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Thread: live trapped squirrels

  1. #21
    nchls_school Guest

    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Quote Originally Posted by CritterMom View Post
    Yes, mamas will reject babies with problems. Also, I believe that Peanut was passed around a bit before you got him, wasn't he? Early diet, starting with the formula used to raise him, is vitally important to growth. They go from pinky to adulthood very fast - their window for growth is very short - if it isn't done right they will never catch up, regardless of how well they are fed later in life.
    Yes. We are the third home he's had since he was found. Of course, I have no idea how the first two families cared for him, but I do know that all he was given for food was peanuts. By time Molly (my student) got Peanut peanuts were all he would eat. Kimmi got him to eat a lot of different things, but... He has had a bad start for sure.

  2. #22
    nchls_school Guest

    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    A couple of questions.

    All the force feeding we have had to do has made Peanut one angry squirrel. Kimmi is worried that Peanut will not regain his friendly, cuddly personality. He doesn't try to bite (he couldn't even if he tried and he has tried to bite me) but we're met with angry chattering whenever we go near. Any suggestions? I've been telling Kimmi to hold him more so that he learns that she isn't always going to force him to do something. We have been using peanut and almond butter to get calcium and vitamins into him rather than forcing; so far it's working.

    I like to be prepared; should I have to handle the wild female, what is the best way? I don't plan on touching her unless I have to.

  3. #23
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Thank goodness he has you on his side!

  4. #24
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Work gloved and fleece for the wild one if you really have to. As far as Peanut, showing him that it isn't always about forcing him to do something is the best way to go. Not easy...many prayers for all of you.

  5. #25
    nchls_school Guest

    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Quote Originally Posted by SammysMom View Post
    Work gloved and fleece for the wild one if you really have to. As far as Peanut, showing him that it isn't always about forcing him to do something is the best way to go. Not easy...many prayers for all of you.
    Thick gloves; like our parrots. Any preferable way to hold them? With the parrots I use a thick towel; easier to hold and it has a calming effect. With the rabbits it's a hand under the backside and a hand around the front legs.

    Peanut's worse. Just when we think he's getting better it another step backwards. He's eating well but loosing weight. Any ideas? He's getting the calcium as he should-vitamins are added to his food. He is more active. His eyes were not fully open when we fed him his almojd butter and calcium. Fur looks rough. Droppings are solid but light in color; from eating a lot of peanut, almond paste? Very discouraging.

  6. #26
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Can you detail everything for us?

    What does he eat per day - start in the morning. What is voluntary and what are you forcing him to eat?

    How much calcium per day? Are you using the powder or Tums? How are you getting it into him?

    You keep saying "almond paste." Do you mean almond butter? Looks like peanut butter but with almonds? Almond paste is a real thing but it is extremely sweet - a confection used to make marzipan.

    How is he drinking?

    Please be as detailed as possible. You can't imagine how hard it is to try to do this without ever being able to see much more than snapshots - we need you to paint a picture with your words.

    Eyes half open is not good of course. I just don't know if this is a health thing or if it is just that he is so angry and depressed from his treatment. God, the people who started feeding this little one nothing but peanuts didn't do anyone any favors.

  7. #27
    nchls_school Guest

    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Quote Originally Posted by CritterMom View Post
    Can you detail everything for us?

    What does he eat per day - start in the morning. What is voluntary and what are you forcing him to eat?

    How much calcium per day? Are you using the powder or Tums? How are you getting it into him?

    You keep saying "almond paste." Do you mean almond butter? Looks like peanut butter but with almonds? Almond paste is a real thing but it is extremely sweet - a confection used to make marzipan.

    How is he drinking?

    Please be as detailed as possible. You can't imagine how hard it is to try to do this without ever being able to see much more than snapshots - we need you to paint a picture with your words.

