Squirrel is vomiting

[m&bs mom]

I have a 5-6 month old grey squirrel that acted normal until about 3 hours ago.

He has vomited a few times and just acts really tired. Nothing in his diet has changed. He takes formula still and his rodent blocks. Also some fruits and veggies. He is a picky eater!

I tried the pedialite and he hated it. I am going to try thr homemade recipe and maybe he will take that better.

He is drinking tons of water but can't tell if he is peeing or pooping. He is on a heating pad and I do have milk thistle (capsulse). Should I start this and if so how much and how often. I am so scared.

I can't find anything that he could have got into. Please help...I can't loose this little guy.

[SammysMom]

I am no expert, but it sounds like he ate something. Did he chew anything painted or something plastic? I think water or pedialyte is the right thing to do, but I am sure an expert will be along soon. Prayers to your baby!

[momma2boo]

Do you have any houseplants that he could've gotten into? Check your cleaning products for holes as well as your lotions, toothpaste, and such. Check everything so we can do a process of elimination.

Have you given him any acorns or nuts in the shell?

[m&bs mom]

No house plants. Bathroom doors are shut when he is out and cleaning supplies are under the sink...he can't get into them. He ate a pecan today but I gave him that after the fact. (he didn't look like he felt good and then I gave him the pecan). I have racked my brains.

I just tried the homemade pedialyte and had to force him to take that. I have applied rescue remedy and will try again in a bit.

What do you think about starting the milk thistle? Should I wait?

When he threw up, it looked like his yogurt from this morning. He eats the yobaby blueberry flavor and expiration date is fine.

[CritterMom]

Can you identify what he is vomiting? Nasty, but poke through it and see.

When did he start drinking lots of water? When he began vomiting, or before that?

As M2B asked, has he eaten any nuts?

How long ago is the last time he vomited?

You are doing right so far - keep him nice and warm. Hydrated is good, plus if he ate something that could harm him, this is about the only way to push it through. Remember, the throwing up gets rid of the bad stuff, too.

If you have any Rescue Remedy, start using that. If he is not currently throwing up, I like a drop on his mouth - you are trying to get it on mucous membranes like their gums if you can - and then follow that up with applications to bare areas like armpits or the bottoms of their feet or their ears.

[m&bs mom]

He started to drink alot after he threw up. I looked at the vomit and all I saw was yogurt and pieces of pecan. He has not vomited in about an hour and I did put the rr in his mouth...mine too!

[momma2boo]

I don't know enough about giving Milk Thistle to anything other than a human. I wouldn't risk it. Keep him hydrated, warm, and quiet. Hopefully this will pass. In the meanwhile keep an eye on him to see if there are any other symptoms that might give us a clue as to why he is vomiting.

Good to hear you dosed yourself with RR too. He will react to what you are feeling so the less stress the better.

[m&bs mom]

OK another question. Should I keep forcing pedialyte or let him drink his water on his own? He is sleeping right now but have no problem getting up every hour to push fluids.

[m&bs mom]

I don't know where my manners are...thank you all so much from me and Greyson P. Squirrel.

[m&bs mom]

He just threw up again...

[CritterMom]

It sounds like something made him sick and he used the water to help him purge it. I would wake him a couple times over the next few hours and give him some more hydrating solution. If he does not vomit again, let him sleep through the night on the heating pad (with the option to get off) hopefully someplace you can listen to him - can he sleep in your room?

What formula do you use? Do you keep the formula powder in the freezer or fridge? I have has Esbilac powder go bad twice in the refrigerator. I keep my FV in the freezer.

And don't mess with the yogurt - pitch it. Yogurt is cheap.

[CritterMom]

He just threw up again...


Shoot. Still look like yogurt or is he throwing up water at this point?

[m&bs mom]

Water and still a bit of yogurt. He keeps rubbing his face on everything and grinding his teeth. Pee looks good. He drank a bunch more water too. I am tossing everything. I keep his fv formula in the fridge...didn't know I should freeze it.

