Worried

[dirgedoll]

My squirrel seems to be molting a lot, and a little sneezy with her molt. She is not eating her veggies, only nuts, which I am going to take out and chop up.

She is still active, a little wobbly-I am giving her water when I hear her moving around to make sure she stays hydrated.

There doesn't seem to be any pink around the hair she is losing.

I am really worried-this is the worst I have seen with her.

What can I do to make sure she gets through this?

Thank you so much for your help.

[kastillo]

Is she eating any kind of rodent block, HHBS?? That should be like 80% of her diet. The lethargy makes me wonder if she's developing MBD.
Hair loss can be due to poor nutrition also.
I don't know about the sneezing though.

[SammysMom]

Can you tell us what she has eaten up to this point and when she stopped eating? What is her story (age etc.) and how did she come to live with you?:Welcome :Welcome :Welcome

[Nancy in New York]

My squirrel seems to be molting a lot, and a little sneezy with her molt. She is not eating her veggies, only nuts, which I am going to take out and chop up.

She is still active, a little wobbly-I am giving her water when I hear her moving around to make sure she stays hydrated.

There doesn't seem to be any pink around the hair she is losing.

I am really worried-this is the worst I have seen with her.

What can I do to make sure she gets through this?

Thank you so much for your help.

Can you post a picture?

[dirgedoll]

I feed her squash,kale,bananas,strawberries, snap peas, broccoli, raspberries, nuts, spinach. I rotate out the greens and veggies on a regular basis.

She gets lots of water, and sunlight, along with supplements.

She is 10. I have had her since she was 8 weeks old.

She stopped eating two days ago. I noticed a little goo in her eye as well.

I am calling the vet in the morning and making an appointment.

I am also giving her water on an hourly basis.

I don't know how to get her to eat.

Any suggestions?
I will snap a pic when I get her up for playtime.

The upside is she comes out to see me. She is rebelling and chewing on a few pieces of nuts.

[SammysMom]

She may be calcium deficient. It is a simple method that many people use to treat it in an emergency situation. It is hard to tell, since she has certainly lived a good long life thus far. I'd try the below protocol for a few days and see if she improves.
Emergency Treatment for MBD

Get calcium into the squirrel IMMEDIATELY, not later, not tomorrow, NOW. Delaying treatment can cause death or permanent paralysis.

You will need:

--Tums or calcium pills (any kind)
--a syringe, eyedropper, or spoon

Crush one Tums or calcium pill and add a little water or fruit juice. Use the syringe, eyedropper, or spoon to force-feed the mixture, a little at a time, until it is all gone. Feed a total of 600-800 mg of calcium, and spread it out through the day and night to keep his blood calcium levels as steady as possible.

If the squirrel is having seizures, weakness, or paralysis, the symptoms will usually improve within a few hours, but this does not mean the squirrel is cured. It will take many months to rebuild the calcium in the bones.

Long-Term Treatment for MBD

The next step to curing MBD is to fix the diet.

1. Remove ALL seeds, nuts, corn, and treats.

2. Follow the Healthy Diet For Pet Squirrels, which can be found at the top of the “Squirrel Nutrition” forum. (http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/s...ad.php?t=16093) Your squirrel MUST eat rodent block or squirrel blocks every day. If your squirrel doesn't like rodent blocks, you can try crushing them up with peanut butter or avocado temporarily. You can also make a tastier version of squirrel blocks using the recipe at the top of the Squirrel Nutrition forum.

3. In addition to the Healthy Diet, you will need to continue giving extra calcium every day for several weeks. Either use the syringe/eyedropper or you can try putting the calcium on a small piece of fruit.

Week 1: calcium = 500 mg per day
Week 2: calcium = 250 mg per day
Weeks 3-8: calcium = 100 mg per day

The cause of the acute symptoms—weakness, lethargy, seizures, paralysis—is a drop in blood calcium levels. If these symptoms return at any time, you will need to give another emergency dose of calcium.

More Tips
MBD causes brittle bones that break easily. Try to keep your squirrel away from high places, where he might jump and break a bone. Also, if he is in a tall cage, either place him in a smaller cage, or pad the bottom very well.

Heat is very soothing for a squirrel with MBD. A heating pad turned to low and placed so they cannot chew the pad or cord, or a rice buddy (a sock filled with dry rice/beans and microwaved for about 20 seconds) will work.

[dirgedoll]

Thank you I will indeed try that.

[kastillo]

She is 10. I have had her since she was 8 weeks old.



10 months, or 10 years old???

Along with the calcium supplements, you could try to syringe feed warm Ensure, Pecan flavoured seems to be popular with squirrels. At least she'd be getting some much needed calories that way.

[djarenspace9]

Ideally get an Xray. It will be very useful to rule out issues in the teeth and sinus cavities (since there is sniffing and a lot of potential for a problem in that area).
If you need a highly experienced squirrel vet to give a second opinion, email me the Xrays and I'd be happy to ask my vet to review them.

:thumbsup

[jbtartell]

I feed her squash,kale,bananas,strawberries, snap peas, broccoli, raspberries, nuts, spinach. I rotate out the greens and veggies on a regular basis.

She gets lots of water, and sunlight, along with supplements.

She is 10. I have had her since she was 8 weeks old.

She stopped eating two days ago. I noticed a little goo in her eye as well.

I am calling the vet in the morning and making an appointment.

I am also giving her water on an hourly basis.

I don't know how to get her to eat.

Any suggestions?
I will snap a pic when I get her up for playtime.

The upside is she comes out to see me. She is rebelling and chewing on a few pieces of nuts.


wowww 10?? if that is years she is an old girl.. I would follow the mbd protocal given to you.. no more nuts for now.. got to rule out the mbd and the protocal wont hurt her.. it may help her to be more healthy and give her the energy she needs to heal..:thumbsup