7 year old squirrel has growth and/or possible feces buildup on thumbs

[Kyrushi]

about 3 months ago I noticed my old friend here had a little something brown around their thumb. maybe 2 days later it fell off, so I thought maybe the squirrel hadn't been cleaning themselves as regularly anymore, which on its own concerns me because of his age. But then it happened again and got bigger. I saw him chewing at it, but it was very gentle as if he were in pain. He will not let me attempt to scrub it with a brush without getting aggressive. Eventually it fell off again so I assumed maybe it's not too big of a deal after all, because then he went over a month without anything covering his thumbs. I just got back from a camping trip and now it's back on BOTH thumbs and I can hear his breathing is now heavier. I tried to bathe him to no avail, he clings for dear life to my arm and makes distressed noises if I pry him off and is attacking the brush if I bring it close to his thumbs.

I don't know what to do about it or what it even is in the long run. I still think feces buildup is the most likely culprit, but he cleans every other part of his body perfectly fine, why would he choose to not clean his thumbs specifically? I'm afraid because he already has started to go blind as of last year and if this keeps happening he might get a serious infection, become difficult for him to move around, or make eating difficult. I haven't been able to find anything like this situation searching the internet so I really hope someone has as idea on what this is and how I can help!

[RockyPops]

Wow! Seven years! That's a good run for a squirrel.

Thanks for taking care of him.

Check back here often and someone will chime in.

Meanwhile, close up pics will help if you can.

And does he have a name?

[Kyrushi]

His name is Nibbles.

I tried to get a good picture but he's still mad at me from trying to give him a bath so he won't let me handle him at the moment. This is the best I could snap.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=17FS7hLT6HMG_40cMBnW2WPhdIpcK2vGB

[Kyrushi]

Shoot I can't find an edit button and the link i used to post the picture in post didn't work. gonna just give a direct link to it. I circled the growth/buildup

https://drive.google.com/open?id=17FS7hLT6HMG_40cMBnW2WPhdIpcK2vGB

[HRT4SQRLS]

I can’t make heads or tails from the pic. Isn’t his hand by his face on that side?

[Kyrushi]

I can’t make heads or tails from the pic. Isn’t his hand by his face on that side?

No, his face is above. I got another photo here while he was snacking. I hope it's more clear to you. https://drive.google.com/open?id=1q0lRdNFamURdUD8amGG__bvirTqhXHfc

I once again circled the problem. These brown things are hanging off their thumbs. In 3 days they managed to get this large while I wasn't home and i'm genuinely shocked. The last time this happened they were barely the size of their eye.

[HRT4SQRLS]

I have never seen anything like that. I’m sure you know they just have nubs for thumbs. Is it possible that he is chewing the nubs like an obsessive compulsive disorder? If he is chewing them it’s probably infection with a possible abscess. It can’t imagine that it would be poop. His entire paw would be caked if that was the issue. I’m sure his cage isn’t that dirty that it could be poop.

Rats get a condition called bumblefoot but it’s on the bottom of the feet. It’s basically ulcerations from walking in a dirty cage OR a wire bottom cage. It’s an infection. I have never seen it in squirrels but I suppose they could get it. https://www.thesprucepets.com/bumblefoot-in-rats-1238512

You say you were out of town camping. Did the cage get dirty while you were gone?
I still think a soiled cage would cause issues on the bottom of the feet, not on the thumb nubs.

Do you have a vet? Can you give us an idea of where in FL you are as we might be able to recommend a safe vet.

[Kyrushi]

I have never seen anything like that. I’m sure you know they just have nubs for thumbs. Is it possible that he is chewing the nubs like an obsessive compulsive disorder? If he is chewing them it’s probably infection with a possible abscess. It can’t imagine that it would be poop. His entire paw would be caked if that was the issue. I’m sure his cage isn’t that dirty that it could be poop.

Rats get a condition called bumblefoot but it’s on the bottom of the feet. It’s basically ulcerations from walking in a dirty cage OR a wire bottom cage. It’s an infection. I have never seen it in squirrels but I suppose they could get it. https://www.thesprucepets.com/bumblefoot-in-rats-1238512

You say you were out of town camping. Did the cage get dirty while you were gone?
I still think a soiled cage would cause issues on the bottom of the feet, not on the thumb nubs.