[CritterMom]

It is probably fine in the fridge...but after seeing the Esbilac go bad - and this was the old Esbilac that didn't kill baby animals - I got reeeeeal anal about it. It works just as good out of the freezer as it does the fridge, BTW.

Milk thistle is a liver associated herb. If he ingested a toxin such as aflatoxin from a bad nut, it often affects the liver, and so one wonders if the milk thistle woud help prevent liver issues from presenting. I have used it with parrots with fatty liver issues and had good luck with it. It is pretty benign stuff - you could mix a little in with the rehydration fluid if you want and I don't see it doing any harm, certainly, though it may taste yucky.

[momma2boo]

Good information, Crit ... I know it's good for human liver detox but I've never used it for animals.

[m&bs mom]

I do not know if it is a toxin or just an upset tummy. I may wait a bit on the milk thistle and just try to keep him hydrated. I will call his vet in the morning however I have to work.

I can put him in a smaller cage for the night but he hates it! Should I just do it and upset him? I have a feeling there will not be many zzzzz's for me tonight!

[SammysMom]

Milk thistle was an amazing help with a cat of ours years ago. It can't hurt!

[CritterMom]

I prefer the liquid tinctures over the stuff in the capsules. Wondering if it might not be an answer in the aflatoxin cases. 2ndhandranchrescue used it and all but her most acute baby (Olive:Love_Icon ) pulled through. Mugz and I did some down and dirty on that and with my experience with the birds, which are really pretty fragile, makes me feel pretty confident in it at least not hurting anything.

[m&bs mom]

Ok...I will try it. It is in a capsul any idea how much to put in to a 1cc syringe?

[CritterMom]

I do not know if it is a toxin or just an upset tummy. I may wait a bit on the milk thistle and just try to keep him hydrated. I will call his vet in the morning however I have to work.

I can put him in a smaller cage for the night but he hates it! Should I just do it and upset him? I have a feeling there will not be many zzzzz's for me tonight!

I think you are right and that he continues to drink is good. If you can rig it so he has a heating pad I would keep him in the cage he is most comfortable in. You will be obsessively checking him all night anyway, right?

[m&bs mom]

I will be checking him all night. He has been in his nest for the entire evening unless he comes out to vomit and then take a drink. Poor baby...

[m&bs mom]

He just vomited again. I am trying to keep him taking fluids as he isn't getting alot out when he vomits now. He fights me so hard when trying to get him to take the hydrating solution..even whith the rescue remedy...ugh!

[Scooterzmom]

Just letting you know I'm following this thread constantly even though I cannot help. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your little one... poor little thing. Get some rest ASAP between checking on him, the night will be long and you don't want to miss out on checking on him, don't want to run out of steam.
:grouphug :grouphug :grouphug

[island rehabber]

Keep trying, anyway. Dehydration is the slippery slope that can turn an upset tummy into a deadly situation....flushing his system out is key, here -- be strong, mamma!

[m&bs mom]

I have alot of steam...I won't run out. I can hear him when he gets up and he makes a little squeek before he throws up.

I will keep pushing the fluids I just hate to see him get so upset. I have not been bit but scratched up pretty good! I tried to do the burrito thing but he tries to get away when he sees the blanket. I have a better grasp with my hands and also just try to stroke him to help relax him a bit.

Thank you all so much for sticking around and the prayers. It means alot.

[CritterMom]

And you are best doing more frequent rehydration with smaller amounts each time than a big slug every couple hours. The vomiting is getting whatever made him sick out of his system; as IR said it is dehydration that you want to worry about. That he is drinking on his own is great but I would also continue giving him the electrolyte solution in multiple small doses (to try to not start him vomiting again). Keep up the RR too. Poor baby.

[m&bs mom]

He vomits about every hour. I can only get him to take 1/2-1cc of the elecrolyte solution. I have tropical punch pedialyte and tried that earlier but he hated it. I haven't had much luck with the homemade stuff either. Should I leave his water bottle in his cage or take it out. He is drinking quite a bit and I know that he needs to get whatever is in his system out but he is drinking it fast.

[CritterMom]

Let him have his water. He need all the liquids he can get.

[m&bs mom]

Ok, I will leave it in there for him.

