HELP NEEDED LONDON UK

[Andres]

Hi there im looking for help for a friend squirrel thats part of our family, 2 cut a long story short she's been coming home for the past 5 years, she comes inside the flat everywhere as she please, allows me to pet her and hold her, use me like a tree climbing around me, brings her babies every year twice a year with her as well, she comes every day like clockwork and we lover to bits, she stopped coming on 10-10-11 and i was very worried, on the 20-10-11 she back came back and was hurt, her back right leg was draging, she doesnt put her weight in to it, and was very slim, i assume she hasnt eaten anything for a few days, she was very week and practically fainted in my hands, i keep her overnight and feed her and gave her water, the next day she was more active and shes eating and drinking as well, i manage to find a vet nurse to see her, she examined her and she said that she had nerve damage, she pinched her injured leg and didn't reacted, i took her home and put her on a cage and been caring for her since, i can't leaver alone in the cage 'coz she'll star chewing it and eventually escape, yesterday i got in touch with a lady from the Ark Wildlife Hospital and she advise me to get METACAM as it may help with her nerve damage, she said that in her years of expirience its proven to work sometimes in cases of nerve damage, currently im trying to get it but its prescribed in the UK so im having dificulty and also im looking if there is a sanctuary where i can take her where she will get all the right treatment and live a good quiality of life and perhaps go and see her from time to time as i adore her, i feel terrible having her in a cage and unable to give her the help she needs as its unfair to keep her in a cage for the rest of her life, i live in london bridge-london UK, mob 07863765934, e-mail, call or text me i'll call you back straight away. Please i beg your help as i adore this little friend of ours, Andres and family

[astra]

welcome!
Thank you for being so caring. And I am so , so sorry that your little friend has such an injury... I know how devastating that can be.:grouphug

I am not an expert, so please keep checking because experienced ppl will be here soon.
Did I understand correctly that you need help with dosing?... if so, please provide the name of the med, the form (pill, liquid etc), the strength - all the info and the weight of the squirrel.
Is this a gray squirrel or a red squirrel?

Another thing to keep in mind:

Please, do not rush with giving her to a wildlife centre.

if she recovers - great, you can just release her back into your back yard.

BUT, if they find that the nerve damage is irreversible, 99.9% of chances that she will be put to sleep.
Wildlife centres and licensed rehabbers are obligated to euthanize all animals that cannot be released back into the wild. If her nerve damage does not improve and she keep dragging her leg, she will be deemed non-releasable and therefore, subject to euthanasia.
Another factor to consider: such injuries usually take long time before any recover can begin. Wildlife centres, most of the time, cannot afford such lengthy treatment due to limited finances and limited staff. So, they tend not to bother with squirrels who require a lengthy and individualized treatment.

Especially, if she is a gray squirrel, her chances for a quality life in Great Britain are less than slim. Non-releasable and gray, she will be euthanized.

Quite a few ppl here ended up keeping wild injured squirrels indoors because those squirrels could not be released due to permanent injuries.
Most of the time, wild squirrels understand their own limitations and that they are being helped and seem to accept their new life indoors and settle quite well. Although, this process does take time and patience. They do get large cages with a lot of space, but they also get plenty of out of cage time as well.

In my view, for right now, it might be best if you kept her and treated her yourself because that way she does have at least a chance. If you bring her to a wildlife centre of some sort, she won't have a chance.

But you do need to weigh everything regarding long-term possibility.
If she does not recover?.... Is keeping her something you might consider?...
if not, will you bring her to a wildlife centre where she will most likely be euthanized?.... (and do not listen too much when they say that they "will do what's best for the animal" because euthanasia is considered best for the injured non-releasable animals)... I will be happy to be wrong in this, but so far, my experience with wildlife centres and most (not all) licensed rehabbers has conformed to that.

Many things to consider...:grouphug

[Jackie in Tampa]

TSB has members in UK that may be able to help you...
maybe suggest vets or share meds...???

