V1C/ Paralyzed squirrel, in shock

[Bravo]

Hi, I tried to join a little while ago (V1C is the username) because I have a very small grey squirrel who is now in my rabbit hutch. The
squirrel is dragging his back legs, is very small for this time of year and up until a few hours ago was surrounded by cats. I think I've
seen this little guy before and he seemed distressed in the hindquarters then. So I don't think a cat got him yet.

The problem is that he appears to be in shock now and I dont want him to die. I did cover him and I put a heating pad under him but not directly under him. He should be getting the warmth though.

Please advise- Thanks, Bravo :grouphug

[SammysMom]

Where are you located V1C?

[Nancy in New York]

V1C you should be able to post as you were admitted as a member and have full privileges.
For anyone reading this, I will send him an email along with a link to this thread so he knows where to post.
SammysMom his user profile says he's from Carlstadt, New Jersey.

[Nancy in New York]

I Love Lucy is a rehabber there and she has lots of contacts. IF he comes back on, I can give him her contact info. but he will have to call her tomorrow, it's too late tonight.
If he doesn't come back on, I will email the contact info to him.

[Bravo]

Thanks SM, Nancy. I've emailed him as well, hoping to hear from him tomorrow.

[SammysMom]

If this is a young guy and he is possibly in shock, giving him a warm place to be with lots of fleece, tee shirts or flannel would be helpful. A sock filled with uncooked rice and microwaved for 30 seconds might also be a good idea. Shock lowers body temp.

[V1C]

Hi everyone, thanks for getting back to me. Currently the little guy is in a rabbit hutch outside. I did put a heating pad underneath the bottom screen. He is under some old flannel and should be warm. I also don't know howa squirrel in this condition would react at night. So for tonight I will leave him be and hope he,s ok. He has some cracked corn and a few unsalted nuts as well as water in a shallow bowl. But he is in shock so I don't think he'll eat until he snaps out of it. I'm hoping things change in the morning. As I mentioned he is dragging his hind quarters. I'm leaving for vacation on Sunday. My daughter will be around but it would be helpful if there was a pro near me. Im willing to help the little guy and even help him for the rest of his days but would prefer he had every chance to live. Im hoping someone could send me a PM with a rehab person near me. Thanks in advance for your help.
Yes, I'm in carlstadt NJ. It's after midnight here so I'll be back on tomorrow.

[farrelli]

Can you rehydrate him? Feed him sweetened water with a syringe? Can you apply some molasses to his gums or make molasses water? Shock is very bad and hydration and sugar are key. And molasses contains good minerals too. Maple syrup is next good, then any other syrup.

[SammysMom]

If it is possible to bring him indoors, it would be better for him to be warm. I am in CT and it is really very cool tonight.

[Nancy in New York]

Is there any possible way to bring the whole hutch inside or at the very least into the garage?
"When they are in shock their body temperature drops.
An animal experiencing shock will have a reduction in the circulatory fluid to the peripheral body. The loss of circulatory fluid can be due to external or internal causes. The body tries to direct blood volume to the vital organs in self -preservation. However,if there is a large loss of circulatory volume, tissues and organs are deprived of vital oxygen and nutrients."

Possible treatment for all types of shock

Fluid therapy. Provide vigorous fluid therapy to increase circulatory volume. Use balanced electrolyte solutions such as lactated ringer solution.
Or pedialyte for now.

Warmth. Place the animal in a WARMED area

[farrelli]

Oh yes, didn;t realize he was outside! He may even run off long before he's ready. Or even just try to and get picked off by a predator. You have nothing to fear from him.

[SammysMom]

I do think he is in a rabbit hutch, so is secure, but I am really concerned about the drop in temperature. I just closed all windows and made sure the heating pad is on for the bigger babies as well as of course being under the little guys. The temperature will be his biggest problem.
We are not meaning to be critical, but would hate for him to pass overnight just because of it being too cold for his little body.

[farrelli]

Cold definitely exacerbates shock.

