waking up shaking kicking and sneezing help!

[monroe]

Since the begining of august ive been caring for a squirrel who fell out of a tree and was abandoned by its mother. (I watched for hours. She saved one live one and one dead one. Never came back for this one. Didnt see her for 3 days after). Hes now a happy, playful little fellow. But for the past 2 days hes been waking up from his sleep kicking (while laying completely flat) tail fluffed up to the max and shaking. Once I take him out and hold him, the shakinf and kicking stops and he starts sneezing and a runny nose. Im extreamly worried. The nearest vet to look at him is a 2 hour drive out of my city and difficult for me to get to because I dont drive. Im not sure what is going on. Im thinking maybe seizures but in my experience with animals it doesnt seem like a seizure. But its the only thing I can think of.
The first time this happened, I held him and calmed himnfor 10 minutes. Then he just got up and started playing like nothing happened. This time, hes calm but he won't leave my size and is falling back asleep. Not sure what it could be or what to do. Its not dehydration or mal nutrition. Help please!!!

[island rehabber]

With squirrels, diet is job one through 10. What are you feeding him? Anything from low blood sugar to lack of certain minerals and vitamins can cause seizures.....

After he has one of these episodes, give him some molasses -- dissolved in warm water, or even some maple syrup which you can rub u nder his muzzle, on his gums. Seizures deplete blood sugar AND blood calcium.

Let's see what his daily diet is like and maybe we can help you figure this out......

[monroe]

His diet is mostly vegetables. I was told that too much fruit would be bad for him. And too many nuts as well. His favorite foods are carrots, bananas, avocado, almonds, and apples. He also loves sweet potatoes. So much he fights me for my chips, which is not very good for him but ill let him have a tiny peice once a month as a little treat. Ive made a list of foods he could eat from what ive found online for his species of squirrel and what other rehabilitaters have told me. But he has food and water at his disposal at all times. Always fresh so he can eat what he wants when he wants.

[island rehabber]

His diet is mostly vegetables. I was told that too much fruit would be bad for him. And too many nuts as well. His favorite foods are carrots, bananas, avocado, almonds, and apples. He also loves sweet potatoes.

monroe, I see a glaring problem right there with his diet. Those seizures could very well be the beginning symptoms of Metabolic Bone Disease. What he's eating is WAY too high in sugars (carrots, banana and apples are very high in sugar) and very low in calcium. The only calcium he's getting is in the almonds, and he's unfortunately getting an equal dose of phosphorous in those almonds so the calcium is cancelled out.

He needs more greens: start with kale, chickory, and dandelion greens. Big hits around here.
Try broccoli. Try swiss chard. Try sugar snap peas in the pod -- they are like squirrel crack :grin3

MOST IMPORTANT: order Henry's Healthy Blocks. www.henryshealthypets.com Two per day gives him all the calcium & other essential vities he needs to stay healthy.

[SammysMom]

He needs formula and/or rodent block. Here is a link to our healthy diet:
http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?44440-Healthy-Diet-for-Pet-Squirrels

For now, I would suggest changing his diet and following the protocol below for MBD. Low calcium definitely causes seizures as well as the weakening of bones. Please follow it to the letter and after 24 - 36 hours you should see some improvement. Keep coming back here to check in as we will be here to help you through this.

Emergency Treatment for MBD

Get calcium into the squirrel IMMEDIATELY, not later, not tomorrow, NOW.
Delaying treatment can cause death or permanent paralysis.

You will need:
• Tums, rolaids, or calcium supplement (any kind)
• a syringe or spoon

Crush one pill and add a little water or fruit juice to make a paste. Use the syringe or spoon to force-feed the mixture, a little at a time, until it is all gone.

After you give the initial dose of calcium, give 100 mg calcium every 4 hours. If symptoms return or do not improve, try dosing more often: every 3 hours. Severe cases may need 50 mg calcium every 2 hours.

Your squirrel's symptoms should improve within a few hours; within 1-3 days your squirrel should be alert, active, and eating, with no seizures or paralysis. You should be giving 500-600 mg calcium per day (300-400 mg for flying squirrels). Keep track of how many doses you give so you can adjust the dosage if needed. You should work with someone knowledgeable about MBD.

