can you give a squirrell a antibiotic called keflex? my vet gave it to my dog for a

[rshultz1972]

I have a pet squirrell that I raised when I found him in the back yard being batted around by two cats. He was so little he didnt even have his eyes n ears open yet. I brought him in got him warm put him in a box snuggled in a baby blanket and sat the box on a heating pad. Then I went to the pet store and got some milk replacement for orphan kittens. I fed him every hour on the hour dureing the day and every two hours at night. That was over two years ago. About six months ago he just about gave me heart failure when I noticed his incissor was growed down and curved up into the side of his face. Well we made it through that I got online and found instructions on how to trim his incissors. I love this little guy like he is one of my own children. And now he is about to give me heart failure again. I noticed the other day he has a open wound right under neath his tail the only thing I can think of is maybe a maggot or worm is burrowed down in there although I dont visably see any. I have been flushing and cleaning it with peroxide and then applying antibiotic ointment to it. What should I do? And can I give a squirrell a small dose of a antibiotic called keflex. My vet had given my dog keflex for a ear infection and I have some left over? Also how long should I doctor it with peroxide and antibiotic ointment before I come to the conclusion it isnt helping any? And then what should I do?

[Milo's Mom]

To answer your question directly, yes, squirrels can take Keflex. HOWEVER, it must be dosed for the squirrel based on the weight of the squirrel, so in order for us to help you we will need to know the weight of the squirrel in grams, if possible. We will also need to know the strength of the medication.

Next, stop using the peroxide. Peroxide kills good flesh so although you're trying to help, you might actually be hurting.

Can you take a picture of this wound and post it for us? It is very helpful for us to see what's going on.

Keflex is a very strong medication and will make his belly upset, so you'll need to give him something to sooth his belly. Full fat yogurt is usually the easiest and tastiest.


PLEASE DO NOT GIVE THE SQUIRREL ANY MEDICAION UNTIL YOU PROVIDE THE INFO REQUESTED ABOVE!!!!!

[HRT4SQRLS]

:Welcome to TSB

Oh my, so many problems here. Maybe you can post a picture so we can see what we are dealing with. I don't think this was caused by worms.

I know this will sound odd but what is his diet like? That is a very important question. Next question, have you seen him over grooming the area or chewing on himself? Sometimes they will actually chew on themselves due to 'tingling nerves'. If it is something like that we have other issues to address in addition to the wound.

Is Keflex the only antibiotic you have? Is it expired? It can be used on squirrels but if you could locate a different antibiotic it would be better. All you need is one pill. Can you check with friends or family? Try to locate Clavamox (Augmentin) or Septra (Bactrim, SMZ-TMP).

You can continue with the antibiotic ointment but discontinue the peroxide. The wound can be cleaned with diluted Betadine (diluted to the color of strong tea). The generic name is Providone Iodine. It is a little cheaper.

[Milo's Mom]

Just spoke to the OP on the phone. We discussed, in great detail, the Healthy Diet. I emailed her the link also.

Diet to date has NOT been good.

Advised her to get TUMS TODAY and to get him on it and to spread it out over the course of 24 hours. I gave her the abbreviated version. If someone could post or PM her the link to the actual MBD treatment I'd be very grateful. (I am on my way out the door to an appointment and I'm already late)

She also sent me pics of the wound. I will upload them as soon as I get home.

I told her to go to the pharmacy and ask the Pharmacist for the non-script version of SSD for the wound. We also talked about doing the diluted Betadine wash.

She was given the phone number to Henry's and told to purchase the Picky Blocks as soon as humanly possible.

I really gotta go, will update more when I get home, but felt you all needed to know what has happened so far.

I cannot be here as much as I want to be, so if you a could help me keep an eye on this thread and provide the awesome TSB advice I'd really appreciate it!!!

Thanks!!!!! :grouphug

[HRT4SQRLS]

Thanks MilosMom. I received a PM and am very concerned also. I am so glad that you were able to advise on the healthy diet as there is a HUGE possibility of MBD. She will try to post pics or email them and I will post them for her. I also will be out this evening but promised to get back with her later tonight. There is no scale available for a weight so we might need to estimate the weight for the antibiotics. I was very relieved to see you helping her. :thumbsup

[HRT4SQRLS]

rschultz1972
This is the link to the Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD) treatment. You need to start ASAP. We will be here to help you. :thumbsup

http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?32122-MBD-Treatment

[Milo's Mom]

Just waked in the door. Going upstairs to download pics and post them.

She got a scale and TUMS about an hour ago (she left me a message on my phone).

[Milo's Mom]

Pics...

242442242443242444242445

[Milo's Mom]

Just spoke to rschultz on the phone again.

She got a good assortment of healthy veggies and is preparing them right now.

She was advised to remove all stashes and nut/seed remnants immediately.

She got a scale and TUMS. TUMS are 400mg. I told her to cut it into 4 pieces and to give a total of 5 pieces throughout the day, trying to space them out evenly time wise.

She also got Betadine and she has sterile saline so she will make a dilution to clean the wound. She will continue to apply the antibiotic cream.

From the pics, I don't think I see infection. So, during our phone conversation I said that unless the wound stinks or has pus, I don't think an antibiotic is necessary right now. However, I reserve the right to change my mind! :tilt Additionally, since the only med she has is Keflex and it's a gut ripper, I feel that the squirrel needs to be able to and want to eat, especially being put on a new drastically different diet. I think the Keflex is going to upset his belly too much and unless there is an obvious sign of infection it's not needed, right now.

Patti (and others too) - what are your thoughts now seeing the pics?

