For Mimi

[Sabrina]

I'm not sure what happened, the site when down and when it came back up all of my posts I had written were gone :( Well, I had asked before it went down what do do about housing and bedding for my little Mimi, she's about 5 weeks old and is getting more and more active. She tried to walk around but she stumbles a lot, is this normal?

[SammysMom]

Yes it is normal. What is she in now?

[Sabrina]

I haven't been able to find the type of cage that I want to get her, something she can move around in so right now she's in a box with a fleece type baby blanket that gets changed daily. I took her off the Espilac and ordered the FV and am waiting for it to come in, in the mean time I am doing the goats milk and yogurt mixture that was recommended, if the FV isn't in my tomorrow I was told to add cream but the thing is, she still has diarrhea. I flushed her with a water.salt.sugar mixture but it still hasn't gone away.

[SammysMom]

How long has she had diarrhea? What color is it and has it improved or worsened. No cream with the diarrhea issue.

[HRT4SQRLS]

:wave123 Sabrina
Sorry your thread got lost during the 'downtime'.

Yes, the answers to SM's questions about the diarrhea will help.

You asked about cages and cage gear so I thought I would help with that. 5 weeks is pretty young so it's a little early for a cage. For babies this age, plastic Sterilite containers with a lid are the best. It needs to have 1/2 inch holes drilled in it around the top. I personally would put the holes in the side toward the top. Get one big enough that the baby can move around a little and so that she can move off the heating pad if she gets too warm. I wouldn't get a huge one for a 5 week old. Believe it or not you really do need the lid because they start climbing very young. If they climb out of the container and can't get back to the heat it can have a bad outcome. That happened to me.:( They love to snuggle in fleece or flannel. They really love little pouches to curl up in.

As Mimi gets older, you will need a small cage like a small bird cage. You don't want the first cage too large because she could fall and get injured. The most important thing about cages is the bar spacing. The bar spacing should be 1/2 inch or less. Larger bar spacing is dangerous. As Mimi outgrows her baby cage, you will need to get a larger cage. There are many options for larger cages. Some members shop Craiglist for cages.

You will need cage gear. Again, many options. Several members make and sell cage gear (Jackie in Tampa & Milo'sMom). Squirrels like hanging pouches, fleece cubes and also little wooden nest boxes. These are just a few ideas. What are your plans for Mimi? Will she be released or is she a NR?

First things first ... getting the diarrhea under control. Then you can start planning for the future.:thumbsup Hope his helps. :)

[Sabrina]

We got her when she was just about hitting her 4 week mark judging my the fur she had. She's had diarrhea almost immediately because I hadn't know that Espilac wasn't the thing to use anymore, so for about 2 weeks now, poor little girl. I'm feeding her about every 3 hours with the GM and yogurt mixture and it has gotten a TINY bit better, little less watery tiny bit more consistency. It's a yellowish mustard color but I was told that's because of the formula.

[HRT4SQRLS]

I'm just bumping this up for you so a rehabber will see it.

Hopefully the FV will take care of this problem. I'm glad to hear it is a TINY bit better. Does she show any signs of dehydration? If you gently pinch up the skin on her shoulders, does it stay up (tent) or does it smooth back down? IF it stays up she is dehydrated and she will need additional hydration. The rehabbers can help you with this.

When the FV arrives you will need to transition slowly to it by mixing the GM recipe with the FV until she is on 100% FV.

Make up each formula and mix them according to the following ratios.

75% GM with 25% FV for a few feeding, then
50% GM with 50% FV for a few feeding, then
25% GM with 75% FV for a few feeding, then
100% FV

Hopefully when she is on FV the diarrhea will be under control, but if it isn't then other issues (like parasites ... Coccidia or others) will need to be considered.

[Sabrina]

Oh man, I didn't know I was supposed to mix the GM and the FV. I started her on the FV this morning and I wasn't sure if was still supposed to add the yogurt so I did anyway. After just ONE!! feeding her started to get a little more consistency, and after the second feeding about it was still runny but not watery at all. It has gotten way better, and that's just after a few feedings and she LOVES the stuff. She will wrap her front paws around the nipple and just lick and suck on it till I have to refill :) I actually FINALLY got to weight her today too and she was at about 2 ounces it said, I'm not sure if that's good or bad but she doesn't seem malnourished and she's not dehydrated I am happy to say. And her little urine burn is going away too, she doesn't fuss now when I have to clean her off. :) she's on the mend and walking as much as she can :):jump

[SammysMom]

Excellent news!!! Do keep a close eye on her poop. She may not eat as much or as often with the FV though. It is more filling and nutritionally concentrated.:thumbsup Can you by chance weigh in grams? I can convert from ounces to grams, but it is more accurate to weigh in grams.