Important!
Any kind of calcium pill is okay for the initial dose. But you must use PLAIN calcium carbonate (without Vit D) from then on.

Many small doses of calcium throughout the day/night are best to keep blood calcium levels as steady as possible.

If symptoms worsen or return, give an emergency dose of 100 mg calcium, then consult with TSB members or a rehabber or veterinarian to adjust the dosing schedule. Relapses are very serious and often fatal.

White feces or a white film on dried urine may mean the dosage can be reduced, as this indicates not all of the calcium is being absorbed. It may also mean you need to give smaller doses more often.

The acute symptoms (weakness, lethargy, seizures, paralysis) will usually improve within a few hours, but this does not mean the squirrel is cured. It will take many months to rebuild the calcium in the bones. (See the "Long-Term Treatment for MBD.")

More Tips

MBD causes brittle bones that break easily. You should pad the bottom of your squirrel's cage and keep him away from high places, where he might jump and break a bone.

Heat is very soothing for a squirrel with MBD. A heating pad turned to low and placed so they cannot chew the pad or cord, or a rice buddy (a sock filled with dry rice/beans and microwaved for about 20 seconds) will work. Squirrels with hind-end paralysis may benefit from gentle massage of the legs and hips.

Long-Term Treatment for MBD

The next step to curing MBD is to fix the diet.

1. Remove ALL seeds, nuts, corn, and treats, including stashes.

2. Follow the Healthy Diet For Pet Squirrels, which can be found here: http://www.henryspets.com/healthy-di...pet-squirrels/. Your squirrel MUST eat rodent blocks or squirrel blocks every day (either 2 Henry's Healthy Squirrel Blocks per day, or a small handful of commercial rodent block per day). If you choose to feed commercial rodent blocks, which are extremely hard, you should crush them up with peanut butter, yogurt, fruit juice, avocado, baby food, etc., to make them easier to chew and improve the taste.

3. You will need to continue giving extra calcium every day for many weeks. You can use a syringe or spoon, or you can mix the calcium with a small amount of peanut butter, crushed nuts, yogurt, baby food, or any food the squirrel likes. An easy way to dose the calcium is to mix 500 mg of calcium powder with 1 tablespoon of peanut butter or other tasty food and roll it into 5 little balls; each ball will contain 100 mg calcium.

Calcium Dosage:

Continue to give 500-600 mg calcium per day for 1 week (300-400 mg for flying squirrels). Once the squirrel is starting to eat blocks on a daily basis, reduce the total daily amount to 250 mg. If the squirrel remains stable for 1 week, reduce the daily amount again by another 50 mg. Continue these weekly reductions until the squirrel is only getting 100 mg of extra calcium per day. Continue this for at least another 2 weeks. If at any time symptoms return, give an emergency 100 mg dose, then go back to a higher dosage for 1-2 weeks.

The treatment for each squirrel may be slightly different and you should work with a rehabber, vet, or other experienced person to tailor the treatment to your squirrel's needs. Depending on the age of the squirrel, severity of disease, and other factors, your squirrel may need extra calcium for many months, perhaps for life.

Important Information
The MBD treatment is a "standardized" treatment that will get most cases on the road to recovery. But every case is different and the treatment should be customized to each squirrel. Severe cases sometimes need more aggressive treatment. There is a limit to how much calcium the body can absorb at one time, so lower doses of calcium given more often is the key with severe cases.






What is MBD?

Calcium is a very important nutrient. It strengthen the bones, but also plays a vital role in all body functions. Every cell in the body contains water plus small amounts of dissolved minerals such as calcium, sodium, magnesium, and potassium. These minerals allow the cells to transmit small electrical signals. Without this cell-to-cell communication, the organs can't function: your heart can't beat, your nerves can't transmit impulses; in fact, you would die.

