View Full Version : Sick Babies
bwaters
09-10-2008, 08:24 PM
Two baby squirrels fell out of our tree during Hurricane Gustav and the mom took off and didn't come back. We've been keeping them in a box with a tshirt to lay on. Under the box we keep a heating pad on low. We guess from the internet info we've read, that they are about four weeks old. So we have been feeding them JUST BORN kitten formula every two to three hours. We also gave them Pedialyte for 24 hours to try and rehydrate them. We feed them between one and a half to three mls of formula at each feeding. One eats really well. The other is very spastic and the formula has gone up his nose several times. She is very hard to feed. They are very skinny and wrinkly. Their eyes have not opened. Sometimes they have a normal bowel movement but mostly they have yellow diarrhea. And lots of it. Their urine is pretty clear. We are pretty worried about them. Any suggestions?
CupCake'sMomma
09-10-2008, 08:36 PM
Hi there!
Switch the babies to ESBILAC puppy formula asap. Some one more qualified will be on to help you shortly i hope!
Jackie in Tampa
09-10-2008, 08:41 PM
AC...are you there...
:Welcome Sounds as though your babies are dehydrated
You are going to have to try to hydrate them and switch them to Esbilac formula. Esbilac has all the proper nutrients that baby sqs need, closest to mothers milk.
Do you have pedilyte and do you know how to ck for hydration. If you gently lift the skin and it tents, stays in standing position, your baby will have to be rehydrated before anymore formula. Someone more experienced will be on soon!:grouphug
Keep the baby warm and quiet.
rippie-n-lilgirlsmom
09-10-2008, 08:45 PM
Trying to remember how much 4wk olds weigh? I know they would drink more than 1 1/2 cc. Get switched over to Esbilac puppy formula as soon as possible.
Heat set on low, soft fluffy blankets...
If they aspirate turn upside down and let formula drain out nose.
If they are at the point of not wanting to eat they need antibiotics quickly.
Just to be safe do you have any on hand from another pet maybe?
If they are still having the poops give some pedialyte inbetween for hydration also try benbac to straighten out tummy, you can get it from your vet.
Jackie in Tampa
09-10-2008, 08:51 PM
How long have you had them?
Listen closely to the babies chest...
do youhear clicking?
When milk goes up babies nose, turn baby upside down so formula can drain.
the noise would be fluid in the lungs, this will rapidly turn to pnuemonia. The baby would have to be on anti biotics asap.
Do you have a vet, or any antibiotics at home?
Can we help you find a rehabber to help these little ones , or advise you?
Someone will be on soon.
Can you get pics of babies so our rehabbers will have a better idea, we can help you post them.
Sorry about asking if you had pedialyte, saw that you posted that.
annick
09-10-2008, 09:02 PM
Two baby squirrels fell out of our tree during Hurricane Gustav and the mom took off and didn't come back. We've been keeping them in a box with a tshirt to lay on. Under the box we keep a heating pad on low. We guess from the internet info we've read, that they are about four weeks old. So we have been feeding them JUST BORN kitten formula every two to three hours. We also gave them Pedialyte for 24 hours to try and rehydrate them. We feed them between one and a half to three mls of formula at each feeding. One eats really well. The other is very spastic and the formula has gone up his nose several times. She is very hard to feed. They are very skinny and wrinkly. Their eyes have not opened. Sometimes they have a normal bowel movement but mostly they have yellow diarrhea. And lots of it. Their urine is pretty clear. We are pretty worried about them. Any suggestions?
ok here is what i think:
-its good that you have a heating pad under the tank :thumbsup they need to be warm but not hot. keep it in one area so they can move off if they get too warm
-rehydrate them for up to 48 hours but not more. from my own experience i found that crucial. a dehydrated baby will die quickly (and will not want to eat!). do you know how to check for dehydration?
-weight them. i find that very important as well. it is possilbe that the babies were not fed enough which can cause dehydration. get a food scale (you can find one at rite aid, walgreens etc) for very cheap. it's not a professional scale but right now you really want to know asap how much they are supposed to eat. once you have their weight in grams calculate how much they are supposed to get in cc. do you know about the 5%-7% rule?
-once they are propperly rehydrated only then slowly introduce the formula (get esbilac powder for PUPPIES!) . if you give them immediately 2parts water/1 part esbilac they can develop diarreah. in this case dilute the esbilac with more water until you get a normal stool (for a couple of feedings).
-prozyme can help them with digestion. i had a baby that never wanted to eat and as soon as i added a pinch of it to the formula my baby turned around :crazy Some babies have a hard time digesting the formula so that will help. Also, when a baby has diarreah i will not add any yoghurt
-my baby never ever wanted to eat much so sometimes i had to force feed him. i was VERY careful with him and fed him drop by drop. i also gave him lots of love.... i think that helps as well :Love_Icon :D
i hope this helps ;) Ur so nice for taking care of those orphaned, God bless you!
bwaters
09-10-2008, 09:55 PM
How long have you had them?
Listen closely to the babies chest...
do youhear clicking?
When milk goes up babies nose, turn baby upside down so formula can drain.
the noise would be fluid in the lungs, this will rapidly turn to pnuemonia. The baby would have to be on anti biotics asap.
Do you have a vet, or any antibiotics at home?
Can we help you find a rehabber to help these little ones , or advise you?
Someone will be on soon.
Can you get pics of babies so our rehabbers will have a better idea, we can help you post them.
Sorry about asking if you had pedialyte, saw that you posted that.
We have had them about a week and a half. There is no clicking. We have been turning them upside down. We were feeding them with a dropper and it happened often but we bought a syringe and put a tiny nipple on it and it worked GREAT. I have not consulted a vet because I read that most of them don't really know how to deal with wild animals. I do not have any antibiotics. I feel very unsure about how to take care of them so it would be great if someone else could help. We tried to get some pics on here but we couldn't get it to work. They can fit in an average woman's palm with room to spare when curled up. Their bodies are about 4 1/2 inches stretched out. Not including the tail. Thanks so much. We'll wait to hear more.
C*ndy
09-10-2008, 11:11 PM
I have recieved SEVERAL calls in this area from people with squirrels they rescued after the storm. I have recommended those near me to bring them to me or another rehabber in their area. Some are wanting to keep these to rehab themselves. I am here in South Louisiana to those needing.
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