strange diarrhea

[tnd5]

Ok, I have tried and done everything I can think of. I have a 9 week old male that has had some type of diarrhea for almost a month now. He is on the FV 32/40, (waiting on the FV 20/50 I ordered). He was fine until I started introducing salads and veggies at 6 weeks old. It is NOT dark, or super runny. It is more of a tan, sticky, mucousy bubble.......It gets stuck on his legs and behind daily. He has had baths, pepto, yogurt. I have withheld the salads for 2 days, thinking they were the problem. I have limited his formula intake to 2-3cc less than what he should get.......No change. Vinnie is not dehydrated and drinking water from a bowl. He gets 2-3 Kaytee blocks a day, apple and oak sticks to chew. He is 269g and eats 13cc 3xday. He loves cauliflower and brussel sprouts. Not so much romaine, but will eat some....he has 2 other males he is cage mates with that do not have any problems. :thinking

Also, a female that weighs 218g and eats 11cc 3xday. Minnie is a week older than Vinnie. She is in a seperate cage with 2 other females, and, pretty much has the same thing, although not as bad.

There are 2 other squirrels in male and female cages with no problems whatsoever.

Can anyone give me any ideas about what may be going on with the 2 babies?

Thank you for any responses!

[Spanky]

Does it have a foul smell? If so, what does it smell like (I know, gross... ever more gross: Pictures of poo would help).

He'll need a lot more than 2 - 3 Kaytee if that is the only rodent block he is getting.

[tnd5]

yes, it does have a bit of an odor. It is not too bad, though, (I have worked in many veterinarian offices and smelled some pretty bad odors). I will try to get a picture tomorrow. They have gone to bed for the night.

I will give more blocks. I was lead to believe that they should only get 2 per day.

Thank you, Spanky!

[Spanky]

The "2 blocks a day" applies to Henry's Healthy Blocks (HHB) which are supplemental blocks (concentrated). Kaytee is intended as the primary food source (90% of their diet).

Pics would help... the diarrhea may be something like coccidia which would require treatment with antibiotics.

[SammysMom]

You may want to consider switching to a better block. Mazuri is available at retail stores and is of higher quality nutritionally. Give a whole bowl of it and allow them to eat it freely.

[tnd5]

Thank you very much for your replies. I got a couple of pictures this morning, but they are not real good. Hopefully, you can see them well enough to help me out.316312316313316312316313

I hope the pictures work......

Donna

[tnd5]

You may want to consider switching to a better block. Mazuri is available at retail stores and is of higher quality nutritionally. Give a whole bowl of it and allow them to eat it freely.

Done. My husband picked them up at lunchtime. Thank you!

[tnd5]

Anyone? Any ideas or help?:sadness:sniff:hello

[4Puddles]

You could try adding in a probiotic. It might not help, but it certainly won’t hurt. Are your babies still acting normally appetite and energy wise?

[CritterMom]

Try this:

Give him .4ml of Pepto Bismol - the pink liquid. Note the time you give it. Then watch his poops. When the Pepto has gone completely through his system, his poops will turn really dark - almost black sometimes. Don't freak out - it is perfectly normal and is from the bismuth in it. Check the time when you see the dark poops. You now know how long it takes for something to go through his system.

If the poops you see are starting to look more like poops - drying up some and even maybe trying to form, hold off on more doses and just keep watching. If they keep getting better then yay. If not, or if the first "pepto poops" are still runny and yucky, give another dose. Timing it yourself rather than just dosing "every X hours" prevents giving more meds if they aren't actually needed.

Pepto doesn't cure anything if there is infection/parasites at work, BUT a lot of time something like a change of food will trigger a little diarrhea, which is actually pretty caustic stuff that inflames the bowels, which causes more diarrhea, which inflames the bowels more and so on. In other words, sometimes diarrhea causes diarrhea. The pepto will break that cycle and slow the progress of food through the bowels, allowing them time to heal.

If 3 doses doesn't do it then it likely is not going to work.

[tnd5]

You could try adding in a probiotic. It might not help, but it certainly won’t hurt. Are your babies still acting normally appetite and energy wise?

They get yogurt every day.