[SammysMom]

He probably feels like a person who would rather have something to throw up than just bile. I would let him drink all he wants! Maybe some watermelon?

[m&bs mom]

I do not have any watermelon at the moment. I peeled a grape for him earlier and he didn"t touch it.

[spykitten01]

I also wish I could do more to help, but you are in capable hands with the help you are getting now. My Reilly got into the almond can a couple of times, and she always threw up once or twice when she'd eat too many almonds. I must say - a puking squirrel is one of the most pathetic things I have ever seen. Keep the fluids up and heat available, call the vet in the AM - Im sure you both will get through this alright. Keeping you both in my thoughts!

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

Could be a blockage. If this continues, you may have to get your baby checked.

[m&bs mom]

I just sat with him fior a bit. He threw up again and drank for about 5 minutes. He looks so sad.

[m&bs mom]

I do plan on having him checked tomorrow afternoon if no improvement by morning.

[Tara]

I had a squirrel do that last year, she was pitiful, but thankfully ended up fine. We decided it was either pesticides in the house prior to the squirrels, or iceberg lettuce. Make sure to wash all veggies really well.
Hope that helps. Hope your baby gets better soon!

Oh yes, and NO iceberg lettuce. :)

[NutmegsMommy]

When was the last time you changed the water in his water bottle? Do you disinfect it with anything when you clean it? I'm not poking my nose in or anything...you've had great help - I'm just tossing out some thoughts on what could have made this little baby so sick. Have you eaten or has anyone else in your house eaten any of the fruits, nuts or veggies the squirrel had? Have you checked online to see if there has been a recall on the yogurt? Has anyone in your house been sick with a stomach virus or anything like that?

I would most definitely get the squirrel to the vet first thing in the AM - do not wait until the afternoon. If he is vomiting that much that takes a lot out of a little qt pie - and I do agree that the purging is clearing him out of any poisons, if that is the issue - but at the same time the fact that he can't keep anything down is not good.

He will also need to be checked for a possible blockage. If that is not the issue, then he'll most likely need med's for his tummy to help calm it down (Toby and Winky both had to be given a special mix of pepcid for their tummies).

He also need to get the all important subque if he can't keep fluids in him. When Winky began having severe diarrhea, I rushed her to the vet and got her subqued ASAP because she got dehydrated rather quickly and she was not able to keep fluids in her.

I agree with what one of the posters said...push small amounts of fluid more often - think of how you would be if you were puking. You would take baby sips more often instead of taking in a lot at once because all it will do is come right back up. I had the best luck using the homemade pedilyte vs store bought - but that's just me. Michele told me she found an apple flavored one and squirrels love apple so maybe that flavor might work.

Just as a precaution, I would clean out his water bottle good and give him some fresh water. Who knows where the culprit came from...food, water, etc.. and get him to the vet first thing in the AM - if not sooner should his condition grow worse overnight. Do you have a good ER vet that treats squirrels?

[Scooterzmom]

All these are ideas/thoughts, for things we might have overlooked or forgotten about. .... Any branches brought in from the outdoors? Any new bedding or housing? By that I mean could he have chewed on something new and ingested some of it? Could something be lodged in his throat? :dono

If he wants to drink that much after throwing up it could also be that his little tummy burns or hurts from the effort of throwing up... throwing up a lot is hard on the oesophagus, it can create a burning sensation which in turn may cause the thirst but his not wanting to eat. :thinking

I would not wait until afternoon to see the vet. I would go first thing in the AM! A small creature like this baby can deteriorate very fast and by morning it will be more than 12 hours of throwing up and at a frequent rate... that is like some 2 days straight of throwing up for us. I don't want to alarm you, I know you are doing the best you can at the moment with hydration and keeping warm... you are being a good parent to this baby. I just thought it's important to remind everyone that smaller means more fragile and quicker progression for illnesses. Better safe than sorry. :grouphug

[momma2boo]

Waiting on an update (impatiently waiting).