2 oz = 56 grams

[SammysMom]

How much does she eat at a meal? How often does she eat?

[Sabrina]

lol I would weigh her proper if she'd sit still. I was feeding her the GM every 3 hours and she'd eat about 4 1cc syringes full but with the FV I'm feeding her every 4 hours and she eats only 3 and at the end of the 3rd one she's pretty much falling asleep in my hand cause she likes to eat on her back for some reason :dono But after each feeding she goes into her "bathroom box" and immediately pees and poops where as I clean her after with a baby wipe and put some A&D ointment on the sore nether regions lol. She then tends to either try and cuddle...yes I mean cuddle with me or she will just curl right up and go to sleep. She loves being in my husbands plush robe pocket.

[SammysMom]

Ack! No eating on her back! Way too easy to aspirate. She needs to be on her tummy or upright leaning forward with the syringe pointing up.
3ccs is okay as far as amount. I think she is a bit under what the "norm" is for her age, but she will catch up soon enough with the FV.

[Sabrina]

Yea for the most part I figured she was a little under weight but we will fix that. I'm trying to get her to not eat on her back but I'll have her sitting up in my hand and she will just slide little by little down until she can wrap her bottom legs around my thumb and the front two around the nipple.

[SammysMom]

Seriously bad idea... Try wrapping your hand around her with your fingers under her tummy. Then point the syringe up so it is aimed at the top of her mouth. Don't want that baby to aspirate:nono

[Sabrina]

I'm going to start doing that, hopefully she will stay propped up by my fingers.

[HRT4SQRLS]

http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36777

Sabrina, in Post #1 of this thread is a video of the proper feeding technique. You can see how Luna's head is up / tail down. The syringe is pointed up at an angle. As SM said, it will prevent her from aspirating formula. If she aspirates formula she will likely get aspiration pneumonia. You don't want that to happen. I hope the video helps. :thumbsup

I'm glad Mimi is better and loves the FV. That's great news.

[Nancy in New York]

When my babies are a little older, I place them on a non skid pad and feed them while they are on their bellies, I usually have my hand over them but in the first photo I removed it so you could see the baby. They seem to naturally go into this position for feedings, and the nipple is pointed UP.

http://nmognoni.smugmug.com/photos/i-NHT2TFV/0/M/i-NHT2TFV-M.jpg (http://nmognoni.smugmug.com/Other/TSB-resizing/28182094_d4nbWs#!i=2435616278&k=NHT2TFV&lb=1&s=A)

http://nmognoni.smugmug.com/photos/i-2KRLqmB/0/M/i-2KRLqmB-M.jpg (http://nmognoni.smugmug.com/Other/TSB-resizing/28182094_d4nbWs#!i=2435622051&k=2KRLqmB&lb=1&s=A)

[Sabrina]

she's not really that big yet but I'm going to try to hold her up and see if she will like it. She's one of the squirrels that's brown and black.

[Nancy in New York]

she's not really that big yet but I'm going to try to hold her up and see if she will like it. She's one of the squirrels that's brown and black.

Good girl, yes holding them up or even on their bellies is perfect. Do you have pictures? :D

[Sabrina]

I'll have to try and take some right when she is falling asleep on me because that is the only time she sits still long enough, lol. I am happy to report that this mornings feeding at 7am went fantastically, she didn't like laying on her stomach just yet but she pretty much sat up straight in my hand with my thumb and pointer finger supporting and holding her head and the other fingers supporting her body, syringe was angled up to her mouth and we had no problems, not to mention her poop was just a little more solid. :thankyou

would it gross anyone out if I took a pic of the poop to show you? Just so you guys would know?

[SammysMom]

Oh you silly girl!!! We love poop pics around here!!!:jump :rotfl :jump

[Sabrina]

bwwaahhaha well for some reason when I try to take the pic of her poop it comes out seriously fuzzy..grr but its about like toothpaste. Is that ok?