Baby not pooping

[Caglemedic]

I am doing the rescue for a local sanctuary, but they seem to be limited in thier knowledge. I recieved a 2-3 week old girl, who had a small cat bite puncture. She was intially cold, and I warmed her. I have slowly increased "milk" ratio after I rehydrated her. Her skin was no longer tenting. She was peeing and her belly is not bloated. I put her back on pedialyte but it is hard on her.
I am very tired due to medical problems and keep feeding her every three hours. I have to increase the fluids because her tenting has reappeared. It's been 2 days and 8 hours since her confirmed poop during warming bath. She is active and suckling. I am also giving her a roung of baytril antibiotics. Is there anything I am doing wrong ? Is this normal? Her "milk" is 1/3 kitten formula, 1/12 goats milk, and the rest water. The sanctuary yelled at me when I gave the first rescue formula instead of goats milk but the other lady was giving it full strengthed goats milk. As a paramedic, I know you can't even do that to humans. THey are really good there but thier knowledge of sqiurrel rescue appears to be limited, which is why I now have 7 baby squirrels in a two week period.
oh yeah i have been stimulating her also to poop by gently rubbing her vagina and anus or tickling them.

[TinyPaws]

she should be on espilac, puppy replacement milk. keep her warm. Someone here with extensive knowledge will be able to help you further. They will be on soon...I will pray for her.

[Caglemedic]

She is still doing good now, I have been feeding her the pedialyte every hour to two hours and she appears rehydrated. She is sneezing a little but I have given her something that is homeopathic for puppies when they have lung or breathing problems. She also has been placed in a warm miost area to help breathing.
Thank you for the prayer, she is a sweetheart.

[Abacat]

Glad to hear your baby is feeling better...Gamma and TinyPaws already said pretty much what I would. :thumbsup
:Welcome to TSB...we'll all be praying for your lil girl. :grouphug

[Caglemedic]

She still has not pooped despite 21 hours on pedialyte diluted. I don't want to give her apple juice for constipation due to the gas it gives and the potential for bloating.

I love this site, and I want to thank all of you for this site. With seven babies and just starting off, it's been a bit scary at times. I guess for my husband more than for me. He's a tough martial arts guru cop and yet he seems so upset by the little babies suffering. He calls them tree rats yet squeels when I bring the baby, now named Cloe.

[Buddy'sMom]

:wave123 and :Welcome

You've gotten good advice already. I just wanted to add that if Cloe has mostly been on Pedialyte for a while, there might not be anything in her system to poop at this point.

The first things to address are warmth and hydration -- and it sounds like you already have that covered. She must be warm in order to digest anything at all (she might need to be bundled up for feeding if she doesn't stay warm while off the heating pad). And rehydrated. If she has been on Pedialyte this long, it's time to transition her to diluted formula as too long on Pedialyte will cause other problems.

Were you (or will you be) able to get some Esbilac puppy formula (available at major petstores, and some vets)? It is available powdered or already re-constituted and ready to use. (We do have some members more familiar with goats milk, but Esbilac would be best if it is available to you.) Once we know WHAT you are able to give her formula-wise, our rehabbers can help you with the dilutions to transition her to full strength, plus anything that should be added.

:grouphug :Love_Icon :grouphug

[Critter_Queen]

Adding a bit of yogurt to her formula might also help (or give her a small amount, warmed, undiluted.) This will help balance her gut flora.

Tenting is only one sign of dehydration. What color is her urine? If it is light yellow or clear she is well-hydrated and you can discontinue the pedialyte if it is hard on her. I would just start using diluted Esbilac formula instead. Baby squirrels go through a wrinkly stage at about the age yours is, so the tenting might be misleading.

Let us know which type of Esbilac you purchase (liquid- pre-mixed or powdered that is mixed with water) and we'll help you determine how to best dilute it over the next 24-48 hours.

What are you using to stimulate her to pee and poop? I've found a warm, damp cotton ball works best for my babies. :D Sometimes it'll take one of them up to 2 minutes to go, too, so don't give up too soon. If you get dry skin on the tummy from the dampness of the stimulation use Aveeno Baby cream...it works WONDERS.

I'm sorry you are tiring due to medical reasons. :grouphug It's hard enough doing eyes-closed squirrels when you feel WELL.

This was a great resource when I first started rehabbing. Most information is spot-on if you go to this link http://www.scarysquirrel.org/special/pets/infant/squirrelmanual.pdf

EDIT: I don't use the feeding amounts table in the back of this reference. You are better off to use the 5% rule. If you have a 50 gram baby, drop the zero and divide the remaining number by 2 (=2.5 in this case)...that gives you approximately 5% of the baby's weight in ml of formula.

[Caglemedic]

EVERYBODY DO THE POOPY DANCE!!!!

I found poop near her! I have a packet of puppy esbilac and mixed it 1/4 formula (one part powder to two parts water) with three parts pedialyte. I couldn't wait to give her a feeding due to the time since her last feeding. It was a good dry poop!

Thank you for the information. I have to leave to buy a scale, more esbilac ( I had the emergency packet) , whipping cream, vit's, and rodent blocks for the older ones I have. I have one teenager who had emergency surgery, hes wild, and punctured a lung and lamed a foot after being stuck in a child's toy. I have 5 babies that are 5 to 6 weeks old. One girl I have had for two weeks is named Yasmine.

Oh Cloe's urine has been almost clear, I am familiar with monitoring the urine. I was a paramedic for nine years until this past May.:jump :flash3 :crazy
I have to leave to get the other feed so I can get to the store before Cloe next feeding.

[Lady Squirrelly]

:poop :poop :poop :poop :poop :poop

:alright.gif :alright.gif :alright.gif :alright.gif :alright.gif

[Mars]

:jump :wave123 :jump :wave123 :jump

[LynninIN]

:poop :poop :poop

I would discontinue the pedialyte now that she is hydrated. Overuse of pedialyte can result in an electrolyte imbalance as it's formulated for humans. Also, the experts say never to mix Esbilac with pedialyte.

Sounds like you are doing a great job caring for this baby.

[Critter_Queen]

:banana :poop :poop :poop :banana

I would aslo suggest discontinuing the pedialyte for the reasons Lynn mentioned. :thumbsup Since she seems to be doing fine with what you gave her, I would mix the next feeding at 1 part Esbilac powder to 4 parts water (a 50% strength) and do that for the next two feedings. Once you get that far, if she's still digesting everything well (evidenced by nice, formed, solid poops) go ahead and try mixing the next feeding at 1 part powder to 3 parts water, then finally 1 part powder to 2 parts water. At that point you are at full strength! :thumbsup

[Gabe]

When they come in in rough shape, dehydration, I never expect a poop for the first three days. Seems yours is right on schedule.