[Pancakes]

You may want to consider switching to a better block. Mazuri is available at retail stores and is of higher quality nutritionally. Give a whole bowl of it and allow them to eat it freely.

Is it the Mazuri rat and mouse diet?

[tnd5]

Yes, it is.

I plan on getting some Imodium tomorrow to try. I have doing .4cc of the Kaolin with no success. There have been no dark stools and no change in the light tan, jellylike poop.

I was also able to get hold of some Sulfameth/trimetrithorpin 800/160 mg tablets, if that might help anything. I have no other antibiotics and have not been able to find any.

Thank you,

Donna

[CritterMom]

Yes, it is.

I plan on getting some Imodium tomorrow to try. I have doing .4cc of the Kaolin with no success. There have been no dark stools and no change in the light tan, jellylike poop.

I was also able to get hold of some Sulfameth/trimetrithorpin 800/160 mg tablets, if that might help anything. I have no other antibiotics and have not been able to find any.

Thank you,

Donna

That is because I suggested Pepto Bismol, not kaolin.

[tnd5]

:sad

[tnd5]

That is because I suggested Pepto Bismol, not kaolin.

So sorry, CritterMom. I thought Kaolin was the animal version of Pepto. I started him on Pepto this evening. Again, I apologize for my lack of understanding.

Donna

[stepnstone]

Have you gotten the 20/50 FV in yet?

[lukaslolamaus]

Do you guys think that it could be parasites and maybe treat with penacur?
Years ago that was the problem with my Sabrina.

[Mel1959]

It seems to me a dose of panacur wouldn’t hurt. Can’t panacur be purchased at feed stores or tractor supply stores? :dono

[tnd5]

Have you gotten the 20/50 FV in yet?


it should be here tomorrow, (Tuesday, 9/15).

[tnd5]

It seems to me a dose of panacur wouldn’t hurt. Can’t panacur be purchased at feed stores or tractor supply stores? :dono


I have safeguard. Will that work? And, if so, how much would I give him?

[lukaslolamaus]

I always order panacur online.
Dosing is given by the weight of your baby. I'll attach a picture of the panacur for you.
I'm not sure if the panacur is going to solve the problem, but I know that it won't hurt.
Someone experienced will have to dose. Even if suggested not to use on your baby. It's a good thing to have panacur on hand.

[tnd5]

I received the FV 20/50 today. I am slowly switching all 7 of the babies to that. They are all over 6 weeks old. I have been giving Vinnie, (the one with the strange diarrhea), the pepto suggested by crittermom. The poops look a bit better, but still jellylike......the female, (Minnie), has stopped the diarrhea. YAY!

Should I try Immodium or wait and see if the change in formula works?

Also, will Safeguard work in place of Pancur? I will get the Pancur, if not.

Thank you

Donna

[Mel1959]

I would wait and see if the change in formula helps. The Pepto treats the symptom of diarrhea but not the cause. If the loose stool is a result of parasites (like giardiasis) the Panacur/safeguard will help. Both Safeguard and Panacur are the same drug, Fenbendazole.

Below is the dosage chart out of the Wild Mammal Baby Book. Note the strength of the drug and the amount the dosage is calculated at (50mg/kg) on the chart. Overall, it is a safe drug, but tastes nasty.

[tnd5]

The safeguard I have is the paste. It is 100mg/g. Vinnie weighs 284g. Can someone help me with dosing, in case I need to try it? I am not math savvy.

I am sorry to keep bothering all of you, but he is the only one out of 7 that has a problem. I am concerned about him.

Thank you

[lukaslolamaus]

I would go ahead and see if the formula change will do the trick, and if it doesn't, I would weigh the baby again before dosing, because there is a good chance that the weight will still change.
Please keep us updated and no worries about asking additional questions.
Everyone is just busy with babies and it may take a while to answer questions.

[tnd5]

Fingers crossed.....the change in formula from FV 32/40 to FV 20/50 seems to be the trick. Vinnie's diarrhea seems to be getting better. He is on full strength formula now, after a slow transition. His poop is almost formed and turning a light brown color. Could it be that the previous formula did not agree with him?

Thank you all for all the help. I really appreciate it.:serene

Donna