HELP FAST!! Squirrel Seizures Bad!!

[scottmunoz]

I need help!! My husband and I have been fostering a baby squirrel for the past 5 weeks. Everything has been great up until the other day when he had a seizure. We thought he might have just choked on something because he was alright after the episode. Last night it started again!! He had 2 very bad episodes within 1 hour of each other, and this morning I noticed that his tail, back legs, and his one front leg are almost completely paralized. This morning he had another episode not as bad as last night, but he was squealing during the episode. I am now on my way to take him to our vets who said they will see him. He is having trouble breathing now! HELP!! We feel like we did something wrong and we are just beside ourselves. HELP US PLEASE!!

[rygel1hardt]

Hello and welcome to the board. I am so sorry about his baby and hope the vet can help you! You didnt say what you are feeding this baby. It sounds like a calcium/ Vitamin D deficiency to me. This often happens at weaning as they get plenty when on formula but not from the solid food diet. Please let us know what the vet says and if he thinks it is a deficiency then it can be reversed and there are plenty of places to read on this board about nutrition. Hoping for the best! Stacey

[muffinsquirrel]

I agree with Stacey - it sounds like a calcium deficiency. Please let us know what the vet says as soon as possible. It is a common problem, more common than we would like, but it can usually be 'fixed'. Good Luck.

muffinsquirrel

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

I am praying for you & your little one, I agree callcium deficiency.
Good luck let us know!

[Gabe]

Or low blood sugar?

[Momma Squirrel]

Any news on the little one and his seizures?? What did your vet say? Hope everything is going to be OK :grouphug

[Apple Corps]

Scott - this could also be a very low blood sugar. Put some Karo syrup on your finger (or a q-tip) and rub it inside his cheeks - they absorb glucose rapidly.

DO NOT choke him - just a small amount - wait about three minutes and try a bit more.

You are trying to coat his inner cheeks and gums lightly with sugar (if yo do not have any Karo syrup just put some table sugar in a small glass of warm water - dip your finger or q-tip in it - and get some of the sweet stuff on his gums and cheeks (inside his mouth) - DO NOT overdue it and drown him in it. You can hold him with his head down so any excess drains out.

Move FAST and NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[squirrelfriend]

It sounds like a calcium defficiency to me too. a sun lamp that you would get at a pet store for reptiles would also help. you can buy the bulbs at the pet store and put them into a lamp at home. give the squirrel at least 30 minutes of the sun lamp a day. more if that is possible. this is not a tanning lamp. I would deffinitly get some calcium for him right away. a vet can sell you some liquid calcium.

[GhosTS]

scottmunoz, how old is the baby.And what do you feed him with.seizured are the result of wrong diet.It can be reversed.But it takes time and it must be dont quickly before the seizured does a permenant damage.The first thing to do is to give him some dextrose and calcium.A vet can help you with that.If he have calcium deficiency, it will take months for him to fully heal.And he must be carefully observed and must be given a strict diet and sunlight/UVB bulb.Dont take him to the sun while having a seizure.It will make it worse.Dont try to pick him up during a seizure.And dont try to feed him or give water during a seizure.And keep him in a warm enclosure where he cant climb very high.A single level cage will do.He must be examined by a wildlife vet ASAP.And his treatments must be started quickly.

Welcome to TSB.Keep us updated.

[scottmunoz]

Both my husband and I wanted to both say thank you to everybody for your overwhelming support and information regarding our little Chachi. Unfortunately we have been feeding him completely the wrong diet!! We both are very upset and feel very responsible for what is happening with him. I took him to our vets today and they are running some blood work on him. He had x-rays done-everything is fine with that, and he is resting and getting some fluids. He has not had a seizure since they have had him this afternoon. The vet seems to think that it might be neurological or a build up of some kind of toxins in his kidneys or liver. I asked her about the vitamin deficiency and she just kind of laughed and shrugged it off. Who knows??? She also gave me a stern lecture regarding having him in our house and as a pet. She seems to think that we purposely captured him, when all we did was rescue him from our neighbors front yard. She said that she is going to call animal control in our area(Long Beach, CA) and file a complaint because someone at animal control had said that we could foster him. She also said that we are going to have to release him after he is better because he is a wild animal and might rabies and the plague. He is so tame and timid (he sleeps in bed with us and our cat), we just can't comprehend as to what we are going to do if he pulls through. Does anybody have any suggestions (especially peeps in CA) as to what we can do?? Also we are interested in joining a squirrel rescue/foster program.
Thank You To Everybody,
Scott, Erin, and little Chachi:thankyou

[Kathy56]

Keep him away from the cat. I am no expert but cats are very dangerous to squirrels. I hope everything works out for you.

[Gabe]

Glad to hear that Chachi is better, it sounds as though you have a very caring vet. She is right, wild squirrels should be released, and it's good that she is going to talk to animal control regarding this person that gave you the wrong info about keeping him. Your vet is simply trying to avoid this sort of problem in the future. Although people's hearts are always in the right place, it is so much better for animals to raised by experienced rehabbers.
Good luck in becoming certified in your area, we always need more people that are willing to foster/rehab. The experience you will get will help so many poor orphans.

