Re: Need dosing help for suspected pneumonia??

[NayNay6680]

I got 3, (6) week old squirrels all have suspected aspiration pneumonia. My vet is out of town until next week. I just have Amoxicillin 400mg/5mL Should I start them with this antibiotic since it is all I have on hand? If so what would be proper dosage? Thank you

[Nancy in New York]

I got 3, (6) week old squirrels all have suspected aspiration pneumonia. My vet is out of town until next week. I just have Amoxicillin 400mg/5mL Should I start them with this antibiotic since it is all I have on hand? If so what would be proper dosage? Thank you

The ideal drugs would be Cipro (Human antibiotic) Baytril (Animal ab.)
Augmentin (Human) Clavamox (Animal)
Call friends and family and see if they have any of the above abs.
If Amoxi. is all you have, they can be started on that, while you look
for the others mentioned above.

What makes you think all of them have aspiration pneumonia?
Have they all aspirated?
We would need a weight in grams on all of them.
What size syringe are you using?
What are you feeding?
Is this your first experience with squirrels?
How long have you had them?

[HRT4SQRLS]

If they are clicking they need antibiotics. Amoxicillin isn’t the best but if it’s all you have you can use it.
We would need their weights to properly dose this.

[NayNay6680]

The ideal drugs would be Cipro (Human antibiotic) Baytril (Animal ab.)
Augmentin (Human) Clavamox (Animal)
Call friends and family and see if they have any of the above abs.
If Amoxi. is all you have, they can be started on that, while you look
for the others mentioned above.

What makes you think all of them have aspiration pneumonia?
Have they all aspirated?
We would need a weight in grams on all of them.
What size syringe are you using?
What are you feeding?
Is this your first experience with squirrels?
How long have you had them?

I got them yesterday from a guy who has had them for a few days and told me he saw milk.come.out their noses while trying to feed them. I am using 3 ml syringe and have been rehydrating them for now to get them stable. They are in my ICU incubator and started on the Amoxicillin. I will be able to get Baytril in a few days. Weight is 122 grams. No milk yet as I want them to stabilize first, then I have Fox Valley Squirrel milk and Puppy Esbilac on hand.

[Nancy in New York]

I got them yesterday from a guy who has had them for a few days and told me he saw milk.come.out their noses while trying to feed them. I am using 3 ml syringe and have been rehydrating them for now to get them stable. They are in my ICU incubator and started on the Amoxicillin. I will be able to get Baytril in a few days. Weight is 122 grams. No milk yet as I want them to stabilize first, then I have Fox Valley Squirrel milk and Puppy Esbilac on hand.

How much Amox are you giving?
Did you get help with the dosage?
Is the puppy esbilac like the one pictured below?
Did you get the Fox Valley 20/50 or the 32/40?
Does their skin tent when you pinch between the shoulders?
Do not use Pedialyte for more than 24 hours if that's what
you're using to hydrate them.
When you say stabilize them, what do you mean?
Even if they have aspiration pneumonia they need to eat.
Go really slow, with the squirrel in an upright position and the tip
of the syringe (nipple) pointed toward the roof of their mouth.

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-fbcDH6c/0/5fb600fb/S/i-fbcDH6c-S.jpg

[kcassidy]

What dose are you using with the Amoxi?

As Nancy and others said, it is a science, so the strength of the drug is needed, as well as the weight of the squirrels. From that we can help you determine how much to give. If you need help I can send some meds as Amoxicillian isn't the right choice. Also it is extremely hard on their stomachs/guts. they will need pro biotics given either 2 hours before or 2 hours after each dose of antibiotics

Regards,