self-mutilating squirrel

[dirtylucy]

Ok. I've been taking care of a squirrel for about 2 months now. I found him as a baby chasing a girl around in a parking lot. I've been feeding him strawberries, blueberries, grapes, unsalted raw chasews, brazillian nuts (all unsalted) and wall nuts. I bought him a huge cage, and he has always been really energetic until recently. Now he doesn't run around, he kinda hops/limps, and I know it's his front feet. He has been chewing the hair off his front two feet. He randomly bit me when he was just sitting in my lap. I take him outside and put him in trees, but he just sits there and doesn't climb around or move. Even when i'm playing with him, I have to hold his legs away from his mouth so he'll stop chewing on them. he squeels a lot now too, and ****s and pees everywhere. So, is this all normal and squirrel-like?

[CritterMom]

I believe you are seeing symptoms that are diet related. Squirrels need a great deal of calcium and magnesium, in addition to a host of other vitamins and minerals, and the diet you describe is almost devoid of calcium.

The fruits and veggies are good and the nuts in EXTREME moderation, but what is missing is a rodent vlock of some kind - a manufactured diet that has all of the minerals he needs. The disease is called metabolic bone disease and is very common in captive squirrels.

He needs calcium, NOW. The quickest way is to pick up a bottle of Tums - I believe they are 500mg of calcium each. You can offer a piece of the tablet to him and see if he will eat it on is own; if not, you need to do whatever is necessary to get one of those tabs into him, broken into several treatments, throughout the day.

MBD is a long term disease with long term treatment that will require a lot of dedication on your part. Your squirrel will need extra calcium like this for a LONG TIME. Please read this link:
http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17677

I see you are in TX. If you give us a little more info there may be someone on the board who can help you out more - we have many TX members.

[jo_schmoe]

Ok. I've been taking care of a squirrel for about 2 months now. I found him as a baby chasing a girl around in a parking lot. I've been feeding him strawberries, blueberries, grapes, unsalted raw chasews, brazillian nuts (all unsalted) and wall nuts. I bought him a huge cage, and he has always been really energetic until recently. Now he doesn't run around, he kinda hops/limps, and I know it's his front feet. He has been chewing the hair off his front two feet. He randomly bit me when he was just sitting in my lap. I take him outside and put him in trees, but he just sits there and doesn't climb around or move. Even when i'm playing with him, I have to hold his legs away from his mouth so he'll stop chewing on them. he squeels a lot now too, and ****s and pees everywhere. So, is this all normal and squirrel-like?
No, this doesnt sound normal at all. I am no expert but have dealt with a case of MBD. This is what it sounds like to me. MBD is VERY painful and he probably bit you because of pain.
If you are not feeding any kind of rodent block then he isn't getting the proper nutrition.
An expert should be on soon to help.

[jo_schmoe]

No, this doesnt sound normal at all. I am no expert but have dealt with a case of MBD. This is what it sounds like to me. MBD is VERY painful and he probably bit you because of pain.
If you are not feeding any kind of rodent block then he isn't getting the proper nutrition.
An expert should be on soon to help.
And an expert did!! Thank you CritterMom....
Listen to her....she is extremely smart!!!

[CritterMom]

No expert, but the diet is really the tell. The thing we all want to feed them - nuts - is their downfall.

Jo is right, it is a painful disease. What happens is that since the diet is not supplying the necessary nutrients, the body begins to leach calcium from the bones, and the skeleton becomes weaker and weaker. It is a long term problem because you have to first reverse the process and THEN start working on growing new, strong bone.

If you can rig up a way to offer him a heated spot to sleep; maybe slip a heating pad under his bed, it is very soothing to those poor bones.

I don't want to frighten you but this WILL kill him if you don't take care of it - and I mean start today.

[dirtylucy]

Ok. he's eaten 1 half of a peppermint tum (does flavor matter?) and will any kind of "rodent block" be ok? How long will it take for his condition to improve? Is there any chance of really saving him?

[Kristal]

I believe you are seeing symptoms that are diet related. Squirrels need a great deal of calcium and magnesium, in addition to a host of other vitamins and minerals, and the diet you describe is almost devoid of calcium.

The fruits and veggies are good and the nuts in EXTREME moderation, but what is missing is a rodent vlock of some kind - a manufactured diet that has all of the minerals he needs. The disease is called metabolic bone disease and is very common in captive squirrels.

He needs calcium, NOW. The quickest way is to pick up a bottle of Tums - I believe they are 500mg of calcium each. You can offer a piece of the tablet to him and see if he will eat it on is own; if not, you need to do whatever is necessary to get one of those tabs into him, broken into several treatments, throughout the day.

MBD is a long term disease with long term treatment that will require a lot of dedication on your part. Your squirrel will need extra calcium like this for a LONG TIME. Please read this link:
http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17677

I see you are in TX. If you give us a little more info there may be someone on the board who can help you out more - we have many TX members.

I second that. You are going to have to make big changes in the squee's diet and fast or else you may wind up with a seizing, paralysed, or even dead squirrel. And this will happen soon. Rehab is going to take a long time after the symptoms disappear, too. We are talking months, at minimum. There are people who can help you with that if you can't commit to it because this guy is not going to be a candidate for release this year, at the least, and in all likelihood not before next spring.

