6 week old baby scratching cheek when feeding

[LoveLife]

Has anyone else experienced their squirrel scratching their checks with their claws (on accident) when drinking formula form the nipple?

He gets so excited and his little paws are moving so fast that he scratches himself until he bleeds a little. Only started happening within the last two days. I use water to gently cleanse the area after. I can't get him to calm down when feeding, so just hoping it doesn't become a bigger issue and get infected.

[redwuff]

Sounds like he is really hungry. Have you started him on block?

[kcassidy]

Yes. I have had a few that did this. Not much you can do except put some neosporin on it after you're done feeding

[LoveLife]

Sounds like he is really hungry. Have you started him on block?

He has quite the appetite when he eats. I have not started him on the block, but am ordering it right now. Thanks for the reminder as I think he is ready for it.

[LoveLife]

Yes. I have had a few that did this. Not much you can do except put some neosporin on it after you're done feeding

Thanks you for sharing your experience. I will start to use neosporin and continue to sooth the area with warm water. I'm going to be introducing solids to him this week as well so hope that helps with the feeding frenzy. Good to know it is something that is not all that abnormal.

[Spanky]

I also have had babies that did this every once in a rare while..

[Javarat]

instead of feeding him while holding him up, try laying him down on a pillow or blanket with his chest lifted, so he can grab the surface that instead of waving his arms around.
You can tilt the pillow so he still has a 45 degree up angle, while grabbing onto the pillow.
I used to use a small round bolster type pillow on my table, and drape their front end on it.. like they were 'bellying up to the milk bar'.
Make sure you have a towel or something under him to catch pee during feeding.

[LoveLife]

Thanks for the advice everyone. There was some improvement on him scratching while feeding. Going to continue working on better feeding angles and helping him relax while he eats.