When there isn't enough calcium in the diet, the body will dissolve the calcium from the bones and use that instead. This eventually causes the bones to become depleted of calcium. Eventually the bones become so depleted, there isn't enough calcium left to maintain sufficient calcium in the cellular fluids, and the organs can't function properly. This is what causes the symptoms of MBD: loss of appetite, lethargy, muscle pain, paralysis, seizures, and eventually death. Humans don't get this type of severe MBD, partly because our calcium requirement is lower and our bones are much bigger, allowing us to store more calcium.

By giving high doses of calcium orally, you are artificially maintaining your squirrel's blood calcium levels because his bones no longer contain enough calcium to maintain his calcium levels normally.

Once the emergency calcium is given, your squirrel's blood calcium levels should normalize fairly quickly. He should "bounce back" and act normal or almost normal. If you are still seeing symptoms such as seizures, loss of appetite, lethargy, or paralysis, the calcium levels may still be too low. This means the body will try to pull the remaining calcium from the bones, which means the MBD is actually getting worse. So stabilizing blood calcium levels is critical. The next step to actually curing the MBD is rebuilding bone. This is the part that takes a long time.

Stabilizing the blood calcium levels can and must be done quickly. In severe cases, calcium may be needed more often throughout the day and night, as often as every 2 hours.

[monroe]

Thank you so so soooo much. I gave him some molases and hes playing like a mad man. Ill deffinetly try everything you've said and keep you posted. Thanks so much♡♡

[CritterMom]

I very strongly suggest you start giving him the calcium supplementation described above. He is at the perfect age to get MBD. He is weaned from formula - it used to supply him with all the calcium he needed - but now that he is weaned his diet is very deficient in it. But he is still growing and is using it like crazy. When I sawy "strongly suggest" what I mean is START half an hour ago.

[monroe]

ive been following everything youve been saying to a T. He seemed to be doing better then every just an hour ago. We were playing like crazy. I got a whole bunch of play nibbles and kisses while he jumped around and restled my hand. Then he went to his little nest and started cleaning himself. I went to the bathroom and when I got back, he was laying outside the nest and was peed himself. Hes currently sleeping on my stomach. His breathing doesnt seem to be the best either. Im extreamly confused and worried. From what ive been told (even by you today and the diet you recommended) his diet has been perfect. Im amazed how over the coarse of 15 hours how his health could go from perfect to worrysom. Im veru very worried. I just found out I couldnt release him a week ago due to head trauma from the fall. I would hate for anything to happen. Hes my heart♡

[farrelli]

So, you're continuing to give the calcium? The idea is to keep blood levels constant.

If you have it, I would also give a tiny bit of a D3 vitamin. Too much is toxic. D3 is necessary for calcium absorption, and from my brief scan of your posts, it's as lacking in his diet as calcium. Only give it once though. D is stored in the fat, as opposed to CA, which washes out.

[SammysMom]

Could you post a picture? Also, cen you tell us about the head trauma?

[monroe]

Well the link to the "healthy diet" above, when I checked it out, ive been following his diet to a T since his weaning. Ive only posted his favorites in my above post. Im not sure I have any D3 but I will check. If not, I can go pick some up. But ive been following the calcium recommendation to the letter since it was suggested. Again, he seemed perfectly fine until 10 minutes ago. More energy then ive ever seen him have. Even this morning when he had his little kicking and shaking fit he was fine 3 minutes after. This time there was no kicking, no shaking, nothing. If I hadnt checked up on him I wouldnt have thouhht anything was wrong.

[SammysMom]

Do you have molasses? A bit on his gums after one of these episodes will help to raise his blood sugar.

[SammysMom]

Do you mean that you have been giving rodent block all along?

[monroe]

I cant post a picture on this site with my phone unfortunately. But if you would like to exchange emails or I could post a link to my facebook. The post would be on public. And I dont know much about it. I started noticing that he would lean to the left a lot and seemed a teeny bit off balance, knowing it was coming close to release time I decided to bring him to a vet to get checked out and make sure everything was okay. I was then told not to release him because he wouldnt be able to live normally out in the wild due to head trauma. He had fractured his skull in the fall and grew a littlw out of place (hence why his left eye sticks a little further out than his right) They said it wasnt too severe but to keep an eye on him incase things got worse as he grew.