[Squirrelly]

Please keep us updated as to Chachi's progress. Thank you for caring...:Love_Icon

[Squerly]

She is right, wild squirrels should be released, I think we need to be careful with this type of blanket statement. Yes "wild" squirrels should be released but lets not confuse that to mean "all" squirrels should be released. :) As is with everything, common sense must be applied.


He is so tame and timid (he sleeps in bed with us and our cat)...Given the current situations, I'm not sure yours is a candidate for a successful release and turning a ill prepared squirrel out to the wild doesn't seem to me to be very beneficial to the squirrel. Also, I’ve never heard of squirrels having rabies or the plague either. I suppose it can happen but as far as I know it’s hardly a concern.

Anyway, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Chachi's recovery. :thumbsup

[Momma Squirrel]

Glad to hear Chachi will be able to recover. You and your husband did what you thought was best and had your heart in the right place. It is sad that there isn't enough info out there for people to get concerning the care of squirrels but so glad you guys found us. I agree with Squerly, not ALL squirrels should be released, it is a case by case call and has alot to do with the people raising the squirrel. But please don't let him be with the cat!! that is a big NO NO :nono

Glad to have you guys on board with us, please keep us updated and when you get little Chachi back we would love to see a picture of him.

[Apple Corps]

Scott - two points:

You MUST NOT allow the cat to be near your squirrel - cats have a bacteria in their saliva that is DEADLY / FATAL to squirrels.

I would find another vet - thank this one and let him know that your fuzzer has been released and looked healthy (ok - that would be a lie).

Keep a close watch on your fuzzer for any infection from the cat. The cat does not even have to bite the squirrel - just licking it could be harmful from what I have been reading - the bacteria is in the saliva.

Great job in responding and thanks for caring - they are really cute creatures.

[GhosTS]

scottmunoz, Many other members have already pointed this out.No Cats near Squirrels.Cats will harm them even if the cat didnt want to.A squirrel in this situation should not be released.He must be observed closely.He should be given a proper diet.If he is tame, its not possible to release him.BUT you must take great care of him.They are so fragile.Is there anything that can gave toxins in his diet.

We all hope for Chachi's recovery.

[Secret Squirrel]

Ok scott......your vet must not be up to date on proper diet for squirrels...if she just laughed it off!! rygelheart1 is correct about the calcium. How and what exactly were you feeding him?
MBD, is metabolic bone desease, which is a bone difficency from a poor diet. Calcium in veggies and rodent block is a good way to get your little guy back on the road to recovery. You will not be able to release him until he is fully cured of MDB. It is curable but you must follow a strick health food regime. Seziures are very common in MBD too.
There is a small chance of him never regaining his full growth potential because of damage that has been caused. I know you are wanting the very best for him so will you be able to keep a non-releasable for the remainder of his life?
I pray all goes well with your squirrel and oh yeah.....like everyone else said.....the cat is not a good bed buddy for the squirrel...good luck!!

[Timber]

GET A NEW VET! i Wonder where she got her liscense. Squirrels do not carry the rabies gene or virous. They can only come down with rabies the same way you, I or one of our domesticated pets can get it. That is if it or we are bitten by a rabid animal and I don't supose you or your others (cat or husband) has rabies and have bitten the baby. Second as for the plaluge, rodents do not carry the plague, rats do not carry the plague, its the damn fleas and then it is a special flea that comes from Aisa. The plague in Europe was caused from rats that had gotten on ships from the orient and then released in The U.K. and the fleas jumped off the rats on to people, biting them and giving them the plague. Damn, did she get her Vet liscense off the 'net. It wouldn't surprise me you can now get a law degree off of it. Like I would let someone represent me in a legal case who had gotten one that easy. And calcium diffiency is most probley the problem. Infact if you will email me that fraud of a vets' phone number I will gladly call her and tell her a thing or two.

[squirlymomma]

get some calcium into the baby - AND DO IT NOW! this link will tell you what you need to know for getting calcium into the baby - and quickly http://www.squirreltales.org/#Section-H look under Treatment For MBD
DON'T give the baby scalded milk AT ALL!

The lady that has this sight has helped me tremendously in raising my baby Oscar - among other people on this board and other rehabbers. I am praying for you and your little one - keep your cat AWAY from him.
Squirlymomma

[squirlymomma]

To live without loving a squirrel is not living at all.

get some calcium into the baby - this link will tell you what you need to know for getting calcium into the baby - and quickly http://www.squirreltales.org/#Section-H
DON'T give the baby scalded milk AT ALL!

The lady that has this sight has helped me tremendously in raising my baby Oscar - among other people on this board and other rehabbers. I am praying for you and your little one
Squirlymomma

[GhosTS]

How is Chachi now scottmunoz.Also a note on rabies.Feral animals and strays get rabies more than wild animals.Most of the wild animals get rabies from domestic animals.So a cat or a dog has a very higher possibility to get rabies than a squirrel.

