[VIDEO] wild squirrel with a twitchy head

[astrll]

hey again everyone,

i have a feeling this is neurological, but i wanted confirmation! in the video below, patches does this twitchy bobbing motion with his head. is the cause neurological?

https://youtu.be/Aei0nu58IHk

he’s only started doing this recently and i noticed he has a hard time moving through the trees. he also stays away from other squirrels lately — even his brother. they used to play with and groom each other a lot but as soon as this head bob started, it stopped.

he’s about a year old, he’s not losing weight, eyes are clear, coat is shiny. he drinks water when he comes and i’ve been tossing him HHB’s too. i also recently dosed him with one drop of revolution on a pecan because he was scratching like crazy. i wish i could do more. has anyone ever seen a squirrel do this?

siiiiiiiigh i’m so sad — there’s been an increase in wild squirrels who have head tilt in my area, similar to yogurt (first squirrel i posted about who has recovered on her own in the meantime). it’s definitely not racoon roundworm because none of the squirrels get progressively worse.

i wish i could track down what’s causing this! at first i thought maybe a nasty fall but there’s too many now for the cause to be an accident. i feel so bad seeing them fall over themselves because they can’t get coordinated. breaks my heart :(

please let me know what you think! is there anything else i can do for him?

[Mel1959]

I’m not sure if squirrels can get distemper or not, but that might be a possibility. Any chance they’re being poisoned?

[Lighten-Up]

According to this internet article, squirrels can get distemper.

https://www.purdue.edu/fnr/extension/question-what-is-wrong-with-the-squirrels-and-raccoon-we-have-found-in-our-yard/

I'm sorry you are dealing with this. It's really tough to watch squirrels in distress of any kind. Prayers to you and your kinfolk and I hope you find out the issue. :Love_Icon

[Diggie's Friend]

Distemper (aka canine distemper) is caused by a virus. It can infect dogs, raccoons, skunks, foxes, and large cats such as lions and tigers. The virus infects the lungs, airways, nose, and eyes. It can also infect the brain and suppress the immune system. Distemper can cause serious illness and death in these animals.

"Baylisascaris", commonly know as: "Raccoon Roundworm", is a parasitical worm which is acquired by tree squirrels exposed to infected Raccoon feces that contain Roundworms and their eggs. (see illustration) https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/baylisascaris/biology.html

This parasite causes damage to the inner organs; in the brain of an infected squirrel, it impairs the motor functions, promoting discoordination, which increases the risk of a squirrel's
predation. The 'end stage' of this infection culminates in death in tree squirrels.

[astrll]

I’m not sure if squirrels can get distemper or not, but that might be a possibility. Any chance they’re being poisoned?

i was considering if they’re being poisoned somehow but i have no idea how to begin investigating that. it’s not illegal to kill squirrels in my province, whether via traps, guns, or poison. i really hope it isn’t poison :sadness

i’ve never heard of distemper! i spent the morning researching it and how it appears in rodents. when patches comes, i’m going to inspect if he has any of the other symptoms.

[astrll]

"Baylisascaris", commonly know as: "Raccoon Roundworm", is a parasitical worm which is acquired by tree squirrels exposed to infected Raccoon feces that contain Roundworms and their eggs. (see illustration) https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/baylisascaris/biology.htmlSadly

This parasite causes damage to the body. In the brains of infected squirrels, this parasite impairs the motor functions, promoting discoordination, which increasesthe risk of predation in squirrels. When 'end stage' is reached, it culminates in death.

i’ve been watching his condition to see if it’s racoon roundworm. crittermom once said (in regards to yogurt) that if they’re not declining in health then it’s safe to rule that out. patches is still keeping his energy up. but i’m going to continue checking him everyday to make sure.

thanks for researching that for me :Love_Icon i’m going to watch for symptoms of distemper. going off of yogurt’s case (assuming they all have what she has), that might not be it. but i’m not sure if patches has what yogurt has because it’s presenting slightly different.

oh these kids have my whole heart

[Diggie's Friend]

In a quote from this article: https://gvwire.com/2020/02/13/distemper-virus-is-on-the-rise-how-to-protect-pets-and-wildlife/

Distemper can cause respiratory, neurologic, and gastrointestinal illness.

Then there is West Nile Virus (WNV), which also has been found to infect tree squirrels.


Although most mammalian WNV infections cause low or no morbidity or mortality, tree squirrels are susceptible to WNV-associated neurologic disease with infection prevalence comparable to that in dead birds. Positive species included fox squirrel (Sciurus niger), western gray squirrel (S. griseus), and eastern gray squirrel (S. carolinensis).

Without testing a deceased squirrel's kidney tissue for WNV, which isn't a 100 % reliable, this virus cannot be confirmed to be the cause of neurological symptoms.

Distemper can be tested for by a veterinarian.

[astrll]

Hi everyone,

Thanks again for all your input so far!

He was being much more approachable today, so I was able to inspect his body more closely. I’m not seeing anything abnormal in his eyes and ears. Couldn’t get a look around the mouth area but I know his teeth are fine because I could hear him gnawing.

He can still aim and jump in the trees, but I did notice he’s taking the safer routes that the other tilty squirrels usually take.

Hearing and vision seem okay because he responded to me tossing him an HHB and was able to track it with his eyes and ears.

Is there anything else I should check? I can try to get his weight but I don’t think he’d be able to sit on the scale. I will try though!

The head bobbing is still there but isn’t worse. Sometimes it looks like he’s dizzy.

Oooough it’s so tough to watch him and be helpless. He’s had some HHBs and echinacea water today. I hope he’s being safe in this heat.