Do you have a vet? Can you give us an idea of where in FL you are as we might be able to recommend a safe vet.

I don't think he's been obsessively gnawing on them. Or at least he hadn't that I noticed until this started happening, but when he gnaws on whatever this is he seems to be pained. But it doesn't bother him while running and climbing, which is odd.

The only difference I can think of in his environment is that we stopped putting towels in there. Earlier this year his claws started getting stuck in the little loops and I would have to cut him loose several times a week. I replaced it for a collapsible cat bed, a pillow case, some dust rags, and some plush toy stuffing for him to nest with in the cat bed. It wasn't until this change that the problem started happening. I cleaned the cage before leaving and had some food and water left behind so that my mother wouldn't have to do much while I was away. So no, it shouldn't be a cleanliness problem.

I live in Jacksonville Florida off of San Jose. I know of a vet, but they're down town so it takes some time. If you know of any closer that would be appreciated.

[Mel1959]

One of the best squirrel vets in the country is located in Port Orange....but DEFINITELY worth the drive. Her name is Dr. Alicia EMERSON and her clinic is Ravenwood Vet Clinic, 386-788-1550. She’s not far off of I-95, and a much easier drive than going downtown. :grin3

And did I mention...she LOVES squirrels!

[Baxied]

Our guinea pig had something similar once. Not sure if it was bumblefoot (pododermatitis) or foot spurs. It was years ago and my memory is not what it used to be. :grin2 The vet snipped them off, and I put antibiotic ointment on the spots where they had been. I remember thinking it looked like feces as well, but it definitely wasn't. I hope you can get to the bottom of it, and he feels better soon!

[Diggie's Friend]

I hope it is just a callous thing. Many years ago we cared for a squirrel that developed a growth on the pad of one of their fingers, that was a cancer.

Best to take your squirrel in asap. to make sure the growth is benign.

[HRT4SQRLS]

You mentioned that this started when you changed the bedding to a cat bed with other things.
Yes, towels are dangerous so we don’t use them. The loops can cause the serious injuries. We use fleece. I wonder if the soft cushy bed is causing the thumb nubs to be irritated as the foot sinks into the bed.

Try an experiment and use several layers of fleece. Walmart has fleece blankets for $2.50. Be sure to cut the edge off of the blanket. It has a stitched edge with thread that could cause the claws to get hung. I would fold it so that it is thick enough to pad the feet but not too thick that the feet sink into it.

It might help the thumb nubs to avoid friction while walking in the cage. I still think you need a vet though to address this.

[Kyrushi]

I put a bunch of fleece in the cage last night and am already seeing improvements on the smaller growth :) He's enjoying nesting with it too. Will still find a vet to check for infection as soon as I am able, however. You have been a great help here over the years. I lurked around here a lot since I got the lad to get advice on what to do, but this was the first time I seemed to have a unique case so I finally made an account. I want to thank this community for being so consistently great!

[Monipenny]

One of the best squirrel vets in the country is located in Port Orange....but DEFINITELY worth the drive. Her name is Dr. Alicia EMERSON and her clinic is Ravenwood Vet Clinic, 386-788-1550. She’s not far off of I-95, and a much easier drive than going downtown. :grin3

And did I mention...she LOVES squirrels!


Oh my gosh! Dr. Emerson is the best in the World. 7 years ago, she saved my squirrel Lily. Being from Ohio, she treated Lily by phone. I had the most pleasant conversation with her as she is just a gem. I can not praise her enough. With what she "prescribed" for Lily though she couldn't actually prescribe the meds, only make the suggestion and dosing, I was able to take Lily to my vet and relay this information to him and get Lily on medicines that saved her life. I still have her with me to this day thanks to Dr. Emerson. And she didn't rush me through the phone conversations either. She spent a good amount of time on the phone with me. She is so sweet! I just absolutely love her.

Good luck and please do take your baby to Dr. Emerson if you can. If I were close enough, she would be my vet.