[CritterMom]

Ok. he's eaten 1 half of a peppermint tum (does flavor matter?) and will any kind of "rodent block" be ok? How long will it take for his condition to improve? Is there any chance of really saving him?

That is good. They may like the fruit flavored ones better. There is absolutely a chance to save him! Read the threads - you want to do the high dose for a few days, breaking it up like you are, then you will slowly start reducing it while you add in the rodent block.

Since he has been eating nuts he's gonna be spoiled and may turn his nose up at the more commercially available ones. To start, I would go to www.henryspets.com and buy some of the "Picky Bites." Pick up a bag of calcium powder while you are there - it is MUCH easier than Tums.

[Kristal]

A cheaper option (if money is an issue) is to order these:

http://www.thecraftyrat.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=FS_02lb&Category_Code=FS

The 2018 will have the most calcium. Many experienced rehabbers on this board recommended those blocks to me. You can take those blocks and make a very calcium rich treat called boo balls by mixing in this formula for infant squirrels:

http://foxvalleynutrition.com/prod/details.asp?CID=1&PLID=1

It is an excellent formula with all the nutrients a growing squirrel needs.

Here is the recipe for boo balls:

http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28001

You can also give dried eggshells, cleaned soup bones and deer antlers for calcium chews. Just leave them in the cage or bed. Your squirrel will start to gnaw on these to supplement calcium for him/herself. Wild squirrels eat these things to keep their calcium levels in the healthy range.:thumbsup

[twitterpated66]

Ok, I don't know a lot about squirrels. I use to breed sugar gliders tho. Gliders also need calcium. There are a few diets out there for them and calcium powders you can buy. I always perfered fresh foods with some dry left out. I would give them a little bit of yogurt daily, just enough to eat right at that sitting. I don't know about squirrels and yogurt being good or bad for them, but I'm sure someone on here does.

On a side note, where is the button for new postings? I have only been able to reply.

[twitterpated66]

never mind found it.

[dirtylucy]

He seems to really like the mint flavored tums. I've taken away his nuts and gave him pieces of fruit (blueberry and strawberry) and avocado. and celery. The tums is 750. is this alright? how many should I give him?

[CritterMom]

I would give him about 3/4 of one of those 750mg Tums a day. Break it up into pieces and spread it through the day.

Until you receive one of the recommended blocks, you can go hunting in your local pet store. Kaytee Forti-diet for rats is sold pretty commonly. Not wild about it but in a pinch, to get him started, I would get it. I have recently seen Oxbow Regal Rat sold in local stores and it is a very good block. Look through the rat foods available. With the exception of the Regal Rat, which are little hearts, it will look like small logs. That is what you want, not something with seeds and corn in it. Any of those are sort of a stopgap until you get the better blocks, though.

His symptoms MAY not be related to MBD but I can tell you that with the calcium deficient diet, he was on the road to that. If it IS MBD, some of the worst symptoms will resolve fairly quickly. You can't stop treatment when that happens! Ya gotta stick with us - honest, we CAN help you.

For now, think of him as having a very fragile skeleton, like an elderly person. You say he has a big cage. Pad the bottom as well as you can - a comforter is good. Better is to temporarily restrict his climbing by putting him in something smaller. In the least, make sure anyplace he might fall is thickly padded so he doesn't injure himself.

When you start giving nuts again (as treats in moderation), please stay away from cashews and brazil nuts. The secret behind avoiding MBD is keeping the squirrel with a diet that has a balance of 2:1 of calcium to phosphorus. If the phosphorus increases, they need more calcium to counter-balance it. Cashews and brazil nuts have HUGE amounts of phosphorus, making them "MBD Machines".

We have lots of MBD success stories on here. Hang in and read up on it and do the calcium therapy as described while improving the diet and I bet he will get better.:thumbsup

[Kristal]

Here is a chart with guidelines for good food choices:

http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28009

The celery is pretty much just filler food without a lot of nutrition and the fruits are a healthy addition to a green vegetable and block based diet. The tums are kind of an emergency fix. You want to get your squee eating a diet that will maintain health afterwards, especially since green, leafy and cruciferous veg and rodent block is rich in other important nutrients, too. The tums are just plain calcium. It's not a long term solution.

In fact, I would suggest reading most of the sticky threads in the nutrition section. There is a downloadable chart with the calcium to phosphorus ratios of many favourite squirrel foods that should help, too.

[dirtylucy]

How do they get calcium out in the wild?

[Kristal]

They eat eggs, including the shell, and chew on dry bones and antlers. Some of our members who live near the forest say that it is quite rare to find antlers in the forest even though deer naturally grow and shed a new set every year. The squirrels gnaw them down to nothing and drag them away to hide them if they can, apparently :) I can attest to that, having grown up in the woods, myself. Given that all male deer shed their antlers every year, the woods should be almost full of them... and yet you rarely see them on the ground at all. Also, my guys get cookies made with fox valley squirrel formula every day, and they still chew on the eggshells and antlers that I leave out for them, sometimes.

