Winston
03-11-2020, 08:36 PM
I'm sorry I haven't taken time to introduce myself but I may have a situation with a six year old male fox squirrel so I'll get right to the important stuff.
Stats: 6 year old male fox squirrel 1068 grams or 2.35 lbs.
Indoor NR orphan hand raised since birth. Released twice but kept coming home injured/traumatized. This was over five years ago.
Diet: Henry’s hazelnut blocks (2-3 per day), apples, pecans, almonds, avocado, pear, strawberries, blueberries, watermelon, lettuce (various varieties), rose petals, snap peas, banana, kiwi.
He has been very lethargic for about a month now. He’s typically lazy this time of year but his appetite is also off and he’s spending too much time hunched with his head down.
I’ve suspected a UTI because he has had some funky (thick milky) discharge from his penis but he is urinating. His urine does smell stronger than usual but not offensive and it’s darker than usual at times. We have also observed the occasional solid matter in his urine. These are gelatinous and about the size of a small grain of rice. Right now they are slightly opaque but when he was younger they were thinner and clear. He does not always have these with every urination. Could all of this be related to the rutt? His attitude is calm and he is always good natured.
He spends most of his time on top of his enclosure and only goes inside when we are not home to supervise him or if he’s being too mischievous.
Last month he did some major remodeling to his wooden shelter box. He got really ambitious about enlarging the door (by gnawing) and left a huge pile of small wood chips. I was amused by his ambition at the time. His house is made out of plain (untreated) pine and he was chewing the end grain so the chips were mostly small rather than splinters. I’m starting to be concerned that he may have ingested some of the pine chips as this was just prior to him becoming so lethargic. A day or two after this we noticed that he hadn’t touched his food all day so we started monitoring him very closely. He is pooping and peeing but his appetite comes and goes.
He has also vomited at least five times over the month. This is usually first thing in the morning and it is usually about a teaspoon of white foamy mucus that doesn’t have any distinct odor. He did vomit mid-day once and it was after he ate a piece of pear. This came up like white applesauce. Monday morning he vomited what looked like egg yolk with a bit of the foamy mucus. This vomiting has us very concerned.
Since then, he has had ups and downs with his appetite and energy. He is grooming but he hasn’t been prowling and hiding things like usual. His hunched over, head-down posture has me concerned but he is not yelping or protesting as if he is in acute pain when we handle him.
I do not have access to a vet that will treat exotics. I do have Fish Mox 250mg on hand and I also have Baytril 10% scheduled for delivery in two days. I have been reluctant to administer antibiotics just yet.
Will someone please advise me of when or if to start antibiotics? Which one? Dosing? And finally, the best way to administer antibiotics? So far I have been in the ‘wait and see’ mode but I don’t want to wait too long. Also I don’t want to treat him needlessly if this is just a seasonal phase. We know him well and we are very concerned.
Any advice is greatly appreciated
Thank you
Stats: 6 year old male fox squirrel 1068 grams or 2.35 lbs.
Indoor NR orphan hand raised since birth. Released twice but kept coming home injured/traumatized. This was over five years ago.
Diet: Henry’s hazelnut blocks (2-3 per day), apples, pecans, almonds, avocado, pear, strawberries, blueberries, watermelon, lettuce (various varieties), rose petals, snap peas, banana, kiwi.
He has been very lethargic for about a month now. He’s typically lazy this time of year but his appetite is also off and he’s spending too much time hunched with his head down.
I’ve suspected a UTI because he has had some funky (thick milky) discharge from his penis but he is urinating. His urine does smell stronger than usual but not offensive and it’s darker than usual at times. We have also observed the occasional solid matter in his urine. These are gelatinous and about the size of a small grain of rice. Right now they are slightly opaque but when he was younger they were thinner and clear. He does not always have these with every urination. Could all of this be related to the rutt? His attitude is calm and he is always good natured.
He spends most of his time on top of his enclosure and only goes inside when we are not home to supervise him or if he’s being too mischievous.
Last month he did some major remodeling to his wooden shelter box. He got really ambitious about enlarging the door (by gnawing) and left a huge pile of small wood chips. I was amused by his ambition at the time. His house is made out of plain (untreated) pine and he was chewing the end grain so the chips were mostly small rather than splinters. I’m starting to be concerned that he may have ingested some of the pine chips as this was just prior to him becoming so lethargic. A day or two after this we noticed that he hadn’t touched his food all day so we started monitoring him very closely. He is pooping and peeing but his appetite comes and goes.
He has also vomited at least five times over the month. This is usually first thing in the morning and it is usually about a teaspoon of white foamy mucus that doesn’t have any distinct odor. He did vomit mid-day once and it was after he ate a piece of pear. This came up like white applesauce. Monday morning he vomited what looked like egg yolk with a bit of the foamy mucus. This vomiting has us very concerned.
Since then, he has had ups and downs with his appetite and energy. He is grooming but he hasn’t been prowling and hiding things like usual. His hunched over, head-down posture has me concerned but he is not yelping or protesting as if he is in acute pain when we handle him.
I do not have access to a vet that will treat exotics. I do have Fish Mox 250mg on hand and I also have Baytril 10% scheduled for delivery in two days. I have been reluctant to administer antibiotics just yet.
Will someone please advise me of when or if to start antibiotics? Which one? Dosing? And finally, the best way to administer antibiotics? So far I have been in the ‘wait and see’ mode but I don’t want to wait too long. Also I don’t want to treat him needlessly if this is just a seasonal phase. We know him well and we are very concerned.
Any advice is greatly appreciated
Thank you