adult male found post bird attack

[Ephie]

I've got a little 219 g adult male who seems to be a red/grey hybrid that my father shood a crow away from only to find he was very injured. My father in his panic wouldn't let me properly check his wounds but I do know his nose is bleeding and he has a gash on his rear leg. I have him in a plastic medium dog crate with towels on the bottom and a cut up leg from a pair of flannel pjs as blankets and a palm sized heated bag. he found him at 8:30 AM and had him in a small box with some towels and water and got him to me around 6 PM where I checked him over quickly and got him settled and warm. I've never done this before but I know some basics and did some research. I applied a small amount of antibiotic cream to the wounds I saw and put him back with some water a small piece of walnut. I have junior advil 100 mg tablets but I don't know what dose to give him. I called a wildlife rehab but it's 3 hours away and I don't drive. I'm trying to find a way to get him there for better treatment but until then I have this little dude and I will do everything I can to keep him alive and help him heal. any and all advice is welcome.

[McCarthy]

I've got a little 219 g adult male who seems to be a red/grey hybrid that my father shood a crow away from only to find he was very injured. My father in his panic wouldn't let me properly check his wounds but I do know his nose is bleeding and he has a gash on his rear leg. I have him in a plastic medium dog crate with towels on the bottom and a cut up leg from a pair of flannel pjs as blankets and a palm sized heated bag. he found him at 8:30 AM and had him in a small box with some towels and water and got him to me around 6 PM where I checked him over quickly and got him settled and warm. I've never done this before but I know some basics and did some research. I applied a small amount of antibiotic cream to the wounds I saw and put him back with some water a small piece of walnut. I have junior advil 100 mg tablets but I don't know what dose to give him. I called a wildlife rehab but it's 3 hours away and I don't drive. I'm trying to find a way to get him there for better treatment but until then I have this little dude and I will do everything I can to keep him alive and help him heal. any and all advice is welcome.


Can you take and upload a photo of the wound(s)?

Is he eating the nut?

Is he moving around at all?

You can offer some fruit like apple, baby food, etc.

[Spanky]

I've got a little 219 g adult male who seems to be a red/grey hybrid that my father shood a crow away from only to find he was very injured.

Reds and greys do not cross breed so this is not a hybrid. If it is a red, it may be an adult. If this is a grey, it surely is not an adult. If a crow was after it, it is likely a juvenile grey or an red that was already injured. Pictures would help a lot in determining what this is exactly. Reds are always "reddish" and have a ring of light colored fur circling / ringing their eyes. Greys come in all colors from white to grey to black and often have reddish hues.

Warm, dark and quiet is most important right now. Next is hydration... offer water in a shallow dish. It helps to place some marbles or pebbles in the dish of water. If this is an adolescent grey, that will help prevent them from putting muzzle too far into the water dish and inhale water into their lungs. As an adolescent they may have no experience drinking from "pooled" water.

I'd not immediately be concerned about giving Advil / Ibuprofen and dosing from a tablet is not advisable when Infant Ibuprofen can readily obtained. The fact that you can weigh him and apply ointment to the wounds suggest this is an adolescent... but with traumatic injuries the "wild" can literally be knocked out of them for a period of time.

[Ephie]

Reds and greys do not cross breed so this is not a hybrid. If it is a red, it may be an adult. If this is a grey, it surely is not an adult. If a crow was after it, it is likely a juvenile grey or an red that was already injured. Pictures would help a lot in determining what this is exactly. Reds are always "reddish" and have a ring of light colored fur circling / ringing their eyes. Greys come in all colors from white to grey to black and often have reddish hues.

Warm, dark and quiet is most important right now. Next is hydration... offer water in a shallow dish. It helps to place some marbles or pebbles in the dish of water. If this is an adolescent grey, that will help prevent them from putting muzzle too far into the water dish and inhale water into their lungs. As an adolescent they may have no experience drinking from "pooled" water.

I'd not immediately be concerned about giving Advil / Ibuprofen and dosing from a tablet is not advisable when Infant Ibuprofen can readily obtained. The fact that you can weigh him and apply ointment to the wounds suggest this is an adolescent... but with traumatic injuries the "wild" can literally be knocked out of them for a period of time.


