need help on what 2 feed

[ktron38]

hello, I am trying 2 rehabilitate a squirrel that fell out of a tree. her back were just dragging behind her. I had my husband catch her and we took her to the vet for an x-ray were the told me it wasn't a broken back, the nurse told me that they took her out of the cage and she was running around LIARS. I wasn't allowed to go back the her and the total visit was only about 9 min. I really don't think they ever even took her out of the cage. not knowing really what 2 do next. I decided 2 shelter her my self.
there were no open spaces for a squirrel at any rehab places. and everyone i called was no help. so I have been searching the web and found this wonderful site. I need help. Gimpy was doing real good for a while but now she is losing her hair and she is real grumpy all the time.I am so frustrated with myself for now really knowing what 2 do. AM I KILLING HER SLOWLY. she lives in her own room in my house, my husband took a dog cage and put a thinner spaced chicken wire around it she has fresh food and water everyday and I change the padding on the floor every 2 days I really need help on what 2 feed her. its been black oil seeds and some little vitamin snacks that you would feed a rabbit or hamster.:dono :sad

[Jackie in Tampa]

God Love Ya!!!!!:bowdown

:Welcome :wave123 , well you just hit the jack pot!~ WE are the sqly'ist place on the planet and we will hang with you thru whatever the future has for you both!!!!!
Thank you!
WE will need more details...pics will help!
Can you estimate the age?
NO more seed for starters...Are you in Michigan?
Most ststes are illegal and usually don't see sqs and if they are seen with this extent of injury, they are usually euthanized...you got lucky !!!!!:wahoo :wahoo :wott :wott :wott :D
My advise...today, right now, go get fresh goats milk from the grocery store in the refrdgerated section, next to the milk(meyerberg is a great brand and is found everywhere), a small container of yogurt and a small carton of heavy cream...ask for a 1cc syringe without a needle from the pharmacy or a vet..some feed stores will carry them...:thumbsup
Buy a plain calcium type vitamin,without vitamin D NO D!!!!!!!

Welcome to TSB!!!!
You have alot ahead of you...I do not want to overwhelm you, so this is a good start...
The cage will need to be changed, chicken wire has the potential to danger...but today, lets get some nutrition into your babies!:Love_Icon
Others will be here to help you better, I have to get busy..
hugs and cheers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:bowdown
PS...describe the poops please~

[CritterMom]

This is an adult squirrel, right?

Since she is lacking in a lot, start with stuff that can be bought locally. chain pet stores like Petco sell Kaytee Forti diet for RATS and MICE - they come in a blue bag and look like gigantic rabbit pellets. Then run next door to the drug or grocery and get a bottle of ensure - the shakes they make for people that need extra nutrition. Vanilla and butter pecan are both good.

They usually like the ensure once they taste it because it is sweet. It is also packed with nutrition and calories which makes it good for this purpose. I would break up a few of the Forti diet blocks and put them in a dish and pour some of the ensure over it.

Eventually the ensure will go away and fresh veggies will be introduced. There are lots of rat blocks out there to choose from as well. But the above will help jump start this poor girl. And good on ya for doing this!

[Jackie in Tampa]

yes, like Critter Mom has said, ENSURE or BOOST are human suppliments and are in every grocery & drug store, even Walmart, They are a liquid shake type health product and loaded with good stuff, if she is older, try putting it in a shallow flat bottomed dish, hoping she will lap it!:thumbsup

[Jackie in Tampa]

WE have a nutrition forum with healthy veggies listed that sqs like...try avacodo for a starter, they love it usually, no pit, no skin, they seem to be toxic in birds and not worth the risk! TY.
Sqs love brocolli and cabbage , try any raw veggie!
keep us in the loopp, we will now worry!:Love_Icon

[Rianna]

I'm leaving the nutrition to the excellant experts here:)

Something I noticed was the "padding" that is changed. Please make sure you do not use the puppy pads used for training them. There is something in there that is dangerous to squirrels!! Someone with knowledge can fill you in on it.

:Welcome to the nut house!! lol I do want to let you know that you will fall in love quickly with the fuzzbutt...be prepared to be OWNED!!! :Love_Icon

[ktron38]

thank you all for the help:wott she loves the butter pecan ensure. I also bought the forti bag, some apple sticks, she really loves everything. I have been taking her out of the cage (with gloves) and she is getting much better at not biting me.
but it has 2 be totally quiet no distractions. my next question is will she ever grow her hair back. it looks like she has eczema?

I feed her every 3 hours and give a mini bath just warm water, I dont want her to get stressed out from a real bath. i have been taking pictures every day will upload later today. she has little poop pellets and she is peeing good that's a good thing right? she does have me wrapped :Love_Icon

[CritterMom]

Poop and pee is great and I am so glad she likes the healthy food - it will help her so much.

The raw skin - we need pics of that. Is it from the injury? It is possible she has mange (which can be addressed) but we need to see.

