my male baby squirrels genitals and butt are red and swollen!

[Gonzo]

I found a baby a few days ago after a bad storm and couldn't find its mother so i took him in knowing he would probably die in the cold wet night. I don't know how old he is or his weight. He's got a full coat of fur and teeny tiny teeth. I started feeding him the goats milk formula but lately I've noticed that his butt and genitals are red and quite swollen and i do not know why. This is my first squirrel and i'm just trying to help him. Any and all help will be greatly appreciated!:thankyou

[farrelli]

Is he pooping and peeing regularly? Is diarrhea a problem?

I've got to go out for about 30 minutes, but people will be on. If you email me a pic, I'll post it for you when I get back. farrelli-at-rcn.com

[Gonzo]

He has no problem with going to the bathroom on his own but his poo is a bit runny and yellow in color. Also, i cannot get him to drink water at all. He just won't have it. Turns his little nose up and will scurry the other way.:dono

[farrelli]

I'm back briefly. You can try flavoring the water with a little juice, but you're better off avoiding that with loose stool. Is he hydrated? Gently pinch the skin between the shoulder blades and see if it tents to goes back down right away like on the back of your hand.

Btw, how much are you feeding and on what schedule? Others who are more experienced will chime in, almost certainly tonight.

I'll be back shortly. If you have a pic of the inflamed area, that would be great.

[Sq-and-Chippy-Lover]

Could be that he is "sucking" on himself. A common problem with boy squirrels. Solved with Bitter Apple Spray or something like it (find at any pet store). This can be a very serious problem if it scabs over and then he cannot pee.

He should be seen by a wildlife rehabber or vet. I'm not an expert.

[Gonzo]

I can get pics up first thing in the morning. His skin doesn't stay tented at all. I feed him about 10 ccs at least 3 times a day maybe 4 i also feed him fruits and nuts as well. Would it be a good idea to put triple antibiotic ointment on it? There aren't any scabs thankfully.

[Milo's Mom]

Are you adding anything to the Goat's Milk? If not, try adding some full fat yogurt (they seem to like vanilla the best). If you are adding heavy whipping cream to the GM, stop adding it and see if his poops firm up.

[Gonzo]

Well oddly enough when i went to take the pictures of the inflamed area this morning it was all cleared up! Thank you guys for all your help! Hopefully my little man is better! :thankyou :jump

[SammysMom]

Glad to hear he is doing better! I am coming in late to this issue, but how old is the baby and how much does he weigh? He should definitely not be eating nuts yet and fruit is likely the culprit with the diarrhea. Babies need to go from formula to rodent block with nothing else until they readily eat the rodent block.

[CaseyB]

I was thinking if he is not allegic to the formula maybe the water was to hot when he was trying to stimulate him after eating?

[kastillo]

i also feed him fruits and nuts as well. .

Please STOP with the fruit and nuts, a baby squirrels first food should be a good quality block (henryspets.com), only after they have learned to love their block can you introduce healthy veggies from list in the nutrition section.
Then you can give them one piece of fruit and nut as a treat once a day.

Also, continue to offer formula until they won't take it anymore. This may be at 10 weeks, maybe at 15 weeks or longer.
The BEST possible formula you can get is Fox Valley 20/50 for squirrels four weeks and over, available at foxvalleynutrition.com

The GM is good for a temporary fix. Get that baby on fox valley and watch it flourish!!