[SammysMom]

Hope the baby has improved. Just wondering how it's going this morning. :grouphug

[spykitten01]

Hope the little guy is doing okay :Love_Icon

[Lanatwo]

Praying your little one is doing well. Hoping to hear an update. :)

[m&bs mom]

Ok...I have just picked Greyson uo frim the vets office. He was being watched today for vomiting. Only 1 episode this morning.

He was given a shot of convenia and 2 more for his belly. The vet said he does have some belly tenderness but not distended. No sub q he said that he does not appear to be dehydrated. If there is no improvement within the next 24-48 hours he would like to sedate him and get an x-ray to make sure there are no blockages.

He has alot of spunk...the vet tech showed me her hand and arm! He just ate a couple of blueberries and is in his nest box. I am off to the store to repurchase his groceries for the week.

The vet did tell me that we could try either ensure or pediasure. Anyone ever hear of giving squirrels either of these and if so which flavors?

Thank you everyone that has helped and for the prayers. We are not out of the woods yet but I hope we are close!

Jesse and Greyson P. Squirrel

[spykitten01]

Yes, I have heard of squirrels getting pediasure before - I would just go with Vanilla or possibly Almond if they have it - In addition to lots of water and continuing to try and keep him eating healthy foods, of course. I would stick with softer foods for now, staying away from nuts or carrots, etc until you're sure theres no blockage. Again, wash all foods VERY thoroughly and administer some more rescue remedy if needed - it certainly can't hurt. Im sure his tummy is sore! I know mine always hurts after I've been throwing up! No fun! Well, Im glad he's vomiting less, and praying he continues to improve. Hang in there, little guy!:Love_Icon

[lilidukes]

I've used the vanilla ensure with great success.

[m&bs mom]

Ok...vanilla it will be. I also forgot to mention the cost of the vet visit...FREE! He will not charge for wildlife. A wonderful man with much love for all animals.

[Lanatwo]

Ok...vanilla it will be. I also forgot to mention the cost of the vet visit...FREE! He will not charge for wildlife. A wonderful man with much love for all animals.

That is so wonderful! My vet here treats my wilds for free, but not my home babies. He does give me a really nice discount on meds for them. :) It's so good to hear about vets that truly love animals. I would say most vets love animals... but they are still in it for money.

[naturelady1]

My Boo-boo loves vanilla Ensure..its a great way of giving some extra nutrients!

[CritterMom]

Is he pooping?

[JLM27]

Would he take some watermelon juice or pumpkin puree?

[m&bs mom]

Yes, he is pooping. Not as much as normal but it looks normal. Should I try the formula or the ensure first? We have watermelon but really doesn't seem interested. He is eating blueberries but doesn't have a huge appetite.

[CritterMom]

Pooping is good - pooping makes me think this ISN'T an obstruction - that would be vomiting with no poop.

No idea of choosing between the two. You could always mix them!

[m&bs mom]

I agree about the blockage. He didn't want to rule anything out. He said that if no improvement we would do the x-ray. He said that he had a squirrel several years back that had string wrapped around the back of his tongue.

He took 7ccs of butter pecan ensure and seemed to enjoy that. He has not vomited since this morning but he is still not himself. I am going to fix him a bowl of soft foods right now and put some babyfood in there as well. Will let you know how it goes.

[m&bs mom]

So he is eating like he hasn't ate in a week. I gave him prickly pear, sugar snap peas, kale, avacado, watermelon and blueberries. He took the prickly pear and devoured it...poor baby is starved. He nibbled a bit on his rodent block at the vet today but not the whole thing. Now I will pray that he keeps it all down.

[CritterMom]

Aw, he knows he's feeling better! Thank goodness - I wish I had a dollar for every time I checked this thread last night and today!

[m&bs mom]

Ok something that may or may not be important. He peed a little while ago (a fairly large amount) he was kind of hunched over and it took him quite awhile. He usually just climbs up the cage and pees through the cage. I have never seen him do this before.

As soon as he was done he started to look like he didn't feel well again. I wonder if this could be a urinary tract infection. He doesn't pee more frequently just found this kind of odd.

Just thought I would throw that out there. The vet did give him the shot of convenia today but don't know if it covers that type of infection.