[SammysMom]

Okay, you can text message pics to me at 203 214-7427 or email me at vfwpost7666@sbcglobal.net

[monroe]

Molasses yes. I just gave him some before I posted here again. Rodent block. Yes. Not all along because I had ordered some and they only got here about 3 weeks ago and hes 3 months old

[SammysMom]

Does he actually eat the blocks? Perhaps it is not a calcium deficiency and more of a neurological issue.

[monroe]

Seems like it. I see him biting on them often. Wether or not he actually swallows I have no idea

[monroe]

I also just emailed you photos.

[SammysMom]

Here are some pictures of Twitch. Maybe you can give some info on each of them.

[farrelli]

If you think he might not have been eating the blocks, I would give a LITTLE vitamin D. The calcium, however, can't hurt at all.

I worry about the shot of him outside. Don't know if he was really outside or not, but you should never take a sq outside unless it's to be released. We have so many sad stories of them running off, getting caught by predators, etc.

[SammysMom]

I want to say that Farrelli is right about the outdoors. Particularly one who is neuro the big space can bring on seizure activity as well. He needs to be sort of confined to places where he cannot fall also. Even in the house, if he free roams, you have to be very aware of where he is and what he is doing. If he is in a really tall cage, you can put hammocks or other soft things to divide it so there is no chance of falling in it either.

[monroe]

Okay. So. The one outside and the one where hes sitting are from this morning. The on where he is laying on my stomach is from now.

[SammysMom]

He is adorable!:grouphug

[monroe]

As for outside. No. He isnt really outside. Its more of a padio porch. Its like a room but instead of walls, its all windows. Its an addition to the house. Like an add on to a trailer home.

[monroe]

Yeah hes my little angel. He fell out the tree infront of my house while I was going through a ruff time. Taking care od him has really picked me up. I hope hes gonna be okay

[Shewhosweptforest]

I'm praying for you and Twitch :grouphug he's adorable :Love_Icon Just stick to what your being told...I think he may still have ups and downs ...but stick to the protocol. Also, as someone said earlier...maybe it's from his initial injury. Sometimes this happens as they get older :dono Sending love and healing vibes :hug

[monroe]

just wanted tp let you all know hes doing much much better now. he slept on my stomach the entire night and in the morning he was back to his old self. hes still getting calcium and the vet perscribed ne a multivitamin to desolve in his water bottle. he hasnt gotten back into eating very much yet and has lost some weight but he hasnt had a seizure in 36 hours and os drinking a looottt of water. very happy with this progress. even if its only a little. thank you so much :)

[SammysMom]

Good news, Monroe! Can you give us a bit more info on the vitamin? Maybe a pic of the label? Often vets don't really have everyday knowledge of squirrels. Here on TSB we have a wealth of collective knowledge that most vets can't possibly come close to. Vitamins often have a really poor ratio of vitamin D for squirrels and other rodents.
NOT trying to dis your vet, but trying to look out for you and your baby...:grouphug

[monroe]

its juat an infusion of vitamine a, d and calcium. the perscription is just to get it in baby form here in canada. but I was told I could get a multivitamin and disolve it in his water once a week as to not give him too much of such vitamine along with 100mg of calcium every day. they said after about 2 weeks I can give him 100 mg in his wayer every 2 to 3 days once he gets used to a certain diet. (I feed him the correct diet but hes very picky and will often only eat the fruits and nuts and not touch the rest)


also. huge question. im moving in a few weeks. is there anything I should know about moving him to a new appartment? we are trying to cage off half out spare room so he can have a much larger space to he a crazy fuzzy buddy in but im not sure if the move and new environment will be stressfull on him like it would be dogs and cats. im not moving far. im leaving my parents and renting the house upstairs so its not a biiig move. is there anything I should be concerned about or keep an eye on? anything to make him more at ease? how are squirrels with carpet? ahould I remove it?

