angelfzck
01-22-2012, 03:54 PM
I'm a recent Vet Tech grad, and have worked in wildlife rehab - specializing in squirrels - for a few years now. Although I train under and am affiliated with a local wildlife rehabilitation organization, you know how it is - word gets around that I know a thing or two about squirrels, and people tend to bring squirrels directly to me instead of bringing them to the wildlife center I work with. I've raised, released, and worked with hundreds of baby fuzzy-tails over the years, both with the wildlife center and independently, with a pretty good success rate, and am currently mom to three non-releasable furbabies, whom I love and adore and wouldn't trade for anything in the world... I've already posted a thread outlining my dilemma with one of my non-releasables, Munch (who has severe malocclusion & a heart murmur) - now I'm seeking advice for my third non-releasable, Cujo. Here's his story...
At the end of September, a friend of mine rescued a squirrel from his yard and brought him to me. Cujo was approximately 14 - 16 weeks old (read: born wild with that wild mentality), was already weaned, and, though he had no visible injuries, was paralyzed in both back legs. Physical palpation and x-rays showed no broken bones; he had no bites, wounds, or other visible injuries; however, he had no apparent feeling from the middle of his spine on back. He had no feeling or movement in his tail or either back leg. Because I'd successfully treated, raised, & released other (younger) baby squirrels with similar situations, I gave it a go with him, but after more than a month of steroid therapy, metacam, physical therapy, cage rest, & many, MANY serious bites & scratches sustained from him, I weaned him off the medications, and my husband and I resigned ourselves to the fact that he would probably have complete hind-limb paralysis for the remainder of his life. He was extremely aggressive - we couldn't even walk past his cage on the other side of the room without him chattering, growling, & lunging towards us, & we doubted he would ever make a good "pet," but he showed an intense will to survive, and instead of opting for euthanasia, we decided to make him as comfortable as possible and to allow him the opportunity to live as naturally as we possibly could.
Fast forward a few months - Cujo is probably the most intelligent squirrel that I have EVER dealt with, and it didn't take long before he figured out how to open his cage and let himself out to explore; despite our attempts to lock his cage, he always got the best of us & figured out a way around our confinements - luckily, we had been keeping his cage in our bedroom, which was closed off from other pets & the rest of the house so that he could safely roam, & instead of repeatedly attempting to confine him to his cage when he obviously felt the need to move around, my husband constructed a series of ramps that allowed him to climb into and out of his cage more freely without risk of injury. At that point, I still couldn't even reach into his cage to give him food or water or clean without him severely attacking me, & touching him was completely out of the question. The more we allowed him to roam, however, the friendlier he started becoming, & I kept on trying to scratch his ears & back (which he can't reach to scratch himself) until he finally realized that human affection CAN be good, & although he kept biting me, I persisted, until I could love on him without his sinking his teeth into my hand. He got to the point where he started becoming desperate for attention & wanting to play, & the more he'd run around on the floor, the more I noticed his tail starting to twitch, & he started trying to use his back legs more to try to push himself up. He's figured out how to climb up on my bed & onto our bathroom vanity (a pretty amazing feat, seeing as how our neuro baby can't even get up there!) & toe & tail pinches showed that he started regaining some feeling in his hind quarters... However, with the onset of his new feeling, he started chewing on his back & leg, & the most I can gather is that the nerve regeneration he's feeling is causing intense itchiness, which, since he can't scratch, he chews.
Our aggressive baby boy is now approximately 6 months old, & although he still won't allow me to pick him up, he actively comes to me & my husband for affection & play - he spends all day out of his cage & we only put him in there when we go to bed at night, follows me around the room, & if I happen to be busy when he's wanting to play & ignore him, he bites my toes & climbs my legs until he gets the attention he's craving. We notice daily improvements in his attempts to push himself up with his back legs, but the chewing on his back continues.
My question is this - At this point, I'm not entirely sure if he's still itchy from the nerve regen, or if he's just chewing the scabs off - when he grooms me, he also chews the scabs (that he's given me!) off my hands, & every attempt I've made to stop him from chewing has been completely futile - the best I can do is keep the wound clean & disinfected; so far we've tried putting yuk, bitter apple, & even lidocaine on the sore spot, but the more I try, the more that he just licks it all off & continues chewing the scabs. Any advice on what I can do to stop him?
BTW - Cujo has gone from an aggressive, angry, injured animal to one who is playful, resilient, energetic, affectionate, & obviously happy & in love with his life - he is a constant source of amazement, inspiration, love, & laughter for our family, & I honestly don't believe that he knows he has a disability! He uses his cage merely as a rest stop during the day, coming in only to grab a quick drink or a snack - the rest of the time he is out & about in "his" bedroom (we now share it with him, & he "loans" us our space). Any time during the day we'll catch him sprawled out on the end of our bed soaking in the sun, rolling around with his stuffed squirrel toy, or, if we can't find him, he's in his favorite snooze spot - curled up in my pillow case, waiting for someone to come by & scratch his ears or give him a belly rub. What a fantastic animal; I can't begin to express how ecstatic we are with his steady improvements, & we are so extremely fortunate to share our lives with this amazing creature who has taught us so much in these last few months - I'm so glad that we ignored everyone who told us he was a "lost cause" & that "it would be kinder to euthanize him" & listened instead to what he was telling us!