[Mrs Skul]

:wave123 Hi Ktron38 & Gimpy Welcome to TSB! :Welcome
How is Gimpy doing to day? Still waiting for some Pictures. :D That will help us see exactly what is going on with her Furr. I am going to Post some cites for you to look at. They carry Squirrel Supply.
You might think of Ordering some FoxVally 32/40. This is What we use to raise all of our Babies. With Handicap Squirrels it will help out feeding he some a few times a day. This will help her Bones get stronger and Help Replace any Calcium and Vitamins she Had Lost. You can mix it like a Formula, or add it to Some Vanilla Yogurt. A 1 LB Bag will last you for ever with just the 1 Squirrel. It would be nice to see some of your Pictures.
That is The One Thing Our Nutty TSB Family Love Seeing! :D
:camera :Squirrel :flash

PS
Don't forget to stop in the Nutrition Section. http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=191
Loads of Good Information it there. :thumbsup3
http://henryspets.com
http://foxvalleynutrition.com/main/prod.asp
http://www.squirrelsandmore.com/

[Chickenlegs]

Hey Ktron! Hey Gimpy! As I read it, you think the vet did NOT take her out of the cage for x-rays? You are a wonderful human being (not the kind who pontificates about how we have been "given" dominion over the earth, but a real steward) Caring for Gimpy will give back a thousandfold. The good folks here will get Gimpy as straight as she can get and she'll be healthy cause she'll eat things good for her. That in itself is a huge step towards healing. Is she in pain? Could the loss of fur be that she's molting? Your pix will be soooooo valuable in helping the TSB experts figure out what's goin on. You've been blessed--as has Gimpy! That a wild thing lets you hold her at all tells you she trusts you--and it'll get better. Does your husband handle her? If he wants to he should start now--same quiet room--maybe low level lights and gently because she's injured. Squirrels can be choosy about their friends--and obviously he is one. I'd keep her in a smallish cage with lots of fleecies and maybe a heating pad under half. Heat is soothing (I can attest to that as I'm an old broad). Don't want her moving around too much till you know what's with her injury. Gimpy has a whole team rooting for her!

[ktron38]

Thank you for all of your help. but I have the saddest news. She passed on saturday morning,I went in her room 2 feed her and like an idiot I just kept saying come on sleepy head its time 2 get up and usually she comes out of her sleeping bag and starts talking 2 me , but she didn't . so I called her again. I should have found you guys sooner and maybe she would still be here, was it the seeds that I was feeding her I keep going over it what did I do wrong .
I miss her so much I loved taking care of her, and when she needed me the most I wasn't there for her. when she passed she was all alone and no one deserves 2 go like that.

[yoyo]

Hi, You did the best you could, God knows it because he saw you. I had one like you and I took care of her for about 8 months, and she had a broken back, and I wanted to fix her , I loved her so much. One day I took her to the vet, and they put her to sleep, because in my State is not legal to have squirrels as pets, and also doctor said that she had no hope for life, because the broken back. Today as everyday I miss her so much and cry lot, but I can't bring her to life. Squirrels are amazing and without you even knowing it they go into your life and end up being a member of your family, a baby that does not talk but knows how to love and does not need any word to prove it.

[Rianna]

I am so sorry for your loss. Rest in peace, sweet Gimpy :Love_Icon

[CritterMom]

Thank you for all of your help. but I have the saddest news. She passed on saturday morning,I went in her room 2 feed her and like an idiot I just kept saying come on sleepy head its time 2 get up and usually she comes out of her sleeping bag and starts talking 2 me , but she didn't . so I called her again. I should have found you guys sooner and maybe she would still be here, was it the seeds that I was feeding her I keep going over it what did I do wrong .
I miss her so much I loved taking care of her, and when she needed me the most I wasn't there for her. when she passed she was all alone and no one deserves 2 go like that.


Aw, hon, no, you did so much more than 99.9% of the population would do. She probably passed quietly in her sleep - she couldn't wait for you.

It was NOT the seeds. She likely had internal injuries from her accident and the cruel thing is that it can take days, sometimes weeks, before those show up completely and do their dirty work.

You don't want to feed sunflower seeds LONG TERM and as the only diet. My wilds ear rodent block which I buy in 50# bage, but they have also been raiding my bird feeders for the sunflower seeds in them since about 30 seconds after I first put them up, and I am chest deep in healthy squirrels. You didn't kill that little girl, you gave her the best chance she could have had, and gave her the chance to pass quietly while warm and comfy in a soft bed instead of lying alone on the cold ground. And sometimes, that is your role. We don't always get the fairy tale ending, unfortunately.

I am so sorry. They grab your heart in those dextrous little paws and they never turn it loose...

[astra]

Aw, hon, no, you did so much more than 99.9% of the population would do. She probably passed quietly in her sleep - she couldn't wait for you.

It was NOT the seeds. She likely had internal injuries from her accident and the cruel thing is that it can take days, sometimes weeks, before those show up completely and do their dirty work.

You don't want to feed sunflower seeds LONG TERM and as the only diet. My wilds ear rodent block which I buy in 50# bage, but they have also been raiding my bird feeders for the sunflower seeds in them since about 30 seconds after I first put them up, and I am chest deep in healthy squirrels. You didn't kill that little girl, you gave her the best chance she could have had, and gave her the chance to pass quietly while warm and comfy in a soft bed instead of lying alone on the cold ground. And sometimes, that is your role. We don't always get the fairy tale ending, unfortunately.

I am so sorry. They grab your heart in those dextrous little paws and they never turn it loose...
:grouphug :goodpost :grouphug

[Curliesmom]

No you did what you could for her. They don't always survive. I have two now that are unreleaseable. My female is almost six now and my boy is 8months. He had two siblings and he's the only survivor. The other two died at 5.5 weeks. I had done everything right but sometimes they just don't make it. Like I told my husband God wanted another squirrel for the trees in heaven. And usually when you've had one squirrel eventually you have another.:grouphug

[Curliesmom]

No you did what you could for her. They don't always survive. I have two now that are unreleaseable. My female is almost six now and my boy is 8months. He had two siblings and he's the only survivor. The other two died at 5.5 weeks. I had done everything right but sometimes they just don't make it. Like I told my husband God wanted another squirrel for the trees in heaven. And usually when you've had one squirrel eventually you have another.:grouphug
I hope the sorrow passes quickly but always remember the good times u had with her. Attached is a few pics of mine the first and third is my fat girl Girlie and the second pic on my leg is my boy newt.