[monroe]

also, because of his pickyness, what are the main vitamins he needs to live healthy? I understand the vets dont know very much due to inexperience (especially here in montreal) so I would much rather get all the information I need here before I get hos perscription filled. animal perscriptions are exspensive and wont always work. so if its something I can go pick up at an animal supply, order or get at my local drugstore I would feel much more comfortable. since im unable to release him due to head trauma I want to provide him with the best life he could possibly have. also, any animals they get along with besides other squirrels? im not always around and though I have someone to care for him while im gone, my dog has a puppy, I got my grandmothers cat a kitten, are there any animals they are friendly with so he has another fuzzy buddy to be crazy with?

[island rehabber]

are there any animals they are friendly with so he has another fuzzy buddy to be crazy with?

What he truly needs is to be with other baby squirrels. It is always extremely risky to have predator animals in the same space as prey animals -- cats & dogs are not good companions for a squirrel. Sorry. :tilt

[Spanky]

MOST IMPORTANT: order Henry's Healthy Blocks. www.henryshealthypets.com Two per day gives him all the calcium & other essential vities he needs to stay healthy.

See above: IR already gave you the very best advice earlier in this thread concerning nutrition.

Cat saliva is lethal to squirrels, so keep him away from cats. Dogs, well are dogs and can hurt the little guy in a flash without even realizing.

Animal "stuffies" make good toys, but make sure no hard eyeballs or anything like that to choke on.

Carpet in a squirrel room probably is not a good idea.

[SammysMom]

All he needs is to eat healthy blocks and the rest of the healthy diet seen here http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?44440-Healthy-Diet-for-Pet-Squirrels. I would NEVER give a multivitamin. Our general rule of thumb is to put nothing except water in their water bottles. A human has totally different ratios of vitamin requirements so it really is not a good idea.

[island rehabber]

All he needs is to eat healthy blocks and the rest of the healthy diet seen here http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?44440-Healthy-Diet-for-Pet-Squirrels. I would NEVER give a multivitamin. Our general rule of thumb is to put nothing except water in their water bottles. A human has totally different ratios of vitamin requirements so it really is not a good idea.

I agree 100%...no vitamins unless it is a pinch of the vitamin powder Henry's sells.

[monroe]

thanks so much. this is exactly why I thought I should get a second opinion from you guys before doing anything.
I dont have any cats cause im allergic and really just dont like them but I have 2 dogs. one is extreamly gentil and though the squirrel wants to play with him hes scared of him. my pit is waaaaay too hyper and I put her in a seperate room before I even think about letting him run about. but teddies are great ill deffinetly get some of those.
and I will definitely be ordering more of those blocks.
I also know other squirrels are best for him which is why it breaks my heart not to be able to release him. so ill get him a few squirrel stuffies from the toy store :)
hopefully I can figure this site out and post photos of his progress :)

another question. what sorts of wood should I be avoiding? we want to put a few little trees in his cage but not 100% sure what to avoid. we mainly have maple and oak in my area. some apple trees
would those be okay?

[SammysMom]

All three of those trees are fine as long as there is no chance they were sprayed.:thumbsup

[farrelli]

The gold standard of blocks are Henry's:

http://www.henryspets.com/squirrel-diet/

A bag would last a month. You'd have to call for shipping info, it's not as high as the website says, but it's still kind of high. Some people just get the vitamin pack and make their own with some recipes we have here so as to save a lot of money on that shipping. And if you still can't afford that, you can order these lesser quality but still good blocks within Canada.

http://www.chinchilla.ca/detail.php?ProductID=HT201805

[monroe]

a little update. twitch is heating his proper diet along with the blocks and is a happy little guy. well.... no longer little. his fur has really thickened and he's put on some weight. hes a chubby little fella. I brought him to a wildlife vet that I found 2 hours outside my city that has a lot of experience with squirrels. since he put on weight I figured the travel would be much needed since I was worried about the weight. he has a clean bill of health and is healthier than most captive and wild squirrels. (besides his head trauma). as for the head trauma they assured me he would be fine only that his balance and co ordination would be off leaving him sort of clumsy. (which ive noticed) but other than that hes a happy fat squirrel. thank you soooo much for all your help. ♡♡♡

[farrelli]

Great to hear!