[mugzeezma]

Ok something that may or may not be important. He peed a little while ago (a fairly large amount) he was kind of hunched over and it took him quite awhile. He usually just climbs up the cage and pees through the cage. I have never seen him do this before.

As soon as he was done he started to look like he didn't feel well again. I wonder if this could be a urinary tract infection. He doesn't pee more frequently just found this kind of odd.

Just thought I would throw that out there. The vet did give him the shot of convenia today but don't know if it covers that type of infection.
From what i saw on the net Convenia is a one time long acting AB used for wounds and abscesses in dogs and cats.

I'm not a veterinarian so I can't say for sure
What color was the urine?
Did it have a strong odor?
You can try offering cranberries and definitely get some yogurt or probiotic going.
Did the vet do a fecal float?

[m&bs mom]

Urine was normal. No strong odor and pretty clear. It just looked like he was straining to pee. Vet did not do a fecal that I am aware of. He had him at his office all day but did not mention that he did one. He gets yogurt on a daily basis.

I know about MBD and I am 95% sure that is not the case (he still takes formula 2x a day) but what are the symptoms of to much calcium? Is this a possibility?

[mugzeezma]

Urine was normal. No strong odor and pretty clear. It just looked like he was straining to pee. Vet did not do a fecal that I am aware of. He had him at his office all day but did not mention that he did one. He gets yogurt on a daily basis.

I know about MBD and I am 95% sure that is not the case (he still takes formula 2x a day) but what are the symptoms of to much calcium? Is this a possibility?
Yes, too much calcium can cause crystals and kidney stones but it takes a lot and this guy is a baby really.
Giving formula twice a day is probably not the issue.
Have you checked the expiration date on the formula?
you already covered that ...

I would get a fecal float if this continues...parasites can cause obstructions.

hope that the convenia helps

You can try the milk thistle 100-150mg/kg. It can't hurt.

[Scooterzmom]

The symptoms you describe certainly do resemble those you'd find with kidney issues. I would absolutely mention that to the vet. Giving cranberries certainly cannot hurt and may help if it's a urinary tract infection. Parasites are another possible culprit as some of those will "steal" the food & liquids from the animal's digestive tract; this may account for the ravenous appetite and the thirst. :dono

If I were you I would keep a small log of your observations and of the time of day when you notice/observe various symptoms. The more info you have, the better it is... for the people here and certainly also for the vet. This will help you remember everything when you do get to the vet; we sometimes are so stressed and there is so much to think about we forget to mention certain things.

Keeping you and your baby in my prayers. :grouphug :grouphug

[m&bs mom]

Just wanted to let everyone know that Greyson continues to improve. While I still don't think he is 100% I see a huge difference in him today.

He has been out of his cage for almost 2 hours and playing like he always does. I have noticed that he is a bit smaller (604 grams). He is starting to eat more and his eyes don't look so sad. I will monitor closely for any changes.

He is peeing like he always has again and poop is fine.

Thank you again for suggestions, advice and prayers. I do plan on release this spring but if I lost him I would have been so heartbroken. He is so different than any critters that we have rehabbed in the past!

[Chickenlegs]

If it weren't for you he wouldn't be here. Thanks for giving the little guy a happy healthy life.

[CritterMom]

This is what I have been hoping to see. Pamper and baby him for a couple more days - keep him nice and warm. I wish we knew what caused this...

[m&bs mom]

Yes, I also wish I knew. I really think it was something he ate. Everything has been replaced just in case. I think I would still like to have a fecal done. Our vet is a great man and a former rehabber too. He did tell me that by far the squirrels were his favorite...well duhhh!

I think this can be moved out of life threatening...I hope we are all done!

[island rehabber]

I'll gladly do that.....SO happy he's better!

[SammysMom]

Yeah!!! A happy ending!!! :thumbsup

[2ndHandRanchRescue]

I love happy endings...."and they lived happily ever after"

[mugzeezma]

I love happy endings...."and they lived happily ever after"
YEEEEAAAAHHHH!!!!

:wahoo :wahoo :wahoo