Due to the diet for the past 2 years, I am wondering if the wound is self inflicted.

[Milo's Mom]

Anyone have any opinions based upon seeing the pics of the wound? Do you feel that using Keflex is warranted at this time?

[UDoWhat]

I think you are spot on about the tail wound being self inflicted. I thought that immediately seeing the pictures. Definitely issues with MBD are a possibility. MM I see your point about not starting the antibiotics but I am a little worried about treating this wound from just a picture. I am wondering if there is a bit of exposed bone in that wound ?? I think I might go with the antibiotics . This squirrel should be watched closely and kept in a smaller cage to minimize the possibility of further injury from falls or mutilating itself. JMHI

[HRT4SQRLS]

Sorry guys, I just got home. I agree that the wound was probably self inflicted. That was my original thought when I asked about the diet and I strongly believe that now. I don't think the wound looks infected. For now, the discontinued peroxide, betadine cleansing and antibiotic cream should be enough. SSD (silver sulfadene) would be ideal. Antibiotics could always be used later if the wound progresses. I could even mail the proper antibiotic due to the fact that I think we are not dealing with an acute infection at this time. MM, this wound looks so much like Poppy's wound.

I feel the MBD is a far greater concern than the wound at this point. I would aggressively treat for MBD. With the speed that MDB responds to treatment, it is my hope that if Nicky IS aggravating the wound by chewing or over grooming a 'hot spot' maybe the source of the irritation will dissipate and she will stop picking at it. Rschultz, by saying that it responds fast, I am not implying that MBD is a quick fix. It takes a long time to treat MBD and reverse bone loss. What I mean is that the symptoms of MBD like seizures and paralysis and maybe even pain can be stopped amazingly fast in many cases ... but not all. Some, like paralysis are permanent.

Rschultz, please hang in there. You have come to the right place for help. Today starts a new day for Nicky. A healthy diet is a must. It won't be easy. It will take tough love but Nicky MUST get on a healthy diet. I know she is your world and you will do what is necessary.

[UDoWhat]

I wish we could see how deep that wound is. It looks like the bone has been chewed through. Just cannot tell from the picture for sure. MM have you seen this wound ? What do you think MM, H4S ?

[HRT4SQRLS]

I wish we could see how deep that wound is. It looks like the bone has been chewed through. Just cannot tell from the picture for sure. MM have you seen this wound ? What do you think MM, H4S ?

I agree, UDoWhat. The picture is very difficult to determine the extent of the wound. Rschult, could you try another pic? I think if you used more light the picture would be sharper. More light allows sharper focus.
How long has the wound been there?
How long were you using the peroxide?
rschultz, you can see the wound, does the wound appear to be deep or superficial? Do you see the bone when the tail moves? Has there been any discharge from the wound? Has there been any pus?

I think the answers to these questions might help. Thanks.

[Milo's Mom]

No I have not "seen" the wound in person.

I asked about pus, smell, and discharge several times and was told no smell, no pus, and no discharge. This is the primary reason I don't think meds are necessary right now.

The pics are not that great, but I played with the lighting and coloring on my computer and to me, it looks more like a superficial wound. I also noticed that there is NOT a dark scab, which may indicate that there has not been excessive bleeding, which would then indicate that the wound is not down to the bone. No?

I also did not see anything that looked red/irritated or "angry". Again, this is why I do not think meds are the way to go at this moment.

As is Patti, I am more so concerned about the probability for MBD at this time. And I'm wondering if the wound will "take care of itself" or at least improve greatly over the next couple days now that the MBD treatment has been started along with the healthy diet.

What is the generic version of SSD? The kind a script is not needed for.

I've got about 50 million things to get done today, but I will call rshultz in a couple hours (if she has not responded to these posts) to get the answers to these questions and to see how things are going.

[HRT4SQRLS]

I am not familiar with the OTC variety of Silvadene cream
Here is a link to purchasing SSD online. It is the real deal.

http://www.mountainside-medical.com/silvadene-cream-1-silver-sulfadiazine-20g-tube.html


I purchased it myself and it is the Rx type. I know ... that's a little confusing to me but it is made in the USA so it is not counterfeit junk. I would recommend you order this right away. It is great for healing wounds. If you have access to insulin (maybe a diabetic friend) a wonderful compound can be made by combining the SSD and insulin. It has wonderful healing properties. You can look this up online. It is well documented. It is not some 'fool's home brew'. There is science behind this.

rschultz, I know this is going to be an EXTREMELY difficult task to get Nicky to eat the proper healthy foods. Unfortunately, there are NO other options. A diet of nuts for 2 years will be hard to redirect, but it has to be done. Please don't feel bad about not knowing about the proper diet. It is THE most common reason people find TSB. Many of our now experienced rehabbers once had a squirrel with MBD and now are able to help others. We are pulling for you and Nicky!! :tilt

[Milo's Mom]

During our conversations yesterday rshultz mentioned that Nicky does like and will eat lettuce, so hopefully getting her onto a good diet will not be as difficult as we've seen in the past. (insert praying hard smiley)

[HRT4SQRLS]

Perfect... that would be awesome! :thumbsup

[Milo's Mom]

I just tried calling rshultz twice to follow up and see how things were going with the diet and the TUMS. BOTH times I tried the phone rang like normal and then went to a busy signal. I think this means she "ignored" the call. :dono

I'll be in and out for the rest of the day but I will try to check in as time permits.

I'll also try giving her a call a little later.

Not sure what else to do at this point.

[redwuff]

Hi Rschultz,

how is your little squirrel doing with the wound?

Trysh