15 week old squirrel came back hurt and swollen

[ptrooper11]

A squirrel I just released last week came back hurt and swollen, looks like from an attack. what ibuprofen dosage can I use 10-50mg? He crawled into his nest so I can't get his exact weight. I attached a recent photo of when he was healthy. I also read that I should give antibiotics? I only have neosporin, can I apply that topically? please help!!!

[ptrooper11]

Currently he's trying to sleep but appears to have trouble breathing. I tried to get him out so I could see if he had cuts in order to apply neosporin, but he'll attack me if I try. Do I have to do it anyway? Also before he went into his nest I tried to feed and hydrate him but he refused.

[McCarthy]

Be careful handling him. He may have fallen out of a tree and may suffers internal injuries like broken ribs. So handling him may make things worse, especially when he starts fighting you.

What parts are swollen?

Is he now confined in a cage?

Try to get infant ibuprofen locally first thing in the AM, that's easier to dose and apply to some minced half pecan and some peanut butter (just enough to make things stick together).

An admin will send you the dose via PM.

You can also order it here, possibly with same day delivery: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B087D46MVW

Current photos or a video uploaded to YouTube would help to understand his condition.

[ptrooper11]

Thank you for responding. I've attached the best photos I could get of him. His nose is red and jaw/cheek is very swollen. Also, every couple minutes he will sneeze and it will be pink/red from blood. We've tried to give him ibuprofen through formula/syringe and avocado but he's only eating very little. We've also applied a triple antibiotic topically to his nose, bacitracin /neomycin/polymyxin.

What else can we do?

Also, would this seem like the result of an attack or fall? Hard to tell but don't see obvious bite marks
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[McCarthy]

Blood coming out the nose and trouble breathing is almost always a sure sign of a fall.

I would not apply anything to his nose, he already has trouble breathing, we don't need anything else getting into his airways.

I suggest a lot of rest in a darker area, in a cage, indoors, and covered on the back / top / sides, without any stress or ongoing noises in that room.

Its basically impossible to do any internal surgery etc on these guys so we have to make sure they can overcome and heal on their own.

Others will join and possibly suggest medication.

[CritterMom]

Get some infant ibuprophen - it is a fruit flavored syrup. I will PM dosing for him to you. It will help with pain and swelling/inflammation. Any drug or grocery will have it.

[ptrooper11]

Thank you all. Will try giving him the infant ibuprofen. Does this need to be taken with food? Any ideas about what to feed him if he’s having trouble chewing?

[CritterMom]

Do you have access to ANY leftover antibiotics - not veterinary meds, human meds. In pretty much any case, you would only need 1 pill to give a squirrel an entire round of treatment. Call friends, family, see what you can get and list it here. Hopefully the swelling is just from tissue trauma but not knowing if there was any animal attacking him (I am thinking he may have had his butt handed to him by another squirrel) would make dosing with antibiotics a good idea. If you can find something we will help you with properly dosing it.

Hoping it is swelling, the inbuprophen helps with that and also the pain and he starts eating again.

[ptrooper11]

Attached some new photos. He is doing a bit better, still wheezing, but has been moving around. Looks like below his nose and lower jaw is just showing skin. If you can zoom in, his tooth is cracked and very short. He seems to have trouble fully closing his mouth. I also attached an older photo when he was healthy.

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