How metacam would be working isn't for the nerve damage...it would be to reduce the swelling...which may or may not aleviate the pressureon the nerve , allowing iot to heal fast, making the chances or PERmanent nerve damge less...so the faster you can get it the better...although it may be really too late ...however metacam is a dual purpose med...it is also a pain aide...
I would try to get it and use it 5 times {5 days, it is dosed once every 24 hours @ 0.2 mg/kg} for swelling and continue for another week for the pain...it will help.
It is also dual used in humans and animals...it comes in oral liquid and tablets...maybe ask friends that have bad backs, sprains etc if they have tablets...someone here can help you dose if you find it {I can if not}...In USA it comes in 7.5mg tablet and also 15mg tablets that I have seen.
From the vet it maybe in liquid form, I know of two different strengths
{ 0.5mg/ml and 1.5mg/ml are common for small animals}
Vets also use tablets for domestics...ck around..
For now, you can use infant motrin or infant benedryl...this will help her relax and relieve some pain......
are her ears pinned to her head? teeth grinding/chittering?
hair spiked?
if so, she is really in need of pain aide..
Heat will help also, make her a sock filled with rice, nuked in microwave til it's warm to almost hot, usually about 30 seconds..and a small chew proof container or cage with tight bar spacing is reco'ed for her not to reinjury herself..I like a finch cage so I can catch them easy without stressing them and making the run and jump etc..small may be best as far as caging while she is injured...if possible put a heating pad half under her cage...
keep lots of tshirts or fleece inside for her to bury under..I know she is your friend, but they stress easy when captive wild.
hugs
cover entire cage with non loosely threaded cover, they like privacy...keep her away from other pets and kids...no need to add extra stress.
warm dark and quiet...
also...hydration is key...if she gets dehydrated, everything becomes magnified...make sure she has plenty of wet foods available and a none tippy bowl of water{you can put rocks in bottom},,,watermelon grapes apples etc...romaine lettuce is good too!
I have metacam right here..I have no idea the cost of shipping or how long it would take ...I wish I could blink it to you right this minute, like I Dream of Jeanie would...hugs...dang it!
sorry this has turned out to be a book...ugh...
I will ty to remember the UK members and send PMs out ..
good luck...please allow her to TRY to heal before turning her over to a center...
she will be a stranger in a strange land...they may PTS due to her being an NON RELEASIBLE
hugs hugs hugs

EDIT..I see astra has posted...cool

[CritterMom]

Andres, as many of us are in Nothe America, I hope you get the direct help you need. Metacam is very good but it is a prescription drug, so unless you can find a sympathetic vet you will have problems finding it.

Squirrels can also take infant ibuprophen, which is sold in most pharmacies. It is made for human babies, so it is a liquid and is sweet - squirrels usually like it. It is a decent pain killer and anti-inflammatory and may help her, as will just being able to rest and eat without fear of being eaten herself! If you can get infant ibuprophen and give us a weight for your squirrel I can give you the dosage.

A very good way to get nutrients into a sick adult squirrel is with Ensure. Not sure what brands you have in the UK - these are the little canned "milk shake" type drinks that are usually used to supplement the diet of older people. They are stuffed with calories, nutrients, etc., and are usually pretty popular with squirrels.

She will be upset with being caged for a bit but it is the best thing under the circumstances, since she should not be using the bad leg. The ibuprophen will make her a little drowsy, plus having the pain relieved will also allow her to calm down. If you can provide the time she needs to heal, the food she needs to thrive and the meds to help, even if it is not the metacam, she may be able to do this herself without you having to relocate her. They have AMAZING recuperative powers.

[Andres]

First of all i like to thank all of you for taking the time to reply and your valuable help and guidance regarding my injured loved one, THANK YOU, THANK YOU SO MUCH, you are a lifeline to me as i dont have expirience only endless love towards this furry creatures and specially this one.
To CritterMon it will be close to impossible for me to know her weight as she's sort of hatting me right now for keeping her inside the apartment, she's very thin but eating and drinking, will buy the shake, i have seen here in the uk ensure, nurishment, nutrament, hopefully she'll eat it.
To Jackie in Tampa her ears are not pinned down, the teeth grinding/chittering and a sort of growling noise she does it only when she wants to chew the base of the cage and i get close to her to stop it, she'll move away and hide under the fleece blanket,she's indoors and we got the central heating on at night time, i cover the cage with a sleeping bag and its really dark inside, in the middle of the night she wakes up to drink water and eat something, i know this as i've been sleeping in the sofa next to her since 20th of oct, just to check thats she's ok and doesn't hurt herself freaking out trying to escape, she gets restless when its getting dark but eventually she just goes to bed and that's that to the next day. She's eating raw sorted nuts like almonds, pecan nuts,brazil nuts, hazelnuts, peanuts, some grapes as well, i like some advice on what can i feed her, having in mind that she ruled over a primary school(territory), so i know that she loves brownies, crisp, crakers, choc with peanuts, as lots of times she'll get these from the school bins and eat them in my window sill o inside my flat (very cheeky of her :) ) so yeah she likes her junk.
To Astra i have not been able to get the METACAM, wife parents are sending it on 31-10-11(from argentina) Will it be to late? Wish i had it here but nobody here wants to help, i have ibuprofen(i've got a 6 yr old boy) but apart from it nothing,i'm willing to buy anything i can, so will wait for advise.
Know anyone in the uk who could help me? Please let me know asap.
Once again THANKS A LOT FOR EVERYTHING, YOU ARE ANGELS. Andres and Family
P.S My e-mail is andresavenia@hotmail.com feel free to mail me anytime.

[CritterMom]

If you believe she is in pain and can get the infant ibuprophen, a dose of 0.15cc every 4 hours for an adult grey will be okay.