Dehydration

[CaliAnn09]

My 4 wk old flying squirrel has been doing great but today he has gotten dehydrated and I can't seem to get him rehydrated. Any and all advice is greatly appreciated!!

[Rhapsody]

Feed him some Homemade Pedialyte for a few hours...... it generally works. :thumbsup

1 cup warm water
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt

[CaliAnn09]

How often should I feed it and how much? I did just make some of that and give 0.1 cc to start with.
I had taken him to a vet and he cut back his food he was eating 0.5cc every 4 hrs and I thought he was doing fine but the vet said do .3 every 3 hrs... Sooo I've been doing that since yesterday afternoon and now he's dehydrated again. Should I start giving more again?

[Rhapsody]

I would give him what he will take of the hmp up to his 5% of body weight every 2-3 hours.

Were you feeding him his formula @ 5% of body weight every 3 hours before?
...... if yes, that should of be fine.

[CaliAnn09]

I have not found a scale yet. Any suggestions on where to find one would be GREAT!!! He is looking much better on the pinch test now. Can I start back to formula every 3 hrs now?

Sorry I have so many questions. I'm new to this but I've gotten pretty attached to the little guy in the short time I've had him!

[Rhapsody]

I would give him the pedialyte for the night --then start back with the formula in the morning.
How much pedialyte was he able to drink? How much formula were you feeding at one time?

[farrelli]

Just call around for scales. They're usually very common at Target, Walmart, Bed, Bath and Beyond, etc. I'm told that in some regions of hte country, especially the south, they are kept behind the counter because of the drug trade.

[CaliAnn09]

I found a scale finally and I was under feeding like I suspected. We did the pedilite until about 4 this morning until he passed the pinch test about an hr after having pedilite. now I've been miximg his formula with the homemade water sugar and salt mixture. He would eat 1cc if Id let him but I was doing .3 cc ever 3 hrs per the vet then today I have been doing .45 cc now I'm going to start the .75 cc with the next feeding

[MollyBear361]

Mix Formula With Water Only! !!! You cannot mix formula with hydrating fluid EVER!

[Rhapsody]

I found a scale finally and I was under feeding like I suspected. We did the pedilite until about 4 this morning until he passed the pinch test about an hr after having pedilite. now I've been miximg his formula with the homemade water sugar and salt mixture. He would eat 1cc if Id let him but I was doing .3 cc ever 3 hrs per the vet then today I have been doing .45 cc now I'm going to start the .75 cc with the next feeding

Please do not mix the HMP and FORMULA together....... you should not hydrate and nourish at the same time.
When mixing up your formula please use water only!! --Thanks, and your SFS will be happier for it.

Why is your vet having you feed so little? Your little guy can eat .75 to 1cc every 3 hours per his weight.

[MollyBear361]

Baby is 15 grams and needs a little more food to get up to normal weight. :Love_Icon Didn't mean to sound like I was yelling in the other post. :grin3

[CaliAnn09]

Baby is 15 grams and needs a little more food to get up to normal weight. :Love_Icon Didn't mean to sound like I was yelling in the other post. :grin3
No worries! He's gaining again and feeling better I'm not sure why he had me feeding less. But he's the only wildlife vet in our area so I assumed he was right. Mixing formula with water only too btw!