My Indian palm squirrel has some issue

[Squirry]

Hi I have a rescued Indian palm squirrel who am raising since almost 3 months now.Since 2-3 days I’ve been noticing that he starts shaking his head n then lifts up his head as if he is struggling with some issue n then becomes normal. Today he was on the curtain which is actually where he normally sits and all of a sudden fell down n his eyes went up, his legs curled up, his body was straight as if he’s about to take his last breath. He was losing his breath n had become numb. I gave him sugar n salt water, poured some water on his head n then got back to his normal breathing n slowly started walking n hiding. Can someone help me understand what is the issue?? I cannot lose him, I am 8 months pregnant n this baby has helped me in my high risk pregnancy.. he doesn’t go out n is always in my room playing with me. Pls help me

[CritterMom]

Can you tell us what his diet is? Squirrels are prone to developing metabolic bone disease from incorrect diet - calcium deficient specifically. We often see it after they are weaned because while their formula has what they need, the diets they are given after that are not.

[HRT4SQRLS]

We have also seen that the formula given in India is often extremely deficient in calcium.
You were probably seeing a seizure. I agree with CritterMom that this is probably Metabolic Bone Disease.

Information on the diet will be helpful in determining if this is MBD.

[Squirry]

Can you tell us what his diet is? Squirrels are prone to developing metabolic bone disease from incorrect diet - calcium deficient specifically. We often see it after they are weaned because while their formula has what they need, the diets they are given after that are not.

He eats fruits like apple, banana, pomegranate.. I give him raisins, almonds, in veggies he likes French beans, he also eats coriander leaves. In the night I feed him milk with mashed banana..he loves our Indian savorys as well(crunchy items)..

[Squirry]

We have also seen that the formula given in India is often extremely deficient in calcium.
You were probably seeing a seizure. I agree with CritterMom that this is probably Metabolic Bone Disease.

Information on the diet will be helpful in determining if this is MBD.

He eats fruits like apple, banana, pomegranate.. I give him raisins, almonds, in veggies he likes French beans, he also eats coriander leaves. In the night I feed him milk with mashed banana..he loves our Indian savorys as well(crunchy snacks)..Omg no... Seizure?? Whts the solution to it😢😢😢Here doctors do not even treat squirrels.. I am lost I don’t know what to do.. We turn on the Ac in the night, but he sleeps in his Cosy pouch, n is warm.. could that be one of the reason??

[CritterMom]

You need to increase his calcium intake immediately. If you can find a human calcium supplement that has NOTHING but calcium in it - no vitamin D, no other things, that would be easiest. I have had difficulty with people in India being able to find that though, your supplements are usually a blend of many things. More work but perfectly acceptable is to make your own calcium with eggshells.

Dump out the contents of several eggs (have an omlet or something!) Rinse the eggshells, then boil them in water for 10-15 minutes. Drain and dry, then place on a cookie sheet or the like and place in a 200 F degree oven for about a half hour until they are bone dry. Grind the shells as fine as possible - you want a powder, not chunks. The daily dose for the first part of the treatment will be one rounded 1/4 teaspoon, and should not be given all at once - you want to spread the dose out through the day. You can sprinkle it on his food, mix it in his bananas - just get it into him.

You need to stick around here through his treatment. We are going to have to tweak his diet so this is no longer an issue, but I don't want to throw a 10 page post at you right now. Start the treatment immediately.

If you find a human supplement without anything added to it, let us know and we can help you figure out how much of that to use.

[Squirry]

You need to increase his calcium intake immediately. If you can find a human calcium supplement that has NOTHING but calcium in it - no vitamin D, no other things, that would be easiest. I have had difficulty with people in India being able to find that though, your supplements are usually a blend of many things. More work but perfectly acceptable is to make your own calcium with eggshells.

Dump out the contents of several eggs (have an omlet or something!) Rinse the eggshells, then boil them in water for 10-15 minutes. Drain and dry, then place on a cookie sheet or the like and place in a 200 F degree oven for about a half hour until they are bone dry. Grind the shells as fine as possible - you want a powder, not chunks. The daily dose for the first part of the treatment will be one rounded 1/4 teaspoon, and should not be given all at once - you want to spread the dose out through the day. You can sprinkle it on his food, mix it in his bananas - just get it into him.

You need to stick around here through his treatment. We are going to have to tweak his diet so this is no longer an issue, but I don't want to throw a 10 page post at you right now. Start the treatment immediately.

If you find a human supplement without anything added to it, let us know and we can help you figure out how much of that to use.

