Bruiser's Buddies Wildlife Rehabilitation

09/25/2025

Update 0800
She has passed. Vera was big spooning her and cried a little when I removed her body. Despite being together for less than 12 hours, they connected, she mourns. I moved Vera in with Alice, Munchie and Snuggle Buns, my low energy crew.
Update 0200
She's sleeping comfortably with Miss Vera. She woke up a little and had some more fluids and a quick chin scratch then back to sleep. Her breathing is changing and I'm not optimistic but, we keep going until we can't.
New paralysis intake.
I don't think I can save her but for now, for a little while, I'm just going to sit with her and hold her and let her rest. She's had some fluids and pain meds and I'm pretty sure she has a pelvic and spinal fracture but it's late and she seems comfortable enough so we'll see how she is in the morning. There's a lot of swelling and I've been wrong before. 💗🐿️

09/24/2025

I get A LOT of calls, texts, FB messages, and emails. For every animal I intake I'd say there are 6 I don't. I spend a lot of time in my chat and transport groups (if you'd like to become a transport volunteer, message me!! It's truly one of the biggest needs when we have so many animals and our real life to handle!!).arranging placements and getting animals to rehabbers with time and supplies and cage space and skill sets and licensing for various needs. There are going to be times when I have to say no, and I feel bad, and sometimes on rare occasions it takes me too long or no one else can step up and we lose the animal. That's terrible, that's the worst feeling, but there are times where if I take one more animal, my mental health will suffer, and I will not have the time to adequately care for the animals I have. I have to know that limit and respect it, for the animals and myself. People are mostly cool about it, although I do understand the frustration of trying to get help and not being able to find it. We also need more new rehabbers as well, and if you're licensed and need some training or advice (in NY or elsewhere) or you're interested in the process and what it looks like to actually do it, message me for that too. Enjoy the ones I didn't take and a couple that I did!!

09/22/2025

BUDDIES!! THERE ARE 1100 OF YOU!!
When I launched this page in January 2024 I had no expectations. I just wanted to document my experiences and provide some education and awareness. Never did I expect such a huge group of supporters, finders, transporters, and squirrel appreciators! I probably DO have 1100 squirrel pictures but I'll just share an assortment of 40 from our fall babies for now. 💗🐿️
Bruiser's Buddies are the BEST Buddies!!

09/22/2025

Cute updates! Somehow I've ended up with four red squirrels! The smallest (pictured in my hand with the pumpkin) unfortunately succumbed to pneumonia. But the other three are a mixed bag! Little Red (as the finders called her) is an eyes open 7-8 week red who weighs 85g.
Tomato was an eyes open 4-5 weeker who weighed just 40g.
New baby eyes closed so 3-4 weeks weighs 51g....there is no logic in this place.
Rounding out the reds is Munchie (sitting and snacking next to the pumpkin) probably around 5ish weeks old. Munchie has a malocclusion -her upper and lower teeth don't align- because her lower jaw is longer than her face. Hopefully with time and care the rest of her head will catch up!
Shortly, we'll return to your regularly scheduled grey programming.

09/19/2025

I'm not trying to be all doom and gloom, I'm not. And I'll post some more cute babies later to make up for it. But today I moved a dead opossum and a dead raccoon out of the road and took care of a squirrel I euthanized yesterday and just now someone brought me an 11-12 week old grey that their dog caught and she died in my hands so I didn't have to euthanize and there's another one on the way that was found in the road and it looks pretty rough but I have a volunteer transport for that one which is awesome and there's a red squirrel in Webster that I'm trying to get a ride here so it can be transferred to a rehabber in Buffalo who has reds (technically I have a red currently but she was maloccluded and Paige and I did a teeth trim but she has some dwarfism traits and may be NR...) and I have 21 formula babies to feed in about half an hour and that takes a solid hour now. Happily I have placement lined up for at least six of those and hopefully also more and Chunk, Stardust and Fatty will be release age in two weeks as long as Chunk's abscess clears up. This is easily the most intense baby season I've ever experienced. It's just me, and obviously I have a great support system of family (someone should give my husband some kind of award for putting up with my sh ) the kids help as they're able, all of my friends who check in, Paige at LittleFoot Wildlife Rehab Rachel at chipchloesquirrel Jes and Katie and Melissa and Val and Cassidy and Amy and Anna and Rob and Audra and Mary and Regina and everyone who's sent me wishlist stuff this season and donated on venmo and all my transport volunteers. But a lot of it is on me. And I'm tired. I need a shower. I'm ok, I'm not burned out but I'm close. And what then, what am I supposed to do when I feel burned out and there's one more? One more skinny orphan, one more finder fed aspiration pneumonia, one more mauled and broken grey body that just needs a peaceful exit... And the weird thing is that in the next couple of weeks these calls will probably die down and then I'll release or transfer everyone and it'll be quiet and I'll be confused about why I ever felt so exhausted. 💗🐿️

