Possible MBD Case.

[Dez]

Hey everyone.

This morning my dad found a squirrel around the tree in the front yard of our building, walking and climbing funny/with difficulty. Right away it sounded like MBD so we made some quick boo-ball mixture using the formula I still have (Which is two years old, but I figured it was better than nothing) and brought it down for him. He was sitting in the crook of the tree beyond reach, so I scooped bits of the mixture out and left it behind bits of bark sticking out for him to have easier access to should he get hungry. I did manage to get a better look at him and it seems it's actually his front arms that are not working rather than his hind ones, is that a possible symptom of the disease? Our neighbor who lives in the basement, an older lady, feeds them peanuts. All the time. The side of the building is FULL of shell bits. I have told her in the past that nuts are not good for them, her reply was "What else am I supposed to feed them?". Aside from the fact that it's technically illegal to feed wild animals, I told her she could give them vegetables, but obviously she didn't listen. In hopes of countering the peanuts I've tried offering them green beans and teklad blocks, most of which are refused or buried, probably because they know they can go get peanuts instead.

It's a horrible situation and I'm worried this poor squirrel is the result of her willing ignorance and refusal to change her ways. I will be having another talk with her regardless if this is in fact MBD or not, but I wanted to get input on the situation... How can I help this squirrel, if at all? I went to check on him quickly a bit earlier and it looks like he might have taken some boo-ball stuff, I thought I saw some up in the crook where he's still laying down, but I don't know how much good it'l do. Poor baby was just laying there looking down at me, my heart broke.

Should we attempt to capture him maybe? I already have an NR living with me so there isn't anywhere to put him other than a cat carrier, but I don't know what else to do. I want to help him :(

[kastillo]

Sounds like an injury rather than MBD. A cat carrier would be ok for a while, so you can restrict movement to keep him from further injuring himself. That is, if you can trap him. Poor baby might just need some rest so he can heal.

[Dez]

I'll see what we can do :/ I'd rather not terrify him and cause him more pain in the process. He already leapt away at one point while I was 'decorating' the tree with boo-ball mixture, so I'm afraid to risk it. He may very well bite, too.

Are you sure it can't be MBD? It looked like both front legs were not working properly.

[farrelli]

Usually MBD starts in the rear. I don't think that I've heard it start from the front before. Treatment for MBD can't hurt though.

His condition is hard for me to visualize. If he's really compromised you might really consider bringing him in to let him get better for a day or more. Do you have many predators? Can he get back to the safety of his nest at night?

[Dez]

I'm not entirely sure to be honest. He can still climb, but seemingly not much. I'm going to check on him again when I go home for lunch (At work presently) in about 10 minutes. Not sure if he's still there now but since dad walking the dog scared him up the tree he's been sitting in the crook of it since early this morning. Either he's resting or he can't manage to get any higher.

As for predators we don't seem to have too many, there are a lot of squirrels in the area so this seems like a favourable place for them. We do have some cats but I've never seen any chase them, they belong to a neighbour and they prefer to lay around if they're outside.

[Dez]

Well I checked back and he was gone :/ Not sure if that's a good or bad thing but I didn't see him anywhere.

I think I will still have a word with my neighbour about all those peanuts. She's definitely not doing them any favours.

[farrelli]

Keep an eye out and suggest that she pick up some almonds or a giant bag of Mazuri rodent feed, I think it's cheap.

[kastillo]

I hope you see your little friend soon. Suggest your neighbor get some Mazuri rodent block to put out. I put out like 3 cups of it a day, and the releases as well as wilds, and blue jays too (go figure), enjoy it, and the feeder is cleaned out by end of day.
Tell her it's cheaper than peanuts ( ha!, don't know if that's true, but it may work if you tell her that.), block off the Mazuri website it's $18 for a 25lb bag. :grin3

[sdreamcatcher]

I hope you see your little friend soon. Suggest your neighbor get some Mazuri rodent block to put out. I put out like 3 cups of it a day, and the releases as well as wilds, and blue jays too (go figure), enjoy it, and the feeder is cleaned out by end of day.
Tell her it's cheaper than peanuts ( ha!, don't know if that's true, but it may work if you tell her that.), block off the Mazuri website it's $18 for a 25lb bag. :grin3

I have been offering these to the wilds here because someone sent me some. I soak them in fruit juice or almond milk (otherwise Star buries them in the bad neighbors' yard :nono). I checked out this website and even with shipping they come out to about a dollar a pound :).

