Alli, 3yrs old, has had ear infection for 1 year

[Crystal]

My sweet baby has had goopy greenish gunk oozing from ears for over a year. Been to vet, tried everything he suggested. Antibiotics in ear, by mouth, cleaning ears ect. He really can't give us anymore help and he is the only one here in MS that will see her. She is a chunky monkey weighing 1 lb 12 oz. Baytril helps but causes her seizures to come on more. I just clean them out 2-3 times a day right now. Any other advice would be helpful. Has anyone else ever have an issue like this? She is my daughter and gets rocked to sleep every night. She has access to sunshine outside but where nothing can get to her. She can come in and out through cage like tubes that go from inside to outside cage. She has run of the house and loves everybody! She even has her Granny who squirrel sits if we go out of town. I know you all know what a bond you can have with these loving animals!

Thanks in Advance!
Crystal

[redwuff]

Hi Crystal,

The relationship between you and your baby sounds amazing. I hope you share more about Alli with us.

I would think it is so vital that you get a culture of that scary sounding green goop. Would your vet do that for you? That will tell you what drugs will treat that infection and does not really need much expertise from the vet. Can you tell us what area you live in? Your baby really needs good experienced care, as you know. Hopefully we can figure out how to help you. I am impressed with the care that you give daily.

Besides a culture, I do wonder if a head X-ray might serve.

[stepnstone]

I would suggest you PM and get in touch with member ( lennysmom ).
Her girl had some serious long lasting issues with ear infections and went
through the same thing with meds, etc. These infections (like her girl's) can
be seated so deep cleaning only scrapes the surface and don't heal/close
the damage. Surgery was the only option.

[Crystal]

Thank you for your reply. I am calling her vet tomorrow to ask him about cultures!

[HRT4SQRLS]

Crystal, you'll find a lot of help here for the ear problem. It is actually a very complex issue and unfortunately the solution isn't simple. Just as a curiosity to me, does she have mobility issues with her hind legs? It's an odd observation but many of the squirrels with chronic ear problems also seem to be those with hindend mobility issues.

Something you said in your first post caught my attention. You mentioned that the Baytril causes her seizures to increase. You are very perceptive. Baytril actually IS associated with increased seizure activity. I wanted to ask why your baby has seizures. Was it due to head trauma as a baby? Seizures can also be due to diet. Has she always had seizures?

I know this isn't a question that you asked but I wanted to inquire about the diet.
We always like to ask about the diet to make sure that the diet has adequate calcium. When you mentioned seizures I wanted to rule out dietary issues as seizures can be associated with low calcium.

[lennysmom]

I’m sorry to hear your Alli is struggling so badly with an ear infection. As others have said, they can be very difficult to get rid of and no doubt painful for the squirrel.:( I responded to your PM in answer to your questions, but I forgot to mention about the use heat against her ear to hopefully provide some relief. My Ana has a microwaveable stuffed animal that I heated up until it was pretty warm, but not hot, and she seemed to get some relief when she laid against it. You could also try a sock filled with rice and microwave it until warm to see if that might help her as well. Praying that your sweet Alli gets some relief from this soon.:grouphug

[Crystal]

I'm not sure how to respond individually to each of you, sorry. But yes she has always had seizures. She fell out of the nest at 5 days old and that's when we took her in to help her. She also had a brother that fell with her. We attempted to return the babies to their mother and she killed the male right in front of my eyes! I was devastated!! So we called a rehabber close by and they would not take her. I vowed then to give her the best life possible! We do make sure she gets calcium and sunshine to help her body absorb it. We also have Calsorb for emergencies. I believe she had a head trauma from the fall though there is no positive evidence. Her vet said possible MBD but I am not absolute that is it. I also make sure she gets a Tums at least once a week (Calcium) and she has Walnuts, Pecans, Almonds, Blueberries, Watermelon, Strawberries, Snap Peas, Cauliflower, Broccoli and Carrots. Of course not all at once LOL. And she gets around good. She is overweight and her ears have caused her to sleep more and not be as active. When she was little she did have seizures so bad that she lost the use of her back end completely. But after 1 month she miraculously began using them more, we also encouraged and helped her, like squirrel physical rehabilitation. I hope this answered your questions. Thank you all for such wonderful feedback and helping me with my baby!

[HRT4SQRLS]

Wow, what a sad story about the babies.
I would have bet money that your girl had hindend mobility issues. There does seem to be a strong correlation between hindend mobility problems and ear infections. I personally believe it's related to limited ability to scratch the ears with the hind legs.

Here is a link to the Healthy Diet for Pet squirrels.
https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?44440-Healthy-Diet-for-Pet-Squirrels

I can see that you're aware of the calcium needs of squirrels but you did concern me when you mentioned in the diet walnuts, pecans and almond first. Too many nuts are the primary cause of MBD. We limit nuts to one per day as a treat.

Hopefully others can sound in as my Internet is down at home and I have limited access right now.

[redwuff]

Crystal I wonder if your baby has any access to a rodent block? Is there anything else you feed her besides the list mentioned above.


She looks like a very well loved girl.