At the end of September, a friend of mine rescued a squirrel from his yard and brought him to me. Cujo was approximately 14 - 16 weeks old (read: born wild with that wild mentality), was already weaned, and, though he had no visible injuries, was paralyzed in both back legs. Physical palpation and x-rays showed no broken bones; he had no bites, wounds, or other visible injuries; however, he had no apparent feeling from the middle of his spine on back. He had no feeling or movement in his tail or either back leg. Because I'd successfully treated, raised, & released other (younger) baby squirrels with similar situations, I gave it a go with him, but after more than a month of steroid therapy, metacam, physical therapy, cage rest, & many, MANY serious bites & scratches sustained from him, I weaned him off the medications, and my husband and I resigned ourselves to the fact that he would probably have complete hind-limb paralysis for the remainder of his life. He was extremely aggressive - we couldn't even walk past his cage on the other side of the room without him chattering, growling, & lunging towards us, & we doubted he would ever make a good "pet," but he showed an intense will to survive, and instead of opting for euthanasia, we decided to make him as comfortable as possible and to allow him the opportunity to live as naturally as we possibly could.
Fast forward a few months - Cujo is probably the most intelligent squirrel that I have EVER dealt with, and it didn't take long before he figured out how to open his cage and let himself out to explore; despite our attempts to lock his cage, he always got the best of us & figured out a way around our confinements - luckily, we had been keeping his cage in our bedroom, which was closed off from other pets & the rest of the house so that he could safely roam, & instead of repeatedly attempting to confine him to his cage when he obviously felt the need to move around, my husband constructed a series of ramps that allowed him to climb into and out of his cage more freely without risk of injury. At that point, I still couldn't even reach into his cage to give him food or water or clean without him severely attacking me, & touching him was completely out of the question. The more we allowed him to roam, however, the friendlier he started becoming, & I kept on trying to scratch his ears & back (which he can't reach to scratch himself) until he finally realized that human affection CAN be good, & although he kept biting me, I persisted, until I could love on him without his sinking his teeth into my hand. He got to the point where he started becoming desperate for attention & wanting to play, & the more he'd run around on the floor, the more I noticed his tail starting to twitch, & he started trying to use his back legs more to try to push himself up. He's figured out how to climb up on my bed & onto our bathroom vanity (a pretty amazing feat, seeing as how our neuro baby can't even get up there!) & toe & tail pinches showed that he started regaining some feeling in his hind quarters... However, with the onset of his new feeling, he started chewing on his back & leg, & the most I can gather is that the nerve regeneration he's feeling is causing intense itchiness, which, since he can't scratch, he chews.
Our aggressive baby boy is now approximately 6 months old, & although he still won't allow me to pick him up, he actively comes to me & my husband for affection & play - he spends all day out of his cage & we only put him in there when we go to bed at night, follows me around the room, & if I happen to be busy when he's wanting to play & ignore him, he bites my toes & climbs my legs until he gets the attention he's craving. We notice daily improvements in his attempts to push himself up with his back legs, but the chewing on his back continues.
My question is this - At this point, I'm not entirely sure if he's still itchy from the nerve regen, or if he's just chewing the scabs off - when he grooms me, he also chews the scabs (that he's given me!) off my hands, & every attempt I've made to stop him from chewing has been completely futile - the best I can do is keep the wound clean & disinfected; so far we've tried putting yuk, bitter apple, & even lidocaine on the sore spot, but the more I try, the more that he just licks it all off & continues chewing the scabs. Any advice on what I can do to stop him?
BTW - Cujo has gone from an aggressive, angry, injured animal to one who is playful, resilient, energetic, affectionate, & obviously happy & in love with his life - he is a constant source of amazement, inspiration, love, & laughter for our family, & I honestly don't believe that he knows he has a disability! He uses his cage merely as a rest stop during the day, coming in only to grab a quick drink or a snack - the rest of the time he is out & about in "his" bedroom (we now share it with him, & he "loans" us our space). Any time during the day we'll catch him sprawled out on the end of our bed soaking in the sun, rolling around with his stuffed squirrel toy, or, if we can't find him, he's in his favorite snooze spot - curled up in my pillow case, waiting for someone to come by & scratch his ears or give him a belly rub. What a fantastic animal; I can't begin to express how ecstatic we are with his steady improvements, & we are so extremely fortunate to share our lives with this amazing creature who has taught us so much in these last few months - I'm so glad that we ignored everyone who told us he was a "lost cause" & that "it would be kinder to euthanize him" & listened instead to what he was telling us!