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Squill's mum
10-04-2012, 09:23 AM
Hi, I was wondering if someone could give me some advice about my grey squirrel? I live in England and it is hard to get someone to treat her as they are not liked much over here unfortunately.
My squirrel (Squill) is 8 years old, i hand reared her after she was brought into a wildlife park that I worked in. Her mother had been killed by a dog, as she had suffered a broken leg the vet said that she wouldn't be able to survive in the wild. She has been living in a large enclosure in my back garden for 8/9 years.
Just recently she has lost a large amount of weight and only eats very small amounts of certain foods that i have been giving her in an attempt to get her to eat anything at all. She is showing no signs of burying any nuts that I have been giving her which is highly unusual at this time of year and her food bowl has been un touched for days. Yesterday I noticed that she was vomiting and she also developed a very watery, yellow, diarrhea. Today she is still jumping around the enclosure well although she looks as if her back legs are a little stiff.
I wondered if anyone has any idea what this might be? I have an appointment with her at the vets this evening but I am wary of how they might treat her. A friend who is a veterinary nurse has suggested that I take a poo sample and ask them to screen for Coccidiosis but I'm not sure what the treatment might be for this? Sorry for the long winded message, i am just very worried. Thanks, Jenny.

Nemehoto
10-04-2012, 10:45 AM
Poor thing.. I'm not one of the experts here but if you can post information on her diet it will help them diagnose her problems.

Please list everything you feed her.
How do her teeth look? Are they straight?
Does she appear to be eating well?
Any swellings around her face or neck?
Is her tummy hard or soft?

Try giving her a little yogurt it may help sooth her tummy until the experts can help you.

this may help you: http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34495

Jackie in Tampa
10-04-2012, 10:46 AM
Hi, I was wondering if someone could give me some advice about my grey squirrel? I live in England and it is hard to get someone to treat her as they are not liked much over here unfortunately.
My squirrel (Squill) is 8 years old, i hand reared her after she was brought into a wildlife park that I worked in. Her mother had been killed by a dog, as she had suffered a broken leg the vet said that she wouldn't be able to survive in the wild. She has been living in a large enclosure in my back garden for 8/9 years.
Just recently she has lost a large amount of weight and only eats very small amounts of certain foods that i have been giving her in an attempt to get her to eat anything at all. She is showing no signs of burying any nuts that I have been giving her which is highly unusual at this time of year and her food bowl has been un touched for days. Yesterday I noticed that she was vomiting and she also developed a very watery, yellow, diarrhea. Today she is still jumping around the enclosure well although she looks as if her back legs are a little stiff.
I wondered if anyone has any idea what this might be? I have an appointment with her at the vets this evening but I am wary of how they might treat her. A friend who is a veterinary nurse has suggested that I take a poo sample and ask them to screen for Coccidiosis but I'm not sure what the treatment might be for this? Sorry for the long winded message, i am just very worried. Thanks, Jenny.yes test her poop is good advise..
coccidia is treated with a sulpha based Anti biotic..
septra, bactrim, sulfatrim, SMZ-TMP
also test for giardia..treatment flagyl/metronidazole
if you have any on hand fresh anti biotics, sometimes we use human meds to treat also..
a vet is always best, but sometimes not possible..
keep us in the loop!
:Welcome

Squill's mum
10-09-2012, 11:15 AM
Hi so sorry for the late reply, things have been very hectic. Thank you for the advice you have given me. Just wanted to let you know that my squirrel became much iller over the weekend. The first vet that I saw was not much help at all. To cut a long story short I took her to another vet yesterday who kept her in and gave her fluids as she was very dehydrated. He gave her an anathestic and took blood samples and screened her poo. He has confirmed that she has coccidiosis. I have now got some treatment (septrin) to start this evening. She is still quite sick the vet has recommended that I try to feed her some organic baby food and I am also giving her critical care formular. Fingers crossed that she will pull through. Thanks again for the advice. Jenny.

Jackie in Tampa
10-09-2012, 11:22 AM
sending good healing vibes to her..:Love_Icon