[Crystal]

She does have 3 nuts per day. And we really have backed down. It is so tough when your baby is begging for goodies not to give them but we are trying for her health. It would kill me if I hurt her in anyway. We have tried The squirrel nut mix you blend with baby food and rodent blocks. She won't touch the blocks at all. We also tried taking everything else away and she still wouldn't eat. She is a bit stubborn like her mama. She also likes cucumbers. We do not give her any junk food. I have seen videos where people feed their babies pizza and chips. I sure don't see that being healthy. Only fruit, nuts and veggies. We will continue to back off the nuts. She does not get them during seizures at all. I did get an appointment with her vet next Tuesday. I am hoping he can further help with the diet and ear infection. He mentioned looking at the goop under a microscope. He said we could send for culture but this would be better since there are only certain antibiotics that you can give to a squirrel. Again thank you all! I want her to have the best and happiest life possible. Another question.....she gets plenty of our attention and is very needy but do they get lonely or depressed not having another squirrel with them? I have rehabbed many southern flying squirrels and they seem to do so well with each other. Not that we could incorporate a friend this late I'm sure. This was a life saving relationship. I do not believe in removing a healthy vibrant animal from outside just because you want one. I would love for her to have had her normal life. But she has in returned saved my life. I thank God everyday for her.

:thankyou

[Crystal]

And thank you for mentioning the warmth. It makes since to me now why she wants to stay in her outside cage box. Seems like she goes there more when her ears hurt.

[CritterMom]

Have you tried these blocks: https://www.henryspets.com/squirrel-diet/

They were designed with MBD in mind and function as food AND vitamin and mineral supplement. They also taste good - most people here use them for their longtime squirrels.

Very glad you got another appointment. Can you tell us which antibiotics you have used so far for this?

[lennysmom]

Actually I believe almonds have helped a few squirrels here that struggle with seizures because of the magnesium in them. Does she get any almonds? But getting her to eat some type of rodent block is important for nutrition. All of mine eat the blocks that CritterMom suggested above. In regards to your question about her needing company - grey squirrels are independent animals for the most part in the wild, so it’s very likely that she would not take kindly to another squirrel around, especially since she is an adult. I keep a tv on low in the room with my non releaseable squirrels and they seem to enjoy it. As long as she gets a decent amount of time out with you daily, she will be ok. Squirrels typically sleep a lot during the day anyway. Isn’t it amazing how much these little ones touch our hearts and change our lives? They truly are special gifts from God.:Love_Icon

[Crystal]

She does eat almonds. And I am not sure all the names of antibiotics but Baytril, Bactrim I think and several antibiotic and steroid based for use in the ears. I quit work to be home with her a couple of years ago. So she has my full attention! Yes it is amazing the love that I have for my baby. As I have mentioned she is my daughter. I could not imagine my life without her. And she is so friendly that she plays with all my sons friends when they are here. She is the talk of the town lol!

[HRT4SQRLS]

Have you ever tried Momentamax?
It has gentamicin as the antibiotic. It wouldn't have the seizure risk that Baytril has. It also has an antifungal (clotrimazole) and a steroid. The fact that you can see pus makes me think this is outer ear but it can certainly be both (inner and outer).

Green goopy gunk of often associated with Pseudomonas in ears. It's very common in ears. Pseudomonas is usually sensitive to fluoroquinolone like Baytril and aminoglycosides like gentamicin, tobramycin and amikacin. Other than these two classes, it is very resistant.

[lennysmom]

The Momentamax ear drops that HRT suggested were what helped Ana most prior to surgery, especially with discomfort and pain, so that may be a good choice for Alli as well.:thumbsup

[Crystal]

We have never tried that one, I will certainly suggest it! Baytril helped but after a few days stopped because of seizures. If this one is like the Baytril I feel confident it could be the solution! Thank you both sooo much!

[Crystal]

UPDATE

Went to vet today. Going to try Baytril Otic since it seemed to be working orally but this should not upset the seizures. Crossing fingers! He says it appears to be mostly outer ear with possible middle but he does not believe she will need any type of surgery. I will keep you all posted on how she does this week. Thanks again my Squirrel Friends :grouphug

[lennysmom]

Yes, please keep us posted. I hope her infection is indeed only in the outer ear and that the new medicine will finally rid her of nasty ear infection.:grouphug

[Crystal]

I'd love to report things are better but this is not the case. I was given Baytril Otic and after 3 days her ears were getting better but she has had 5 seizures over the last 2 days. Her vet will be back in on Monday. I need something good to work out. Today is her birthday she is3. No way to spend a birthday sick....

[lennysmom]

Oh no, poor little girly.:( I’m sorry to hear the Otic Baytril also gave her seizures. Perhaps you could ask your vet about Mometamax or Tobramycin drops for her ears. The Tobramycin is very mild, since it’s used for the eye.
Happy 3rd birthday sweet Alli!:hb1 I hate she’s sick but I hope she will at least feel well enough to get a special treat for her birthday.:Love_Icon:grouphug

[HRT4SQRLS]

Absolutely... 100% ... ask for the Momentamax. It will target the same organisms as Baytril. If he doesn't carry it ask for a script. It can be bought online with (or actually without :embar ) a script but it's easier with an Rx.

[Crystal]

Back to the vet again tomorrow....

[Crystal]

Still having seizures. Off the meds again.

[lennysmom]

Still having seizures. Off the meds again.

I’m sorry to hear that. :( What meds did you have her on last? Have you tried the Tobramycin eye drops? I’m praying a med can be found to help her ears without making her seizures worse.:grouphug