[Nancy in New York]

I do think he is in a rabbit hutch, so is secure, but I am really concerned about the drop in temperature. I just closed all windows and made sure the heating pad is on for the bigger babies as well as of course being under the little guys. The temperature will be his biggest problem.
We are not meaning to be critical, but would hate for him to pass overnight just because of it being too cold for his little body.

That's right. Their body temps drop anyway from shock, add to that the outside temperature. This is NOT a good situation for a little squirrel to be in. :shakehead

If you can bring the hutch inside or at the very least into the garage, that's better than being outside.
Thank you for helping him, but for tonight he needs more help due to being in shock, please try to get him inside where it's warmer.

[Nancy in New York]

OK he's off line now.
I hope this little one makes it overnight.

[island rehabber]

Not to be a downer here but if the squirrel did indeed break his back and was already showing signs of shock, chances are he will be one of the majority who passes within 72hrs of this type of injury. If this is the case we can only hope at least he was safe and comfortable when he passed. There is no recovery from this type of injury -- at least not to the point of releasable. :(

[V1C]

Not to be a downer here but if the squirrel did indeed break his back and was already showing signs of shock, chances are he will be one of the majority who passes within 72hrs of this type of injury. If this is the case we can only hope at least he was safe and comfortable when he passed. There is no recovery from this type of injury -- at least not to the point of releasable. :(

OK everyone. He did make it through the night and he's actually kind of feisty this morning. He is still in the hutch and he tried to run past me to escape. He went at me when I tried to touch him so Im not comfortable touching him just yet (mostly for fear of mutual injury). He rearranged his bedding as well. For a broken back (or whatever the case) he sure moves quickly.
Either way, I am not qualified to handle this guy. He is secure in the rabbit hutch but it is chilly here. I have 2 cats myself so having him in the house would be an issue. He is warm and was covered both inside and out. I'm sure he was much warmer last night than he would have been left to his own devices.

[Nancy in New York]

OK everyone. He did make it through the night and he's actually kind of feisty this morning. He is still in the hutch and he tried to run past me to escape. He went at me when I tried to touch him so Im not comfortable touching him just yet (mostly for fear of mutual injury). He rearranged his bedding as well. For a broken back (or whatever the case) he sure moves quickly.
Either way, I am not qualified to handle this guy. He is secure in the rabbit hutch but it is chilly here. I have 2 cats myself so having him in the house would be an issue. He is warm and was covered both inside and out. I'm sure he was much warmer last night than he would have been left to his own devices.

I just pm'd you contact infor for a rehabber.
Hopefully she will be able to help you.
Thank you for all that you've done. :grouphug

[V1C]

245420 He did not spend the night uncovered like this. I removed bedding to show size and condition. He's not a 'baby'. I would say he's a teen in squirrel years.

[V1C]

245421 His hutch is covered on all side but the front which was covered overnight. His heating pad has kept him very warm. It is under the drip pan. He was covered all night and I'm sure his living conditions were just as good if not better than usual. It was the best I could provide. I have no garage and 2 cats inside.

[V1C]

I just pm'd you contact infor for a rehabber.
Hopefully she will be able to help you.
Thank you for all that you've done. :grouphug

Got it. Thank you much. I will call soon.

[Shewhosweptforest]

Thank you for watching out for him:hug the way he's holding his body is exactly the way my Poppy does...and she's fast and can jump:eek I believe a wild could survive from an injury such as this for a short while...until, a predator notices them....so this may be an earlier injury :dono sadly, with the cats in your area this will happen quickly. Didn't you report that he was surrounded by cats when you found him :( poor baby, I hope you can find a rehabber to take him :bowdown :Love_Icon

[V1C]

He was surrounded by cats! Let me explain. I have two very sweet cats that I only allow in my yard for short periods of time. They are very inexperienced outdoors and have never killed anything. But they are still curious cats and I would not trust them just yet. So when my wife went out to check on the kitties (like every few minutes) there were multiple other cats in my yard all around this squirrel (mine included). We've never encountered this scenario before and we have had multiple cats in our family. They must have chased him into our yard and then encountered my cats (which looked like a show down from the wild west) .The cats were mostly concerned with each other which likely saved this little guys life. We shewed the strangers away and took our cats inside.

