Possible seizure last night? help

[SamIam]

OK so he is going to be 6 weeks tomorrow (estimated). He fell out of a tree onto cement/gravel/mulch...other siblings dead declared ophan. Had for week he has been doing sooo well other than having a little loose stool. Then last night during his feeding he just stop swallowing his mouth gapping open and close like a fish outta water. and his WHOLE body shook uncontrollably. I did the whole thing about tapping his chin or forehead with syringe to bring him out but it didn't work. His whole body then went limp and I seriously thought he was dead for a second then he starting breathing right again and went to sleep. He has been fine all day playful even, though he started to do the fish mouth breathing thing after eating...he does try to eat awfully fast. Could he have a head trauma? What is this? And before I have someone tell me that I'm not qualified, me, my sister and my mom have been rehabilatating animals of ALL kinds for about 12 years (longer for my mom) and we have never had this happen.(btw im REALLY not trying to sound snotty or mean) Please someone help?


I watched this and it is not this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYjzxVyjduw

[starfairy]

OMG! Just watched the video. Why in the world would people be laughing and posting funny comments? Isn't that nipple WAY to large?

[Buddy'sMom]

:Welcome SamIam, it's helpful that you saw that video to compare to what your baby is doing. Even if it is not exactly the same, it still may be the thing some of them do when feeding, and not actually a "seizure."

Does it only happen when feeding? If so, it might be more likely the feeding thing. Head trauma seizures would not be seen only when feeding, but other times, too.

However, since he fell, there is always the possibility of head trauma. Sometimes they appear fine at the beginning and develop seizures as they grow a bit. Have you noticed any other "neurological" kind of symptoms? Maybe difficulty moving around? That's a little hard to say at this age, as they are a bit awkward until they get the hang of walking, etc. Any difference in his eyes (once they opened)?

It's great that you have experience in caring for animals. Have you raised a baby squirrel before? Two reasons: One, if you haven't, please check the stickies for helpful information about feeding, formula (Esbilac puppy formula!), etc. But also - two -- if there is a possible head injury, someone with experience in how squirrel babies are supposed to act at each age can more easily see right away if there is a head injury that might need treatment. Depending where you are located, we may be able to give you the name of an experienced squirrel rehabber near you who can help.

:grouphug :Love_Icon :grouphug

EDIT: I need to log off for a while, but there will be others checking in to help you as well.

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

I just watched 1/2 of the video and that looks exactly like the "fish gape" thing that some babies do during feeding. The only thing you can do is tap them on the top of the head, and sometimes I can wiggle a nipple in the mouth and they will stop. I've never seen one last that long, so it may take a while to get this baby fed. Usually, they do it less and less as they get older.

[Buddy'sMom]

ASG, that WAS the sample fish gape video --- It was not SamIam's squirrel.

Sam said that it was NOT like the video. Sq. did the gaping-thing, but also shook uncontrollably (whole body), then went limp...... Any thoughts? Do they ever do that with the feeding/gaping? Or is this a real seizure??

:grouphug :grouphug

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

I've never seen them go limp after the "fish gape." They usually start looking for that nipple immediately after snapping out of it.

[Loopy Squirrel]

I have had a lot of fish gappers over the years, but never a full body involvement. The fact that the baby went limp and slept afterward sounds like a real seizure to me. It very well could be from the head trauma. You will need to watch carefully from now on. This could develope into a much more serious condition if left untreated. If it happens again it would be a good idea to give the baby a small amt of karo syrup after because seizures rob the body of available sugar and can lead to more seizures.

[PBluejay2]

I've had a few over the years that tend to do the "guppy" thing, and I have one right now who has been an absolute pain to feed since he was a pinkie. As soon as he gets a couple of swallows down, he vapor-locks his tongue to the roof of his mouth, extends all four legs spread eagle, and shivers like he's overly excited about what he's doing (reminiscent of seizures?). He appears to be sucking on the nipple, but isn't, and the telltale sign is formula oozing out of his mouth. Now that he's just opened his eyes, I can usually catch it the moment he starts (he closes his eyes) and can tell he's not actually drinking anything but sucking a hicky on the roof of his mouth. As soon as I detect it, I stop feeding, pat/bop him on the nose, rub his cheeks--anything until I hear him "smacking" again.