Adult squirrel regurgitating repeatedly

[StringTheory]

I have quite a bit of experience with squirrels, but I haven't seen this before.
An -adult- squirrel has been regurgitating every hour or so. No internal injuries,
and no other forewarning. She has not gotten into any foreign substances. No
poison, etc. Appetite seemed fine.

Out of the blue, she regurgitated a rather viscous yellow substance, presumably
her food. Then drank some water about an hour later and threw that up as well.
This has happened about 6 or 7 times so far over the past 5 hours.

Squirrels are supposedly unable to 'throw up' in the same way that humans do,
so I'm using the term regurgitate, but it is about the same thing, without the
spasmodic stomach constrictions that we get (at least as far as I can determine).

Again, her diet has not changed, and I've noticed no other behavioral changes.
She'll be going to the vet today, but I wanted to find out if anyone else has seen
this before. I have not.

[lovesmice]

You are right that they regurgitate as opposed to vomit and that they are different processes, same as in mice and rats. I do not know if the reasons are the same, though, between these species for this or even if the internal anatomy differs, but RatBehavior does a nice job of explaining regurgitation and vomit processes and why the former might occur. My knowledge of squirrels is limited, though, to my feeding them outside which is why I rarely post in the ER section, but hopefully a squirrel pro will come along to offer ideas:

http://www.ratbehavior.org/vomit.htm

I hope the vet visit goes well, and the problem gets resolved. I hope, too, you will post an update.

[SammysMom]

Is it possible she had something with skin that might be caught and not allowing food to go down?

[squirrelsrule&bunniestoo]

Since there was no abdominal component, it's regurgitating, and that makes esophageal issues the primary concern. Could be something caught in the esophagus, a motility issue with the esophagus, or a mass within our around the esophagus. With it happening so suddenly, my guess is something caught in her esophagus. Maybe a piece of grape is lodged in there, or other food. With her being able to take in food and water and not instantly bringing it up in small amounts, I'd say that it's probably more distal esophagus, toward the stomach.

How long have you had the squirrel and how did you get it? If it's a recent admission and is very skinny, I'd think more chronic obstruction or potentially a mass. If it is a squirrel you've had for a while, I'd go more with acute blockage, and hope that it passes. If it was my own squirrel, I think my first step would be to pass a feeding tube down the esophagus and see if it makes it to the stomach/ maybe clears the blockage. You would want to be gentle as it could be a piece of wood, antler, or something else sharp, but that sounds like a lot better plan than surgery to me. I don't think there's any way you're gonna get at the esophagus of a squirrel, except coming up through the stomach and it's gonna be really hard.

[lovesmice]

That article I posted earlier said when the food is caught in the throat the animal, in that case rat, "...who has trouble swallowing a food item may strain intently, pull his chin down toward his throat and flatten his ears. He may drool saliva, paw at his mouth, and rub his mouth on nearby surfaces. Most rats are still able to breathe through this (true choking is rare in rats), and work the food out themselves in time, but serious cases may require veterinary assistance." It further said, "Difficulty swallowing may superficially resemble vomiting because partly processed food may come back out of the mouth, but it is not vomiting, which is the forceful, rapid, coordinated, reflexive expulsion of stomach contents."

[Chickenlegs]

Please let us know how she's doing and what caused the problem!

[SammysMom]

Just checking in to see how this little sweetheart is doing. Hope the vet is able to help! :grouphug

[StringTheory]

Just checking back to let everyone know about this: Her bloodwork is fine, her X-rays clear, and everyone is mystified. She seems to be recovering, but her behavior is still a bit strange. This is one of those times when you'd give anything if they could talk for a few minutes. Or at least text or something.

Her regurgitating looked just like a human vomiting except I didn't notice reflexive abdominal constriction (not to say that it didn't happen). The Xrays showed a couple tiny spots that may be mineral deposits but those are grain-of-sand sized. Unlikely to cause extreme upset (I'm presuming that she didn't eat small pieces of plutonium). Her digestive tract was apparently completely clear, as in void, nothing. The 'vomit' was babyfood consistency, not like chewed up veggies and nuts that you'd expect from the esophagus--more like stomach contents. As odd as it sounds, it does look like she effectively 'vomited.'

The only other similar incidents that anyone was able to find were accounts from a rehabber in PA, who recounted two very similar-sounding cases: "Vomiting", uneventful vet visits with no red flags, then subsequent recovery.

Thanks to everyone who checked in on this! I'm afraid it may remain a mystery. Hopefully she'll be completely normal soon.

[Nancy in New York]

Thank you for letting us know how the vet visit went.
Hopefully she IS on the road to recovery.
Funny how sometimes there are just no answers to all of our
questions.
Glad she is feeling a bit better.
Yeah.........if they could only talk. :)
:hug

[island rehabber]

Truly a mystery....but so happy she's better. Thanks for updating us!