Possible pneumonia

[Nuthouse13]

Could someone give be a little advice (or at least calm my nerves!). I have two little 6wk olds that have been doing wonderful. They are taking their formula wonderfully, and even have been playing with carrot pieces and banana. This morning however, the little female scared me. She did not take all her formula. I have been so worried about pneumonia. She doesn't normally aspirate, but did a little bit during yesterday evening's feeding. She is not wheezing or clicking, and doesn't appear to have any difficulty in breathing. I also noticed her stool was extremely soft this morning.

Should I begin her on an antibiotic? Maybe give some acidolphus? Or give it today and watch her closely?

Thanks,
Vanessa (worried squirrel mommy!)

[Jackie in Tampa]

HI NUTHOUSE13:Welcome :wave123
I am going to have administartion move your post so it can get better exposure.
when you say lethargic, are you saying she is not acting the same as sibbling?
what antibiotics do you have on hand?{human or pet?}

are you using a syringe to feed with?

head up, tail down? {never tilt back like a human baby}

what formula are you feeding?

are they on a heat source?

when you do see any signs of aspiration, gently tip nose to floor and allow enough time for fluids to drain, wiping off any that does so as to not re inhale.

do you have a scale that will weigh them in grams?

sorry for all the questions...they are meant to expedite the rehabbers advise.

[farrelli]

Was Nuthouse13 alerted to the new location? I've seen a few new people get their thread moved and not know what happened when they returned. I'm afraid that people might just move on when this happens.

[Jackie in Tampa]

Was Nuthouse13 alerted to the new location? I've seen a few new people get their thread moved and not know what happened when they returned. I'm afraid that people might just move on when this happens.yes NINY sent him/her a Pm with a link to new thread!...:)

[CrazySquirrelLady]

what are you feeding? I think they are too little for carrots, carrots are hard on their little bellies.

keep us posted,so we can help out.


thanks for saving these precious babies. thank you!

[Nuthouse13]

I am feeding Fox Valley Day One 20/50 for squirrels 4wks of age and older.

They are at about 7cc of formula per feeding and I use a 5cc syringe and a 1cc syringe. I keep the head down and tail up.

Unfortunately, I don't have a gram scale, but can go get one this afternoon. (I've never had to weigh anything so small...would a food prep scale work?)

I have them on a heating pad with a towel in between them and the cage.

When she aspirated a little last night, I quickly tipped her head forward so that any and all would drain out; it was a very small amount. She sneezed out any residual liquid. She is still active (for her...eyes recently opened so she's a bit nervous), and alert.

I will not give anymore carrots! Thank you. I am going to hold off on any banana as well. I don't have any antibiotics on hand, but can get some this afternoon if needed.

[farrelli]

I think a food scale would work. Mine is very sensitive and switches between ounces and grams. I think that's usually the case.

[Kelly Brady]

Hello Vanessa,:wave123

I am not sure if you meant to type it that way but you said you fed with head down and tail up. The baby squirrel should be in the upright position. Head up and tail down.
It occasionally happens that they overly suck on the nipple and take in some formula. I would keep a close eye on the baby. Placing her little chest near your ear to listen for clicking while breathing. They will make clicking noises but this would be frequent and with every breath.
Your feeding the perfect formula Fox Valley.
After a wieght, we can tell you if the amount of formula is correct. The 5 cc syringe is quite large and easier to aspirate them. I use 1cc or at the very largest 3 cc though :)

Generally when eyes open I introduce them to a rodent block. Henrys Healthy Pets . com sells a squirrel block that is a perfect first food for them to start to nibble on. Then veggies one at a time to make sure they agree with them after a couple of weeks. You want the formula to be their primary food source for as long as you can and otherwise Henrys blocks have all the nutrients they need when they want to start chewing on something.

Let us know when you get a weight and keep us posted. Bless you for taking care of them and asking for help. We are here.

[Nuthouse13]

:Love_Icon Thanks everyone for their input! Sorry about my typo: I do feed them upright. I didn't hear any clicking, and she is not wheezing. We are hoping it is just the carrot and banana not agreeing with her. We will definitely not give anymore until they are older and more ready.

I will definitely get a scale after work so I can keep track of their weight.

No more 5cc syringes. We will go back down to the 1cc.

I will also get that rodent block right away. Glad to hear I got a good formula. Fox Valley seemed to have nothing but good things written about them.

Thanks again for all the advice. I will send an update asap.

[Kelly Brady]

Hi:wave123 I figured it was a typo:D

I wanted to mention that fruits contain sugar and spoil them as babies. Once they taste sweet fruit they only want fruit. I introduce that last when they are near the age to begin weaning.

It could be the culprit for loose stool. Also over feeding can cause some runny poo's. I don't think that is the case here but a wieght can tell us alot about how much formula they should be taking.

If the stool stays loose or becomes runny let us know and we have some suggestions to help with that also but no need if it clears up.

A good squirrel Mom worries so ask away with any questions you may have:wave123 Sounds like you are doing a great job:multi :multi Welcome to The Squirrel Board. Lots of wonderful people here and we all like pictures:rotfl

[Nuthouse13]

Update on my little girl Natasha.

She did very well this afternoon. My husband said her noon feeding went as normal. She was climbing the cage and chattering away. Her stools were still a bit soft, but not as bad as this morning. Fingers crossed, it was just her little tummy not agreeing with her. Still, as a squirrel mommy, I will be watching her like a hawk for the next day or so.