I thought I turned on email for notifications and didn't check the site, I'm sorry if I worried y'all.

My father finally went to bed so I could get a better look at him, his nose appears to bleeding internally which I'm very worried about. He seems to be holding up one of his front paws but does put weight on it to get away from me which is good. I got a better look at his leg and it looks like a surface injury, but there's bruising on the back of his leg as well, I think that may have been where the crow grabbed him.

He did drink from the water bowl earlier in the evening, but he seems completely uninterested in eating and is sleeping constantly. He currently has some fresh water, sugar water, the piece of walnut, and a tiny bit of peanut butter. I'm hoping if he gets some sugars he'll get some strength back.

He's been in a crate for hours now and is no longer cold, but has all the warming stuff in a corner in case that changes. I'll definitely change his water dish to a shallower one and try to find something to place in it. I don't immediately have access to a store and won't until well into tomorrow so I can only use what I have. I diluted a small shaving of the tablet in some water and gave him some with a dropper.

I'm gonna leave him be for a while and check on him again in about 4 hours. I'll add some pictures of him to this.
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[CritterMom]

Aw. This is a little red squirrel - the white eyeliner gives him away. He is still wearing his gray winter coat. Do try to get the infant ibuprophen - if he is in pain it will make him not eat. Poor little guy...

[Ephie]

He made it through the night and I've seen him get up to clean his face, so good signs! I've been checking on him every few hours between sleeps and he seems like he's still sleeping fairly constantly. Still no sign of eating yet. I'm gonna try and catch a few more hours of sleep and then I'll bring him out and reassess where he's at and what I can do. I'm gonna be trying to get to a store asap but it might not be for 8 ish hours still. His name is Chirrup and I hope he breaks my heart by being released soon.

[Ephie]

Tiny update for those keeping up! I got some more ibuprofen in him and got a better look at his leg and I think he's going to be okay. he's still incredibly tired but he's more alert and steady today. He was up cleaning his face again earlier and I just heard him moving again. Stress exhausts him so I'm trying my best to leave him alone as much as possible once I get him cleaned up. Can anyone give me any advice for cleaning his wounds/what soaps are safe for them?
My cousin got back to me and she has some experience with this but she's working today. She promised to check her phone when she can but she's got kiddos to feed. I'm hoping she'll be able to come over and look at him today.

[Spanky]

Using diluted betadine (povidone-iodine.. which is not plain iodine) is always a good choice for wound care. You can use any store brand a save some money. Dilute it by adding about 20 drops to one cup of water. Simple cleanse the area with that solution, no need to rinse it off like you'd need to do with a "soap".

I am concerned about giving him "shavings" of Ibuprofen tablet versus using Ibuprofen suspension (Infants Ibuprofen). Accidentally giving him too much ibuprofen can damage stomachs, intestines and kidneys.

[CritterMom]

Absolutely. Go to the drug store and buy a bottle of Betadyne 10% povidone iodine, in a squeeze bottle in the wound care section. It looks like a bottle full of blood! If they have a generic sitting next to it, get that and saave a few $$.

At home, mix 1/4 teaspoon betadyne and 1/4 cup water. Warm it to about his body temp (a little over 100 F) - makes it less shocking when it hits him. Just wipe the areas down with it making sure to thoroughly saturate the wounds. Done. Let it dry naturally. It does not sting or burn, you don't have to (or want to) rinse it off, won't hurt him if he licks the area and kills bacterial, fungals and virals. BTW you can use it on yourself and other pets, too - any rash, hot spot, cut, scrape, or even pimples! It will dye his fur a little red, but he IS a little red, so...

[Ephie]

Using diluted betadine (povidone-iodine.. which is not plain iodine) is always a good choice for wound care. You can use any store brand a save some money. Dilute it by adding about 20 drops to one cup of water. Simple cleanse the area with that solution, no need to rinse it off like you'd need to do with a "soap".

