Not sure if it's bloat...

[meggers29]

Hello everyone!

So I have adopted a baby squirrel (it fell out if a friends tree and the mother never came for her).

I have read as much as I can on how to care do her but I'm still a little nervous about things. One thing in particular is that she is not a big pooper. Granted her diet has mostly consisted of pedialyte for the past 3 days because everytime I pinch the skin on her back it doesn't go flat within 3 seconds. That being said I have fed her a small amount of formula here and there when I felt that she was hydrated enough to handle it.

Yesterday she seemed bloated to me, her stomach wasn't too hard I the touch but try as I might I couldn't get here to go number two, only number one. I went and got her some natural prune based pediatric stool softener and that helped over night, but I just want to make sure I am doing everything right so I thought I would reach out to you guys.

I am using the recommended puppy replacement formula (starts with an E) with pre and probiotics, and I am using it 1 part formula, 3 1/2 parts warm water with nothing added. (I added a little rice cereal when I added the softener just to give it a tiny bit more substance for when she went but that's the only time last night).

Other than that she is mostly on pedialyte. She eats eagerly and hasn't acted like she doesn't want food, but nonetheless the no pooping thing. HAd me concerned. So anyways here are some picture of her belly, if you guys could weigh in and let me know if it's a bloated belly or a healthy fully belly I would appreciate it.

And if it is bloated what other steps can I take (I started with putting her lower half in warm water yesterday and is made her go once but then no change after 10 hours so I used the pediatric stuff. And I have colic stuff in case too.

Also when should I stop using the pedialyte?

Anyways any help or tips is appreciated.

These pics are right after she ate... But it was like this all day yesterday, and only got a little smaller this morning after I used the softener.
Oh and her name is Biscuit

[island rehabber]

PLEASE STOP THE PEDIALYTE IMMEDIATELY. You should only use Pedialyte for 24 hours! the Sodium in it will bloat her, and will swell her joints until she cannot walk. PLEASE no more Pedialyte.

She cannot poop because she has no food in her system -- there is no nourishment in Pedialyte! Please start her on dilute formula -- 1 part powder to 3 parts very warm water to begin with. You will then get her to the normal ratio -- one part powder to 2 parts water by this time tomorrow.

[meggers29]

Thank you so much!

I was worried that wouldn't be good for that long but I kept reading she can't handle formula if she's not hydrated, and hydrating meant pedialyte. I will stop now right away. Thank you so much again!

[ALittleNutty]

Some of them take a little longer to get adjusted. The rice cereal may have stopped her up just a bit. I would continue feeding the Esbilac and hydration solution of water and sugar, in between feedings. As long as her belly feels like a soft water balloon and not hard you should be fine. Some of them need more stimulation to get things moving. You might try massaging her belly from the top down and in the creases of her legs, moving towards her rectum.

Not sure what you are using to stimulate her but you may try a soft cloth, a cotton swab, your finger, and you can be a little firmer with the pressure of the strokes. Momma squirrels are pretty rough when they do it.

Continue the warm soaks and maybe a little coconut oil or vaseline just to keep the area moistened.

Keep an eye on the milk line. As long as it's going down that's a good sign.

Hoping you get some soon!

Homemade Re-hydration Recipe

1TSP salt
3 TSP sugar
4 cups (1 quart) of water

You can use this recipe instead of Pedialyte for the first 24 hours when you get a baby in, after that just leave out the salt.

[beezle-weezle]

Bloat is one of the scariest things to a new squirrel mom. I spent countless hours worried was she full or was it bloat? Her full tummy should feel like a soft water balloon. I am not an expert on squirrels and can only share what I have learned but I would feed her formula and do some sugar water in between feedings. Make sure to weigh her (in grams) so you can determine how much she should eat. (5% of her body weight)

[meggers29]

Thank you!!

You guys rock!!

And thank you for the water balloon tip! Good to know! She was like a water balloon yesterday so I was a more worried momma than I probably needed to be.

[farrelli]

You should feed 5-7% of body weight per feeding. For example, if she's 100g, she'd need 5-7ccs per feeding. Do you have a scale? You need one to properly feed, track progress, and dose drugs if necessary.

[meggers29]

Already a success!!!

I'm so glad you all are so reachable!! I was so worried about not hydrating her enough that I almost didn't feed her enough! Thank you all for your help again!

[island rehabber]

[ALittleNutty]

Already a success!!!

I'm so glad you all are so reachable!! I was so worried about not hydrating her enough that I almost didn't feed her enough! Thank you all for your help again!

[meggers29]

So she is 2.5 ounces, which is 70.87 grams, which if I calculated right should be 3.5 CC of formula per feeding.

But she seems full and ready to sleep after 1 ml (1cc) of feeding... Do I need Torrey and get her eat more?

[ALittleNutty]

So she is 2.5 ounces, which is 70.87 grams, which if I calculated right should be 3.5 CC of formula per feeding.

But she seems full and ready to sleep after 1 ml (1cc) of feeding... Do I need Torrey and get her eat more?

She should be getting 3.5cc every feeding and that's the minimum. She could have up to 4.9 (7%). Maybe stimulating her in the middle of the feeding might help keep her awake. I have some that "zone out" and sometimes that works. Experiment with formula temperature too. If it's not warm enough mine wont touch it.