[scottmunoz]

My husband and I wanted to say thank you to everybody a million times over for all of your help over the past day. All of the info that has been given to us has been so helpful, we are really bummed out that we did not find you guys sooner!! We also want to sorry about the cat situation, we definitely did not know about that. It won't happen again!!! As for our little Chachi, we talked to the vet and relayed all of the info on the calcium deficiency, and they have already started him on the treatment. He is stable right now and has a very good appetite. He has not had a seizure since we took him in, thank goodness. We will keep you informed. I am also curious and very undecided as to whether we should keep him and rehab him ourselves or hand him over to somebody else? It is such a tough decision since we have bonded with our little guy so much over the past few weeks. Any sugesstions??
Thanks again!!:Love_Icon

[Squirrelly]

Hey Scott, how is the little guy's paralysis situation? (I'm just a squirrel lover, not a rehabber). I sure hope he'll be O.K.:grouphug

[island rehabber]

Since they did not pertain to a Life Threatening Emergency Situation, I have moved the remainder of posts from this Thread to "General Squirrel Discussions" Forum, under the Thread "Releasing and Nest-Building". :peace

[Kebby]

I am sorry to hear about your baby having seizures. Also sorry to say my baby, 3 1/2 months old had a seizure and passed away this afternoon before I could get her to the vet. She was my 8th one and this is the first time I've ever lost one. She will definitely be missed.
Kebby

[HRT4SQRLS]

:wave123 Kebby
:Welcome to TSB
Sorry to hear about your baby. :( Do you know if he had head trauma? Was he getting adequate calcium in his diet? Sorry for the questions but seizures are often caused by these problems.

I'm glad you found us. There is a lot of information here that will help you with your squirrels. I noticed you linked on to a very old thread (2006). Go to the Introduction section and you can start a thread and tell us about your babies. We have a lot of Florida members. Because there are so many FL members, help is usually pretty close for emergencies.

Again, sorry about your baby..... and welcome.

[ChiefRunEmUp]

Mine has had seizures as well. He suddenly dropped and convulsed violently leaving him paralyzed for nearly 30 minutes. Would this be any explanation as to his extreme behavior change? it is truly heartbreaking. I need help. His behavior has pulled a complete 180. I have tried the special lamps, diet change, calcium/D3 supplements, etc. I have not witnessed another occurrence but when I got home from work, his behavior was similar to what I noticed after his first attack. Ever since, he has been so mean. Pierced my ear, three of my fingers, and my nose. WHAT CAN I DO?!

[gs1]

Mine has had seizures as well. He suddenly dropped and convulsed violently leaving him paralyzed for nearly 30 minutes. Would this be any explanation as to his extreme behavior change? it is truly heartbreaking. I need help. His behavior has pulled a complete 180. I have tried the special lamps, diet change, calcium/D3 supplements, etc. I have not witnessed another occurrence but when I got home from work, his behavior was similar to what I noticed after his first attack. Ever since, he has been so mean. Pierced my ear, three of my fingers, and my nose. WHAT CAN I DO?!


hi: :Welcome this needs to go in it's own thread so that more people can answer you.

Could you please give us more of a history?

If it is mbd then the calcium needs to be given for a few months and they're never really 'over it' ... they're rebuilding bone tissue and dealing with the damage.

I'm going to begin the new thread in this forum and if admin thinks that it should go else where then they'll move it.....

:Welcome and all the best.:Welcome

[astra]

hi: :Welcome this needs to go in it's own thread so that more people can answer you.

Could you please give us more of a history?

If it is mbd then the calcium needs to be given for a few months and they're never really 'over it' ... they're rebuilding bone tissue and dealing with the damage.

I'm going to begin the new thread in this forum and if admin thinks that it should go else where then they'll move it.....

:Welcome and all the best.:Welcome
ChiefRunEmUp, please go here: http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?p=824318#post824318

this is the link to the thread that gs1 started for you.

[gs1]

:thumbsup Thanks again Astra!!! I felt i'd forgotten something....:sanp3 :thumbsup

[kathiravan]

I agree with Stacey - it sounds like a calcium deficiency. Please let us know what the vet says as soon as possible. It is a common problem, more common than we would like, but it can usually be 'fixed'. Good Luck.

muffinsquirrel


Please keep us updated as to Chachi's progress. Thank you for caring...:Love_Icon

sir actually my squirrel is having seizures so bad and then the problem is not in calcium but i might have been feeding the squirell with cow milk is it any bad to the squirell or any other problems or causes for the seizures for the squirrel than the mbd

[HRT4SQRLS]

sir actually my squirrel is having seizures so bad and then the problem is not in calcium but i might have been feeding the squirell with cow milk is it any bad to the squirell or any other problems or causes for the seizures for the squirrel than the mbd

Other things can cause seizures besides calcium. Head trauma can cause seizures. We always suspect calcium because it is so common. Cow milk is extremely deficient and will not maintain the squirrel for long. Is this a baby squirrel?

I’m not sure what you have available in your country. Royal Canin puppy formula is a good choice if you can get it. Give us more history and maybe we can help.
How old?
How long have you had the squirrel?
Are the seizures new?
Anything else that might be helpful?