They are also opportunistic omnivores and will happily eat insects and grubs. Rarely they have been caught on film hunting for and eating small rodents and birds, even! Here is a surprising photo that made the rounds on the web last year:
137657

Finally, they eat calcium rich vegetation in the non-snowy months. Dandelion greens, for example, are very rich in calcium as are many other plants.

EDIT: The photo caption does not reflect the views of the author of this post :p

[Kristal]

137659

Well, that was the pic that I had in the last post. I was trying to swap it out for one without the anti-songbird caption, but I ran out of time :)

[Mrs Skul]

Emergency Treatment for MBD

Get calcium into the squirrel IMMEDIATELY, not later, not tomorrow, NOW.
Delaying treatment can cause death or permanent paralysis.

You will need:
-Tums, rolaids, or calcium supplement (any kind)
-a syringe or spoon
Crush one pill and add a little water or fruit juice to make a paste. Use the syringe or spoon to force-feed the mixture, a little at a time, until it is all gone. The first day, give a total of 600-800 mg of calcium, spread throughout the day/night to maintain blood calcium levels.

Important!

1. Any kind of calcium pill is okay for the initial dose. But you must use PLAIN calcium pills (without Vit D) from then on.
2. Try to give many small doses of calcium throughout the day/night to keep blood calcium levels as steady as possible.
3. If seizures or paralysis worsen or return, give another emergency dose, but only for one day, and make sure you check back in to TSB for help as relapses can be very serious.

The acute symptoms (weakness, lethargy, seizures, paralysis) will usually improve within a few hours, but this does not mean the squirrel is cured. It will take many months to rebuild the calcium in the bones. (See the "Long-Term Treatment for MBD" http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/s...321#post487321)

More Tips
MBD causes brittle bones that break easily. Try to keep your squirrel confined to a small cage and away from high places, where he might jump and break a bone.

Heat is very soothing for a squirrel with MBD. A heating pad turned to low and placed so they cannot chew the pad or cord, or a rice buddy (a sock filled with dry rice/beans and microwaved for about 20 seconds) will work.



Long-Term Treatment for MBD

The next step to curing MBD is to fix the diet.

1. Remove ALL seeds, nuts, corn, and treats.

2. Follow the Healthy Diet For Pet Squirrels, which can be found at the top of the “Squirrel Nutrition” forum. (http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/s...ad.php?t=16093)
Your squirrel MUST eat rodent block or squirrel blocks every day. If your squirrel doesn't like rodent blocks, you can try crushing them up with peanut butter or avocado temporarily. You can either buy them or make your own squirrel blocks using the recipe at the top of the Squirrel Nutrition forum.

3. In addition to the Healthy Diet, you will need to continue giving extra calcium every day for several weeks. Use a syringe or spoon, or you can try putting the calcium on a small piece of fruit.
Week 1: calcium = 500 mg per day
Week 2: calcium = 250 mg per day
Weeks 3-8: calcium = 100 mg per day
If acute symptoms—weakness, lethargy, seizures, paralysis—return at any time, you will need to give another emergency dose of calcium.

More Tips
MBD causes brittle bones that break easily. Try to keep your squirrel confined to a small cage and away from high places, where he might jump and break a bone.
__________________
The animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older than ours, they move finished and complete, gifted with senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren; they are not underlings; they are other nations… ~Henry Beston, The Outermost House, 1928


Visit the Henry's Healthy Pets website: http://henryspets.com

[Mrs Skul]

How do they get calcium out in the wild?

:thinking In the wild the Squirrel eat Bark,tree buds, Liken /moss,leaves, Mushrooms,Dead rotten trees ,Some,protean, Acorns, Dandelions, assortment of weeds, Roses hips, Fruits from all trees, And so on. If you would read ALL the Nutrition it will explain this. The wilds Squirrels absorb calcium from Plants?""Dark Leafy Greens."" Wild Squirrels have a séance of what foods have what. What are good and what is not.
I hope this will help you a little bit.
Please stop all the fruits! He should get small amounts of fruit a day. (""SMALL"") Now How is your Squirrel doing after the Tums? Have you seen any improvement yet? Do you have any FoxVally formula? Start feeding your Squirrel this again Just like he was a baby. Keep pushing the Tums. If you don't, He is going to start having Seizures. Please Hurry. There is not a lot of time be for this will start to happen. He can Die from MBD! :eek: It will take time to replenish the Calcium your Squirrel body and Bones has lost!

[Mrs Skul]

DirtyLucy
I just noticed you are in TX! :D What part of Texas are you in?? I am in Houston.

[dirtylucy]

I'm in College Station.

[Mrs Skul]

:wave123 DirtyLucy
I just sent you a PM. Please call me. I can try to help you.
Christal

[dirtylucy]

What can I give him for a good source of protien?

[Mrs Skul]

WaxWorms, Meal worms,Chicken, Boiled eggs& shell

[Mrs Skul]

Visit the Henry's Healthy Pets website: http://henryspets.com
http://www.squirrelsandmore.com/
(877)717-7748
(860)749-1129
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