09/18/2025

Update, he has a ride!
Transport volunteer needed! We need this little buddy brought from Irondequoit to Walworth asap! Message me if you can help!

09/17/2025

I realized my last few posts were downers so here's 101 seconds of snuggle sack clown car cute overload action to make up for it. 💗🐿️

09/16/2025

This poor guy was paralyzed, probably in the last 48 hours based on his condition, and got stuck under a fence because his legs wouldn't follow his instructions to tuck in so he could fit through. Thanks to Jenn who went right to where he was and brought him to me quickly. Thanks to the finder for taking the time to notice him and to contact someone, where he was, other people surely must have walked by.
He had good reflexes in his back legs and I was hopeful we could try to treat him, but further examination determined his pelvis was broken in two places and his right leg had a compound fracture just below the hip.
He had a last meal of grapes and has been quietly released into the next place. May it be full of warm sun and clear skies and tall trees full of holes for nice snuggly nests. 💗🐿️

09/15/2025

Paralyzed ~10 week grey. Intake exam was promising for the paralysis treatment protocol, good reflexes both ways in both legs, intact pelvis and no obvious spinal fractures. She was alert and vocal. Started warming and fluids, she went agonal soon after. I held her in my hands as she went. A more thorough exam revealed crushed ribs on her left side, which appear to have punctured the lung. This happens sometimes when we get them warmed up and blood flow resumes, traumatic injuries that were on hold from cold and shock present and we can't do anything. I couldn't have done anything differently at all but I still feel like I failed her. Mama did such a good job, she's a beautiful healthy baby aside from missing the end of her tail, and whatever happened to her today. She'll be buried with the bottle fed aspiration pneumonia grey and the paralyzed chipmunk from yesterday.
I'm sorry Pippa.
I hate this part.
💗🐿️

09/14/2025

Update 0800
As the night rolled on, he began showing signs of an internal injury-a great deal of swelling and bruising in the lower abdominal area. He was much more responsive and ate and drank a little so I figured we'd ride it out. However, at some point it became too much and he has died. He was a very handsome little Chipmunk, and today he'll be buried with a grey baby I got late Friday night who died of aspiration pneumonia from being fed with a kitten bottle.
Keep your cats inside and don't feed baby animals.

Update 0030
Sleeping comfortably on pain meds and heat but now that circulation has improved, we have bleeding somewhere in the groin area, it looks like scrapes from teeth and a few additional punctures. The base of the tail, which I thought was just wet on intake from the water in the box was actually soaked in blood. Increasing movement in the rear legs though so it's not all bad news. In other news, she's a he, which wasn't originally obvious because of the matter fur covering the p***s.

Update 2004
She's cold and in shock. Hind feet pads are cold and white. No withdraw reflex and minor push reflex, bilaterally. Palpable swelling behind pelvis but no obvious fracture. Able to empty her own bladder. Punctures on each hip, probably from a cat bite. So far I've given honey and warm Pedialyte and pain meds and put her on a heat pad. I don't dare do anything else until she's warmer. Next step is subq fluids and steroids to reduce the inflammation asap, and starting antibiotics for the cat bite. I have a feeling she might not make it overnight (possibly not the next couple of hours....) but I really hope she does. Finder provided food and water and she cheeked some of the seeds which is just the cutest darn thing, even in the midst of trauma, chips are gonna chip.

Critical intake incoming.
I don't like the look of this one 😔
It'll be here in ten minutes, I'll update ASAP...
If there's not an obvious fracture, we start treatment.

09/14/2025

09/12/2025

At the doctor's office and just realized I didn't change my shirt before I came here so I've got dried squirrel formula on me and I look gross. Worth it for the little faces 🥹
What a glamorous life! 🤣🤷💗🐿️