Precious Richardson's ground squirrel with urinary tract infection is refusing to eat

[tjfeldman1116]

We have an ~2.5 year-old Richardson's ground squirrel who has really lost her appetite due to what our vet has diagnosed as a urinary tract infection. We noticed something was wrong when all of a sudden she stopped eating her Henry's Healthy Squirrel Blocks and kibble -- all she would eat was fresh fruits and veggies. The vet did a urine analysis and detected high amounts of hemoglobin (and x-rays showed no kidney stone), so put her on an antibiotic (Batril -- not sure of the spelling) for 3 weeks. Unfortunately, it didn't work (plus she hated it) and, if anything, her appetite lessened and she has begun losing weight.

They switched her to another antibiotic (TMS?) and after 1 day her appetite seemed to disappear almost entirely. I brought her in for some blood work and sadly they detected her kidneys aren't working -- either because they've been hit by the infection or they really have stopped working. They put her on another very strong antibiotic (claforen) and we are now injecting her with nutrient fluids every other day.

We're praying that the antibiotic stops this infection and that her kidneys resume working properly. But in the meantime her appetite remains very low. About the only thing she'll eat voluntarily (and only if I hand feed her) is her kibble (the fruity parrot stuff). We've started force feeding her baby food (with an eyedropper), but unfortunately she puts up quite a fuss. We just want to get nutrients in her and stop her weight loss (and hopefully even gain some weight) while we're waiting for the antibiotics to work.

Is there anything beside baby food we can force her to eat safely? Our first thought was Ensure, but we're not sure it's safe for ground squirrels. Does anyone have experience with this or any other caloric, nutritious things we can feed her by eyedropper? And, given her symptoms, any ideas of foods she might actually want to eat voluntarily?

At the moment, she still has a good amount of energy - some days a LOT of energy - running on her wheel and around the room when we let her out. We just want to do everything we possibly can to make her better.

And if anyone has any other ideas about how to improve her condidition, I'd love to hear them. We have a wonderful vet (of exotic pets), and it's clear that he cares deeply about her. But he's the first to admit he's never treated a squirrel (ground or tree) before, so I'm hoping some of you out there might have some good advice for us.

Thanks so much,
Todd

[Spinnaker]

Hello, Your squirrel sounds wonderful, it is so frightening when they won't eat. We are from Florida, our squirrels enjoy eating the oranges. They chew right through the rind. But in your squirrels case it may be better to cut it open and see if she would lick the juice, or the juice could be given with a dropper. The Vit. C would be good for her UTI.

My cat is also just recovering from a UTI, the Vet. gave her Orbax (Orbifoxacin), and it worked well! I don't know if that can be used for squirrels or rodents. Does anyone know this?

Make sure to get the Benebac in her to replace her benifical bacteria. I hope for her speedy recovery!

[CritterMom]

I would absolutely do the Ensure. It is easily digested, sweet and yummy, and PACKED with nutritients and calories.

I would also encourage her to drink lots of fluids, because every time she pees, whe is eliminating a bit of the bacteria causing the infection. Poor baby. The Richardsons are so sweet!

[4skwerlz]

Uh oh.....what is the "fruity parrot stuff" you mentioned?

[island rehabber]

I would go with the Ensure, but you may even want to try some Fox Valley formula (20/50) for squirrels. She may take it from a syringe or a bowl, but if she likes the taste she'll get major nutrition just from that! :thumbsup

[pappy1264]

Get some critical care omnivore from your vet, you mix it and syringe feed it. Does she ever eat hay? Hay should be most of their diet, followed by veggies/greens and a kibble made for ground squirrels (mixed with guinea pig and quality rabbit pellets). I am very concerned about the parrot food you mention. Although nuts are treats, (they esp. enjoy them this time of year as they fatten up) but again, treats only. Have they done an ultrasound to check for stones? (x-ray might now show the stone, I have been told.)

[4skwerlz]

Hay should be most of their diet

Are you sure about that? Omnivores don't typically consume much coarse forage such as hay. Their native diet is listed as being very similar to tree squirrels: seeds, nuts, grains, bulbs, green vegetation, insects and other types of small invertebrates.

Just curious.

[stosh2010]

I would go with the Ensure, but you may even want to try some Fox Valley formula (20/50) for squirrels. She may take it from a syringe or a bowl, but if she likes the taste she'll get major nutrition just from that! :thumbsup
Make the FV nice and WARM...

[pappy1264]

ground squirrels are more like pd's then tree squirrels. Hay is a big part of their diet, limited fruits and veggies (although they should have some), a staple kibble made for them (plus timothy hay rabbit pellets, mixed with a little guinea pig pellets). This is the base diet for ground squirrels. Excuse me...I meant herbivores (not omnivores.....still catching up on sleep!) Sorry about that! But you would use the same Critical Care you would use with a rabbit for a ground squirrel.