Hi thanks a ton for your suggestion. Unfortunately we are vegetarians n don’t even eat egg nor allowed to use it at home.. is there any other alternative?? Any food that is high in calcium that I can give him? I found shelcal tablet, but it has Vitamin D in it. Not sure if we get only calcium tablet in india .. but I will certainly findout. Squirry is active now but I hope he doesn’t have another episode of it😢Thanks once again ...

[Squirry]

Also can you please advise if turning on the air conditioner will be harmful for squirrels??

[CritterMom]

Hi thanks a ton for your suggestion. Unfortunately we are vegetarians n don’t even eat egg nor allowed to use it at home.. is there any other alternative?? Any food that is high in calcium that I can give him? I found shelcal tablet, but it has Vitamin D in it. Not sure if we get only calcium tablet in india .. but I will certainly findout. Squirry is active now but I hope he doesn’t have another episode of it😢Thanks once again ...

No. The calcium sources except for the commercial products like human supplements are all bone or shell based. If you cannot find the right supplement, and will not break your food rules, do you have someone who can prepare this for you? If they did, would you be willing to use it? If all of this is a no, you have some decisions to make. Turn your baby over to someone who can help him, or he is surely not going to make it. Even if he manages to rally for a bit, the diet he is getting is deficient in something he desperately needs.

No, the A/C is not a problem unless you are blowing the air directly on him.

[HRT4SQRLS]

I think you have Tums antacid in India. Check the pharmacy.

[CritterMom]

According to google, you can get Tums in India, and the regular tablet type ARE vegan.

[Squirry]

No. The calcium sources except for the commercial products like human supplements are all bone or shell based. If you cannot find the right supplement, and will not break your food rules, do you have someone who can prepare this for you? If they did, would you be willing to use it? If all of this is a no, you have some decisions to make. Turn your baby over to someone who can help him, or he is surely not going to make it. Even if he manages to rally for a bit, the diet he is getting is deficient in something he desperately needs.

No, the A/C is not a problem unless you are blowing the air directly on him.

Hi, thanks for the advice, I will have someone do it for me ... if I get a calcium tablet that would suffice right??? Or do I need to do both???pls lemme know

[CritterMom]

If you can get the Tums antacids, they are entirely made of calcium and per the manufacturer, they are vegan, so I believe you can use them for your calcium source. Plus they are fruit flavored so he may like them.

Or, if you can find a vitamin supplement that is just calcium, you can use them instead.

If you can't find that, you can use the eggshell.

These are ALL calcium carbonate, just from three different sources. You just need to find ONE of them.

[Squirry]

If you can get the Tums antacids, they are entirely made of calcium and per the manufacturer, they are vegan, so I believe you can use them for your calcium source. Plus they are fruit flavored so he may like them.

Or, if you can find a vitamin supplement that is just calcium, you can use them instead.

If you can't find that, you can use the eggshell.

These are ALL calcium carbonate, just from three different sources. You just need to find ONE of them.

Hi,

Thank you so much 🙏😊 I’ve already requested one of my friend to help me with the egg shells..I am v hopeful that I can find atleast one of the above items n help my baby recover soon. I’ve lot of other queries, however will tackle one by one.. let me sort his health issue first which is my priority now..Thanks once again..

[Squirry]

You need to increase his calcium intake immediately. If you can find a human calcium supplement that has NOTHING but calcium in it - no vitamin D, no other things, that would be easiest. I have had difficulty with people in India being able to find that though, your supplements are usually a blend of many things. More work but perfectly acceptable is to make your own calcium with eggshells.

Dump out the contents of several eggs (have an omlet or something!) Rinse the eggshells, then boil them in water for 10-15 minutes. Drain and dry, then place on a cookie sheet or the like and place in a 200 F degree oven for about a half hour until they are bone dry. Grind the shells as fine as possible - you want a powder, not chunks. The daily dose for the first part of the treatment will be one rounded 1/4 teaspoon, and should not be given all at once - you want to spread the dose out through the day. You can sprinkle it on his food, mix it in his bananas - just get it into him.

You need to stick around here through his treatment. We are going to have to tweak his diet so this is no longer an issue, but I don't want to throw a 10 page post at you right now. Start the treatment immediately.

If you find a human supplement without anything added to it, let us know and we can help you figure out how much of that to use.

Hi,
I got the egg shell powder done n started feeding it with the milk that he has😊😊 let me know what else I should be doing.. Thanks once again for your advice and I hope I won’t see one more episode of Wht I saw🙏

Thank you..
Vani