Feeding Question

[Jessie]

Hi everyone
My baby squirrel who is almost 5 weeks old (Monday or Tuesday) developed this strange eating habit. She has good appetite and wants to eat. There is no problem with the first syringe but she won't take a second. She does her bathroom business curls up in my hand and goes to sleep. Will not take more formula even when I wake her up. The formula is the same, temperature is the same, she just won't eat. I switched to 3ml syringe because 1ml was just not enough. I fed every 4 hours but 3ml seems not enough she is not gaining as much as before so now I feed her every 3 hours Should I feed her every 2 hours? Just weighed her, she is 103g so I guess she is a bit underweight. It all started last week when she became dehydrated and I gave her pedialyte between feedings (she is ok now.) Do some squirrels maybe prefer less formula per feeding but more frequent feedings?

[Spanky]

Hi everyone
My baby squirrel who is almost 5 weeks old (Monday or Tuesday) developed this strange eating habit. She has good appetite and wants to eat. There is no problem with the first syringe but she won't take a second. She does her bathroom business curls up in my hand and goes to sleep. Will not take more formula even when I wake her up. The formula is the same, temperature is the same, she just won't eat. I switched to 3ml syringe because 1ml was just not enough. I fed every 4 hours but 3ml seems not enough she is not gaining as much as before so now I feed her every 3 hours Should I feed her every 2 hours? Just weighed her, she is 103g so I guess she is a bit underweight. It all started last week when she became dehydrated and I gave her pedialyte between feedings (she is ok now.) Do some squirrels maybe prefer less formula per feeding but more frequent feedings?

The 3ml is definitely too little, she needs 5 - 7ml (5% - 7% of body weight) per feeding and they should be gaining weight consistently at this age... every single day.

Make certain the formula is hot enough, experiment with the temperature. Most prefer it very warm (almost hot, like a hot shower kinda hot).

[Jessie]

The formula is warm, and I make sure the formula in the second syringe is the same temperature. She refuses to even try. She is gaining weight every day but not a lot about 3 g. Is feeding 3ml every 2 hours ok?

[Tuff]

The formula is warm, and I make sure the formula in the second syringe is the same temperature. She refuses to even try. She is gaining weight every day but not a lot about 3 g. Is feeding 3ml every 2 hours ok?

What kind of formula are you feeding her?

[island rehabber]

I think the issue may be temperature as well. if you start with 'warm', the formula may be too cool when she's finished the first ml. Try hot -- 102-103* which is the temp of mamma squirrel's body.

If heating the formula doesn't help, she may be dehydrated. Dehydrated babies lose their appetites and begin a vicious circle of less appetite, less intake, even less appetite, etc. Try offering warm hydration mixture to her in between feedings: either Pedialyte or homemade. I like honey water: 1/4 tsp honey to 1 cup of VERY warm water. No one has ever refused it.:grin2

[Jessie]

I think she was dehydrated. I gave her some water with honey after her morning and afternoon feeding and now she ate 6ml !! I'm so happy ! I did the "pinch" test and it really didn't look like she was dehydrated. Should I continue giving her water between feedings or maybe just once a day? How long should I continue? I feed her Esbilac goat milk formula with a bit of all natural yogurt and some whipping cream. I usually make 40 ml of formula a day, how much yogurt and whipping cream should I put in?

[Jessie]

just an update

I've been giving her a drink between her feedings and it seems to work. She's been eating 6 ml every time. I guess I'll continue to give her some water for awhile