pneumonia/Aspiration

[finetoons]

Just for reference, can anybody post info on when aspiration is serious and what signs to look for after a baby (at any particular age) enhales?

Thanks.

[4skwerlz]

Just for reference, can anybody post info on when aspiration is serious and what signs to look for after a baby (at any particular age) enhales?

Thanks.

Hey, Finetoons. :wave123 What's going on with your babies? Don't be shy, it happens to all of us.....

[finetoons]

Oh, I'm not shy, I'm just a nervous mommy. Geez, my (human) kids are healthy, active, social, school age children...but I'm a little over-protective of these squirrels.

Once in a while the syringe jams and then bursts, and one unlucky fuzzer (I have a male and female) will get a big snout-full of formula. They will give me a "what the f*, ma?" look and go off an sneeze for a bit. It's happened 3 times, actually - once to the male and twice to the female (who is the smaller one). They are about 8 weeks old now.

Not that I plan on aspirating them, but having lost a full night's sleep over the first time it happened, I'm wondering when is it appropriate to worry?

Of course this always seems to happen on a Friday night when I know my vet won't be answering the phone over the weekend. Should I ask her for an emergency dose of baytril just in case?

I'm listening for clicking, looking for lethargy, watching their appetites...is there anything else I can be doing?

These little guys are amazing and I just want to make sure they have the best start they can, considering the bad early weeks they must have had.

Thanks for all the advice!

[hazel]

If ANYONE ever told me that they NEVER have a baby get too much formula during feeding I'd say,''baloney'' or something sort of similar to that.
The vast majority of the time this doesn't lead to pneumonia. I once had one go a bit shocky on me because of it and he didn't get pneumonia. I did have one get pneumonia but he did it to himself by diving into the cup of formula when he had zero experience at drinking on his own. (He improved quickly thanks to Mars and homeopathy!)

When there is pneumonia, the baby doesn't feel well and you can often see that the breathing is labored, even at rest. There may be a clicking sound although sometimes clicking is temporary and I don't consider it to be a foolproof indicator of pneumonia at all. The best ''test'' that someone can perform at home is simply to listen to the baby's lungs by holding him/her up to your ear (in a quiet room). You should hear the heart beating very fast but not much else. If you hear wheezing, gurgling, crackling and/or quite noisy breathing there is likely pneumonia present.

Anyone who raises squirrels should listen to a healthy squirrel's chest periodically so that they have a frame of reference! Also observe healthy squirrels to note what normal breathing looks like!

[finetoons]

Thanks Hazel. Sandy appears content at this point. I guess this means I can go to bed...and you can too!

Thanks again.

[Mars]

Just a hint. Next time you feel the syringe stick, take it away from baby and clear it over the sink or into the cup. :) O-ring syringes tend to stick less.

[jules]

Hi Finetoons!

Can I just say that another possible sign that pneumonia has taken a hold is if the skin around the lips and mouth are quite greyish looking. If you keep a regular eye on this you will notice any changes straight away. The lips and mouth and gums should always look nice and pink/reddish. If they start to go grey/blue, this is a sign that they are not getting enough oxygen. This is known as CYANOSIS and is common in respiratory diseases.

Jules. :Love_Icon