I was proud of myself a couple weeks back. It’s between squirrel baby seasons right now, but we have a couple late season babies.
The one was by himself and was still a little rambunctious and unsettled after feeding and cleaning. I gave his pen a closer exam and saw he was without a stuffy!
I went to the stuffy drawer and found a nice big plump one about the same size as lonely squirrel. For the rest of my shift, it was in there playing and wrestling with it and was much happier. It made me happy I was able to understand it’s needs, and it really showed me how important the plushies can be for line animals. It looks cute to us of course, but developmentally for a lone animal that should normally be in a decent sized group of its own kind, I think it can be psychologically very important.
On paper, I should hate everything about my time there. It’s hot, stinky, I have to handle lots of gross stuff, cleaning up poop and wiping asses and penises, and there is no steady schedule of jobs for me to build a routine, but it is by far the most satisfying work I’ve ever done in my life. I’ve always loved animals, and being able to give back to them lets the triumphs and cute moments blows all the crummy moments away.
I still can’t believe I’ve gotten this opportunity, and as always, I encourage any of you to try it at your local rehab. There are essentially no prerequisites to be a volunteer. You just have to commit to showing up and follow the instructions. We have 4 hour shifts once a week from April through September, which is pretty common for clinics, but sometimes places will let you do even less than that.
That is really inspirational. I think I will look into local options! I knit blankets for my local animal shelter, that’s the extent of my help right now. I would love to learn how to care for some wild animals and help out.
I will say, before you get started, you may want to check with who you plan on giving them to.
Getting the sizes and the knit tightness and all that correct is going to be important so they keep proper warmth level and won’t get their little beaks and feet stuck in a looser knit. With them being functional items rather than decorative, the little details are more significant.
Also we’re nearing the end of bird season, so I know we have a huge pile of them right now and we’re using less of them each week. They do get changed out a lot and we wash them with lots of bleach, so I’m not sure their actual life span though. When we get too much of things, we need to find ways to store things, which becomes its own issue.
I found these too, if you sew as well. The little hammocks are also something we use a lot for squirrels and the tiny oppossums. Again, I’d check for actual need and learn how they attach them to cages so it’s something they have a use for and will work with their pens.
I was proud of myself a couple weeks back. It’s between squirrel baby seasons right now, but we have a couple late season babies.
The one was by himself and was still a little rambunctious and unsettled after feeding and cleaning. I gave his pen a closer exam and saw he was without a stuffy!
I went to the stuffy drawer and found a nice big plump one about the same size as lonely squirrel. For the rest of my shift, it was in there playing and wrestling with it and was much happier. It made me happy I was able to understand it’s needs, and it really showed me how important the plushies can be for line animals. It looks cute to us of course, but developmentally for a lone animal that should normally be in a decent sized group of its own kind, I think it can be psychologically very important.
That is an incredibly heart-warming story! I am glad all those animals have people like you to help.
On paper, I should hate everything about my time there. It’s hot, stinky, I have to handle lots of gross stuff, cleaning up poop and wiping asses and penises, and there is no steady schedule of jobs for me to build a routine, but it is by far the most satisfying work I’ve ever done in my life. I’ve always loved animals, and being able to give back to them lets the triumphs and cute moments blows all the crummy moments away.
I still can’t believe I’ve gotten this opportunity, and as always, I encourage any of you to try it at your local rehab. There are essentially no prerequisites to be a volunteer. You just have to commit to showing up and follow the instructions. We have 4 hour shifts once a week from April through September, which is pretty common for clinics, but sometimes places will let you do even less than that.
That is really inspirational. I think I will look into local options! I knit blankets for my local animal shelter, that’s the extent of my help right now. I would love to learn how to care for some wild animals and help out.
If you are a knitter, I think we buy these knit birds nests for our hatchlings, but it might be another really simple project to try.
Oh my god, you are right, that would be simple to make and a satisfying project since it would be fast and for a good cause! Thank you!
I will start making these. If your rescue needs them, feel free to dm me an address, and I’ll send some over!
I will say, before you get started, you may want to check with who you plan on giving them to.
Getting the sizes and the knit tightness and all that correct is going to be important so they keep proper warmth level and won’t get their little beaks and feet stuck in a looser knit. With them being functional items rather than decorative, the little details are more significant.
Also we’re nearing the end of bird season, so I know we have a huge pile of them right now and we’re using less of them each week. They do get changed out a lot and we wash them with lots of bleach, so I’m not sure their actual life span though. When we get too much of things, we need to find ways to store things, which becomes its own issue.
I found these too, if you sew as well. The little hammocks are also something we use a lot for squirrels and the tiny oppossums. Again, I’d check for actual need and learn how they attach them to cages so it’s something they have a use for and will work with their pens.
Awesome tips, thank you! I shall do some research and get in touch with some rescues to see what they need.
I kind of know how to sew, but also not really 😅. I love learning new things though. That hammocks looks SO cute.
Of course! I didn’t want anyone to waste time or money if there isn’t a need for stuff.
The hammocks are great and the animals love them. The flying squirrels will load up all the holes with food to create secret stashes.