I did stop on the way home and get a scale. Boy is it difficult keeping them still! :multi I may have to try while they are still sleepy. It is also very sensitive. We got 115grams but also 120. Even so, I believe I have been overfeeding them...giving 7cc's. I had been following a schedule that included age:schedule:amt of cc's. There was also mention of a 5% body weight feeding. Would it be better if I followed this, and every 5 hours? Can they handle going the night without a feeding? The last feeding I give is before bed at 10pm and the first is 5:30am before work.

thanks Kelly for the tip on the fruits. I never thought about these babies becoming spoiled! :crazy Guess it's like candy for kids!

[Nancy in New York]

Update on my little girl Natasha.

She did very well this afternoon. My husband said her noon feeding went as normal. She was climbing the cage and chattering away. Her stools were still a bit soft, but not as bad as this morning. Fingers crossed, it was just her little tummy not agreeing with her. Still, as a squirrel mommy, I will be watching her like a hawk for the next day or so.

I did stop on the way home and get a scale. Boy is it difficult keeping them still! :multi I may have to try while they are still sleepy. It is also very sensitive. We got 115grams but also 120. Even so, I believe I have been overfeeding them...giving 7cc's. I had been following a schedule that included age:schedule:amt of cc's. There was also mention of a 5% body weight feeding. Would it be better if I followed this, and every 5 hours? Can they handle going the night without a feeding? The last feeding I give is before bed at 10pm and the first is 5:30am before work.

thanks Kelly for the tip on the fruits. I never thought about these babies becoming spoiled! :crazy Guess it's like candy for kids!


The rule of thumb when feeding is 5-7% of their body weight so if your little one is 120, you could even go to 8 cc's per feeding.
What is the age again?

edit: I just saw their age. At 6 weeks I never let them go longer than 6 hours without a feeding.
Are they little grey squirrels or little foxers? Can you post pictures?

[Nuthouse13]

Boris and Natasha...typical brother and sister! :poke
http://i47.tinypic.com/fepc2a.jpg
http://i49.tinypic.com/6opy76.jpg

[Nuthouse13]

Just wanted to update that Natasha is doing wonderfully today. I followed the great advice I received, and it was a Godsend! She was so active today, we got a good glimpse of the growing "squirrel mannerisms" her and her brother, Boris, are developing. I will keep definitely be keeping up with the forum for any other bumps I come across. :thankyou

[MollyBear361]

:thumbsup

[Kelly Brady]

I saw this yesterday and was too busy to post.

You are doing a great job !!! They are precious. It was so wonderful to see pictures this morning. They look great and I love their names:D Boris and Natasha:D

See, you were doing well on the amount of feeding. All squirrels are different and some just don't stop eating until they are overfull and this can cause some runny poo's. I keep them wieghed regularly and don't give any more than the 7%. Some little girls stick right with the 5% and other rambunctious babes want more more more all the time:sanp3

At that age I try to give a feeding right before bed at around 11:00 pm for me and I wake up at 5:30 every morning anyway and feed then.

Also you want to get Henrys blocks or others listed here on the board for nibbling on soon.

We love pictures here and can't wait to watch them grow with you.:wott

Do you plan to release them when they are age ready?

[Nuthouse13]

http://i47.tinypic.com/zyd6z8.jpg
http://i50.tinypic.com/2utho49.jpg

I just cannot believe how much these guys have grown! They're personalities have definitely blossomed. Kelly, we are unsure about release. We live in a very busy suburban/urban area and see "lost" squirrels on the side of the road everyday. This always breaks my husband's and my heart. I have always had fur babies since I can remember (which is why I eventually went into vet medicine-I'm a veterinarian technician) and my husband is a country boy from the east coast. He too grew up with many animals. Though these two guys are a new venture for us, we are very comfortable and at home with the commitment of time required. Right now, our hearts are completely wrapped around the fingers of these two little babes. They have truly become our children, seeing as we don't have any. Within the first week of caring for these guys, he was already planning ways of travel for them from room to room! :osnap (Eeeek, their goes my walls!! LOL! )

As for the squirrel blocks by Henry, THEY ARE ORDERED AND ON THEIR WAY...thank goodness. My earlobes and bottom lip can only take so much more teething/nibbling! :smiley_vampire

[Kelly Brady]

Wow they are so cute. I want to grab them and give out kisses.

You are correct they grow so rapidly that before you know it they are full grown and terrorizing the house.

I work on a computer all week long and kind of fall off of the map on the weekends. Sorry for my delay.

They look great and if you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask. Most all of us have seen a a ton of squirrels through to adulthood. I am a strong believer in proper diet. My Richard a non releaseable boy that is non releasable due to MBD eats his Henrys block because he know I WON"T give him anything else until he does eat it. When he eats it, he gets a pecan peice:rotfl He was origianlly found in a dogs mouth and his finders fed him sandwiches and oreo cookies and junk. Long story but I have raised and released just about too many to count now so enjoy this experience. It is like an excelerated child raising:D

Squirrels capture hearts for sure. They are so smart and so full of love until they get older anyway:rofl4



Please keep posting pictures, I love seeing them so much

[Nancy in New York]

ADORABLE........that's all I can say.
Oh, and we also need tons of pictures of your little angels. :Love_Icon :Love_Icon

[Nuthouse13]

The babes are doing great. Sorry I haven't posted any current pics...I have been under the weather. I posted a behavior question under another topic area, and I will start a new thread under the nursery section, seeing as they are doing well with no ailments at this time. Love that I can share these guys with others!
mjs