I hope you see your little friend and he is ok. I agree calcium won't hurt him but if you can trap him that may be a good idea. Good luck and thank you for caring. As for your neighbor; I wish I had that dilemma here! She likes squirrels so you may be able to educate her, after all she cares enough to offer them food :thumbsup.

[Dez]

Dad and I just saw the little guy again after he was MIA for the last dew days; does not look good.

He's all wet and scruffy. We were following him to see how he was and I guess I scared him by getting too close, he went to climb up a tree and fell down onto his back, so it's obvious he can't even get up anymore :( Dad wants to try and catch him but I'm worried the fear and stress of something like that might do more bad than good. Just wish I knew what was wrong with him. He's kind of wobbly when he moves and runs sideways, takes a lot of breaks in between and just sits there. Maybe he has a broken limb or something?

[SammysMom]

It seems to me that catching him is the only way to go at this point. Anything less is just letting him die slowly in the wild rather than with you where he can be warm and dry. Do you have a dog crate or something that you can put him into? Get it totally ready, filled with lots of fleece and/or tee shirts or flannel shirt (with no buttons) and cover it with a sheet or blanket before you put him in. He will want to hide immediately and should be able to. Have a heavy bowl of water already in the cage too so you don't have to bother him putting one in eventually.

[stepnstone]

If you don't trap/catch him in his compromised condition a predator eventually will!
It's highly unlikely it's mbd which is pretty unheard of in wild squirrels. Trapping will
at least allow you to better excess his condition as to injury or whatever.
Obviously he is only getting worse and will perish without intervention.

Personally I wouldn't be too concerned over the peanuts, wilds may eat the crap out
of them but they also know how to balance their own diets to compensate.

[Dez]

Well here's the thing, how do I catch a wild squirrel? Without getting bitten?

Another problem is I don't have anywhere to put him... My NR is in the only large cage we have, the only other option is a cat carrier which is tiny. We have a dog crate, but we still need that for the dog since she's crated when we aren't home.

I wanna help this little guy but I'm not equipped to house him here even if we do manage to catch him :/ It's hectic and crowded in here as is with an NR, fish, cat and dog.

Do any of you know other members that are in the Montreal area that might be able to lend a hand?

[farrelli]

We have several Montreal members! You might have to get a Have-a-Heart trap which you can often rent from animal rescues or just buy for about $40 (US - probably $50 CAD) at a lot of places like Canadian Tire, Home Hardware, places like that.

Let's see if I can alert some people to this (Iwonka, Astra, etc.). It also might help if an admin renamed the thread.

[iwonka]

Dez... are you Dez I know? :wave123


Thanks farrelli :grouphug

[iwonka]

Well here's the thing, how do I catch a wild squirrel? Without getting bitten?

Another problem is I don't have anywhere to put him... My NR is in the only large cage we have, the only other option is a cat carrier which is tiny. We have a dog crate, but we still need that for the dog since she's crated when we aren't home.

I wanna help this little guy but I'm not equipped to house him here even if we do manage to catch him :/ It's hectic and crowded in here as is with an NR, fish, cat and dog.

Do any of you know other members that are in the Montreal area that might be able to lend a hand?

Dez.. I called SPCA.. They stop renting trap cages at October 30...
However I think you can use a simple cage as per SammysMom idea.

If you catch him I can help you with medication and cages. You can come tonight.. I don't have your phone number anymore but you know where I live...

[Dez]

Hi Iwonka! Nice to hear from you again :) Yep I'm the same Dez!

Unfortunately, I haven't seen the little guy since my last post in here... I've been keeping an eye out on my way to and from work, and on dog walks, but neither myself nor my dad have seen any sign of him :dono I have to wonder if he didn't make it, because I can't see him straying too far from an area where there's lots of food.

[iwonka]

:sad