suckers long to own YOU!

Unknown said...

LOL OK my dads friend had one he rescued from a fallen tree. Quite the critter. Just read this story, please read it. Don't feed the thing beet pulp http://www.shady-acres.com/susan/squirrel.shtml

BrownEyed Cowgirl said...

Thanks Sydney. I couldn't imagine feeding beet pulp to a squirrel anyway, but definitely good to know.

I'm kind of thinking we should see if there is a local rehab place? I'm not sure how the laws run in regards to rehabbing wild animals in CO. Even if you have no intention of keeping the animal as a pet, I know they can get pretty freaked out about people trying to raise them for release.

Who the hell wants to go to jail for saving a baby squirrel from your cat?

Dena said...

Strangely enough BECs they are more freaky about prey animals being raised by citizens without the proper permits.
Squirrels? Meh..not so much. Unlike raccoons and skunks they are not as prone to hazardous disease, ie; rabies.

Sherry Sikstrom said...

Good luck with that! What a softie you are , I would lean to taking him to a wild animal rehab facility if there is one around. I can't say much though as I would likley do the same thing , I love my cats but brutal creatures they are!

City girl turned Country Girl said...

Oh cats!! I'd have crapped to find that! I am not to sure I would have picked it up! I'd have been afraid of it biting me, so kudos to you girls for doing the right thing!! I'll be interested to hear what you end up doing..

Maia said...

How sweet is that. My cat's used to bring presents all the time, but they've learned that if I see them with it, they're going to lose it and I'm going to be pissed. I've taken away mice, voles, birds, bunnies, but never a squirrel. I'll be interested to see if you keep it.

Unknown said...

On behalf of the prey of the world, I salute you.

I finally belled my cat. The bird count has dropped dramatically. I don't need a mouser, so it seems a reasonable thing to do.

Danielle Michelle said...

Ha ha ha! You will have that bugger forever. Don't you know squirrels make great pets!

BrownEyed Cowgirl said...

I talked to the vet about the legalities of raising the little bugger and she said pretty much what Dena said, no one really cares about the small prey animals, just the predators. She has had other people bring wild babies to her to doctor and knows that they have raised them themselves. She was not aware of any local rehabilitators. So I guess we are stuck with him.

Scrat...Yes, he has been named has a fancy new habitat and we found a couple of sites online about the requirements to raise one. The little bugger has settled in nicely, is eating like a champ and Megan has become his personal jungle-gym. Can you all see where this is going?