I am concerned about giving him "shavings" of Ibuprofen tablet versus using Ibuprofen suspension (Infants Ibuprofen). Accidentally giving him too much ibuprofen can damage stomachs, intestines and kidneys.


it's tiny tiny pieces diluted in water and I only give it every 6-8 hours, and it's only until I can get to a store to buy the liquid stuff I need as well as Betadyne. I know it's a bit of a risk but it's all I have at the moment and he does seem to be feeling better with it. I think he ate a piece of walnut a minute ago, I'm not sure but I'll check later. I just cleaned his cage so I'm leaving him be for a bit. he's still defecating and they look normal, so there's that! if I'm wrong and he's still not eating, when would be the time to intervene and feed with a cc syringe?

[McCarthy]

it's tiny tiny pieces diluted in water and I only give it every 6-8 hours, and it's only until I can get to a store to buy the liquid stuff I need as well as Betadyne. I know it's a bit of a risk but it's all I have at the moment and he does seem to be feeling better with it. I think he ate a piece of walnut a minute ago, I'm not sure but I'll check later. I just cleaned his cage so I'm leaving him be for a bit. he's still defecating and they look normal, so there's that! if I'm wrong and he's still not eating, when would be the time to intervene and feed with a cc syringe?

I'd start doing that tonight. Did you offer him some fruit? Try it with some apple. When you head out later, get some almonds and some baby food in a pouch, some squirrels don't like walnut.

[Ephie]

I'd start doing that tonight. Did you offer him some fruit? Try it with some apple. When you head out later, get some almonds and some baby food in a pouch, some squirrels don't like walnut.

I did originally offer some cantaloupe, but not yet today. I had someone with animal care education come look at him and he's doing better than I thought. She thinks I'll be able to release him in a couple days as long as he starts eating and drinking! I'm gonna grab the ibuprofen, some watermelon and peanuts and sunflower seeds, and pit stop in my backyard for some maple branches.

[McCarthy]

I did originally offer some cantaloupe, but not yet today. I had someone with animal care education come look at him and he's doing better than I thought. She thinks I'll be able to release him in a couple days as long as he starts eating and drinking! I'm gonna grab the ibuprofen, some watermelon and peanuts and sunflower seeds, and pit stop in my backyard for some maple branches.


You are doing a great job! Thank you.

[Ephie]

can someone tell me the way to find dosage for ibuprofen?? I've got the baby liquid now and some better foods. he's eaten a tiny piece of watermelon!! I have a couple toys too now that he's starting to get up and move around. he's got a better dish with some smooth aquaria stones for his water which he seems to like and a couple tiny pieces of watermelon and a spinach leaf. small amounts that can be easily monitored. I had to bring him out and practically shove the watermelon in his face after him ignoring it previously and he almost bit my hand a couple times when he was eating it he was so hungry. I'm hoping he'll keep that hunger while alone in his cage and eat on his own so as to lower his stress levels but hooray!! first evidence of hunger and consumption!!

[Spanky]

PM'd ibuprofen information.

[Ephie]

hey all! Chirrup is doing so good today! he's chuffing at me when I try to handle him, he's eating on his own, he's drinking on his own! he's had some chicken, watermelon, and peanuts. I'm gonna make sure his habits stick and make sure there's no internal injuries throughout the day and as long as everything goes well today he could be back home in the wild tomorrow!
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[Mel1959]

Avocado with no skin or pit is usually well liked along with fresh coconut chunks and fresh corn chunks.

[Spanky]

I'd give him 24 hours without any ibuprofen to allow him to be more fully assessed before releasing. :thumbsup

[McCarthy]

I second that, I'd even give him 3 days with no symptoms before sending him back.

[Ephie]

hey everyone, good news! little dude is 24 hours no ibuprofen and he's doing amazing. he's running around and eating and drinking. superficial scratches and injuries are almost completely cleared up. he's searching out food and trying to forage. I think it's time for him to go home! a local rehabber agrees. especially because he's starting to get comfortable with me, and I wanna get him back out before he starts trusting humans. I'll keep you posted!

[McCarthy]

hey everyone, good news! little dude is 24 hours no ibuprofen and he's doing amazing. he's running around and eating and drinking. superficial scratches and injuries are almost completely cleared up. he's searching out food and trying to forage. I think it's time for him to go home! a local rehabber agrees. especially because he's starting to get comfortable with me, and I wanna get him back out before he starts trusting humans. I'll keep you posted!

Take a few videos, for memory line.