questions on mda

[treeguy247]

my squirrel died today after convusing for 70 min I was holding her the whole time, any way just wanted to know what went wrong, she did not have all the symptions, of mda she did however have uncontrolable shakes from time to time i do know her diet was not what it should have beed too though,lots of nuts and apples was that the problem

[Abacat]

treeguy247, I'm sorry for your loss. :grouphug I'm not sure what mda is, Do you mean MBD? (Metabolic Bone disease) It's a gradual onset of symptoms that steadily gets worse. If caught in time, it can be stopped. Did she stay mainly indoors? Did she receive any full spectrum light source, or direct sunlight? And yes, diet of captive squirrels is crucial, alot of people don't realize this.
I guess there's no easy answer here, this tragedy could have been avoided. I'm not saying that to be mean, we all make mistakes, but hopefully you will learn from this and go on to be ready for the next time. Again, I'm very sorry.
http://www.millan.net/minimations/smileys/ribbons/pinkblack.gif (http://www.millan.net) RIP baby girl

[Buddy'sMom]

So sorry to hear about your squirrel. That must have been very hard for you. I hope you can take comfort in knowing that you were there for her and that she was safe and loved -- and surely knew it. It was a kindness taking care of her and holding her until the end.

If you want to learn more of what the problem might have been, I hope that you will come back and talk to us some more -- it may well have been diet if she had been indoors for some time. Or perhaps related to a head injury that caused her to com einto your care? With a bit more information, we might be able to help you find some answers.

:grouphug :Love_Icon :grouphug

[anneke]

How helpless you must have felt. I'm sorry for your loss and hope that the information you learn here helps you understand what might have happened to your friend.

[treeguy247]

sorry I did mean mbd,what do I do next time to prevent this,her cage was next to a window,and i took her outside daily,how do i find out what she died from >?

[anneke]

I think the best way to be sure would be for her to have a necropsy done. But, then you need a vet willing to do one. For birds, the suggestion is to bag them and keep them in the refrigerator until you can get them to the vet. But, I am not sure that is the applicable to squirrels.

I can certainly understand you wanting to understand what happened. Even painful knowledge helps us have closure and new learning for the future.

[Abacat]

How are you? I'm sorry if I sounded insensitive, I'm just dealing with some other issues, didn't mean to take them out on you. :grouphug
Sunshine thru a window blocks the uv rays, they must have direct sunshine, but you said you took her outside daily. Can you tell us what types of foods she was eating, or how long you noticed the symptoms? It is possible she had some underlying problem, that just surfaced.
What was your friends name? Do you feel up to telling us her story? How she came into your life? Do you have any photos you'd like to remember her by?

[4skwerlz]

I'm so sorry you lost your little friend. You must be heartbroken. MBD is the most likely cause. Don't blame yourself too much. There is so little information available on proper diet for pet squirrels. Unfortunately, many of the folks on TSB have lost squirrels to MBD because they found TSB too late. :grouphug

:grouphug Rest in peace little squirrel.:grouphug

[treeguy247]

the food she was eating were sunflower seeds,peanuts,apples and ,grapes,and squirrel mix,freash water daily and she got to run around nightly,and had lotts of fun. she never acted stiff or sore,just had convulctions now and then ,she was found in a tree that was to be cut down ,,

[anneke]

Any idea how old she was when she was found? How long did you have her with you?

[Abacat]

Bless you for caring for her. Anything you'd like to share? It is so hard not knowing for certain the cause of death, but I too would guess MBD. She could have had other subtle symptoms that most people would not pick up on. She knew she was loved and you did your best, Thank you for caring, you're a good person.

[treeguy247]

6to8weeks old,and ive had her for 10 weeks or so

[anneke]

It's amazing the hole they can leave even when they are with us for such a short time.

I'm still learning about MBD- I'm hoping that one of the experienced folks can comment on whether it would overtake her so quickly.

You did the best you could for her and that's all any of us can do.

[Abacat]

Here's a link that may answer some of your questions about MBD.
http://www.squirrel-rehab.org/rehabinfo/mbd.html

[atlantasquirrelgirl]

I'm sorry for your loss. If you want to know for sure what happened, you can have a necropsy done, as specified by another member. I have the name of a doctor that will perform them if you are interested.

[anneke]

Here's a link that may answer some of your questions about MBD.
http://www.squirrel-rehab.org/rehabinfo/mbd.html


That's a wonderful link. I had no idea the disorder could develop so quickly- it seemed like something that would take time for the toll to show.

[treeguy247]

I thank you all for all the help you have been,its cool to know there is others out there who are as nuts as Iam, a good friend of mine is a vet ,and every time I call him he asks what did I bring home this time, one thing I did find out was that most vets not know much about squirrels ,thats sad ,so I am glad that I found your site,so Idont have to fly by the seat of my pants alone. Any way I never knew how great squirrels were,yes I feed them in my yard ,but never thought I would get hooked on them.they are great any way thanks ,JOHN...:thankyou

[Abacat]

Aaaah John, you're not alone...We all are "nuts" about squirrels here. Please don't be a stranger, stay with us, there's plenty of stuff going on. :) Thanks again for being the kind, caring individual you are! :grouphug
P.S. Besides you can NEVER have enough nuts around...:jump
Sharon

[treeguy247]

:grouphug Glad to know Iam not alone, life would be much less enjoyable with out all the little guys,any way I do plan on hanging out here for a long while, the more I learn then better for the next time, any way standing by ,john:

[island rehabber]

Glad you're with us, John -- sorry it was for a sad reason in the beginning, but very glad you found us. :)