This squirrels condition was like this before because I seen him eating from the bottom of my garbage can a few times. Every time I seen him I noticed he walked funny but had not payed too much attention. I'm hoping he comes around a little socially. I could provide him safer haven

[Nancy in New York]

He was surrounded by cats! Let me explain. I have two very sweet cats that I only allow in my yard for short periods of time. They are very inexperienced outdoors and have never killed anything. But they are still curious cats and I would not trust them just yet. So when my wife went out to check on the kitties (like every few minutes) there were multiple other cats in my yard all around this squirrel (mine included). We've never encountered this scenario before and we have had multiple cats in our family. They must have chased him into our yard and then encountered my cats (which looked like a show down from the wild west) .The cats were mostly concerned with each other which likely saved this little guys life. We shewed the strangers away and took our cats inside.

This squirrels condition was like this before because I seen him eating from the bottom of my garbage can a few times. Every time I seen him I noticed he walked funny but had not payed too much attention. I'm hoping he comes around a little socially. I could provide him safer haven

Yes, in your first post, you explained that he was in this condition.
Sometimes a course of prednisone will help if there isn't anything broken.
I just hope that wherever he goes, they allow him time to try to heal.
Thank you again for saving his life! :grouphug

[Monipenny]

Looks to be about a 7 weeks old. Yes, he can bite at that age, he is frightened and in pain, poor thing. It looks like possibly a broken back :( Cross fingers that it isn't. Offer plenty of fluids, gain his trust so he comes to learn that you are helping, this baby should be on formula, can you get Esbilac for puppies with probiotics, the can that has the thin blue strip at the very top which says prebiotics and probiotics, very important to get this one, not the other Esbilac. Make the formula per instructions, 2 parts water to 1 part powder, then with each feeding dilute the pre-mixed milk further with water. First couple of feedings 3 part water to 1 part pre-mixed milk, then couple of feedings with 2 part water to 1 part pre-mixed milk, then a couple of feedings half water and half milk, then go full strength formula. To feed milk, you need feeding syringes and preferably nipples, both can be ordered from Henry's, see link below.

If this baby makes it, the next food to feed is a quality block, most of us use Henry's Healthy blocks found here, http://www.henryspets.com/squirrel-diet/, if you buy some, get the Hi-protein ones.

Hopefully there is someone nearby who can take him or at least help you. Please keep us posted.

[I Love Lucy]

I spoke with Vic early this afternoon. He is unable to bring the squirrel to me before he leaves for vacation. He said he is very experienced with animals so I gave him detailed instructions for its care that his adult daughter will follow while he is gone. He will be bringing it to me when he gets home next weekend. He is going to give his daughter my phone number in case a question or problem arises.

[Shewhosweptforest]

Thank you I Love Lucy:bowdown that's awesome that'll you'll be helping :clap :Love_Icon V1C thank you, thank you, for helping this little fellow:hug I hope you have a wonderful vacation...knowing you helped a small soul :Love_Icon

[island rehabber]

Yay, I Love Lucy! I am so happy you are helping him and will be able to take the squirrel later.....this boy is in the best of hands, now!
:thumbsup

[Nancy in New York]

I spoke with Vic early this afternoon. He is unable to bring the squirrel to me before he leaves for vacation. He said he is very experienced with animals so I gave him detailed instructions for its care that his adult daughter will follow while he is gone. He will be bringing it to me when he gets home next weekend. He is going to give his daughter my phone number in case a question or problem arises.

Thank you yet again for ALWAYS being there.
It's just wonderful all the great work you do away from TSB,
and then to find the time to help on the board too, is just amazing!
You are one special girl, and I hope you know that! :Love_Icon