    Eyes half open is not good of course. I just don't know if this is a health thing or if it is just that he is so angry and depressed from his treatment. God, the people who started feeding this little one nothing but peanuts didn't do anyone any favors.
    We've stopped force feeding. Kimmi hand feeds (he sits in her lap and eats) him the vitamins and calcium mixed with almond BUTTER (not paste). What's left is put in his cage and by night it's gone. The calcium is the powdered form-250-300g (this should be less by now? I just talked with Kimmi on this. Could this be the problem-too much calcium?). Vitamins are added as recommended.

    Along with the almond butter (Kimmi was using peanut butter) mix he is eating cabbage, carrots, orange pieces (this is new-is orange bad?), a little pecan. We keep trying different combinations with the block; not much luck so far.

    He eats often and drinks often.

    His fur is looks rough today; his underside is stained with urine. His eyes looked half lidded (new today).

    Peanut eat, sleeps, and drinks-no playing at all.

  8. #28
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    He can have a little orange.

    The thing that jumps out at me immediately is that he is getting NO protein, and rodents need about 14% of their diet to be protein. The Henry's blocks are made with whey protein isolate as the dry ingredient just for this reason.

    Will he still take Ensure? Maybe try a different flavor? He needs to get some protein into him.

    You said he is getting vitamins - the Henry's vitamins? May I ask how much per day?

  9. #29
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    What and how much are you giving for "vitamins"? If only you could get him to eat some block they have the vitamins in them. The rough fur screams dehydration to me. Are you using just water to hydrate or pedialyte?

  10. #30
    nchls_school Guest

    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Quote Originally Posted by SammysMom View Post
    What and how much are you giving for "vitamins"? If only you could get him to eat some block they have the vitamins in them. The rough fur screams dehydration to me. Are you using just water to hydrate or pedialyte?
    1/4 tsp vitamins and 1/8 tsp. of Henry's protein powder (as the directions read) mixed with the foods we know he'll eat so I'm sure it is being consumed. I've monitored his water intake closely and he drinks each time he comes out of his box to eat (we haven't tried pedialyte). I've tried to mix the block with other things. The boo balls too. We've taken his other foods away in an effort to make him eat the boo balls. All that did was cause weight loss and a refusal to eat. Peanut's weight at Christmas was 112g (just tried to weigh him) and we couldn't get an accurate reading. He fights and resists. From what the readings were, back and forth, Peanut is over 100g and that's the best we could get. Doesn't help much.

  11. #31
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Can you post some photos of him from today?
    Sometimes they can tell us so much just by looking at him.

  12. #32
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    You don't want to use pedialyte. I was asking because sometimes people use it and it has too much sodium in it and can cause dehydration if overused. How old is he?

  13. #33
    nchls_school Guest

    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Quote Originally Posted by SammysMom View Post
    You don't want to use pedialyte. I was asking because sometimes people use it and it has too much sodium in it and can cause dehydration if overused. How old is he?
    About 8 months. It's not possible to be exact as Peanut has been passed on and on and on from person to person until he came here. He's a last spring baby.

    Not a good picture, but you can see he's not happy.

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  14. #34
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Oh my...he is so cute and so ANNOYED! I wonder, when my Sammy (the fussiest squirrel on the planet ) wouldn't eat something, I don't remember what, I used a bit of Nutella to conceal it. I suspect it was calcium, because he knew no matter what I tried, that it was there. It may be tasteless to us, but he KNEW every time. I think that the Nutella was just too tempting to ignore. I used it in boo balls and then decreased it and increased the good stuff until he was eating blocks. Just a thought.

  15. #35
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Quote Originally Posted by nchls_school View Post
    About 8 months. It's not possible to be exact as Peanut has been passed on and on and on from person to person until he came here. He's a last spring baby.

    Not a good picture, but you can see he's not happy.

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    OMG what a little handful of cuteness.

  16. #36
    nchls_school Guest

    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Quote Originally Posted by CritterMom View Post
    He can have a little orange.

    The thing that jumps out at me immediately is that he is getting NO protein, and rodents need about 14% of their diet to be protein. The Henry's blocks are made with whey protein isolate as the dry ingredient just for this reason.

    Will he still take Ensure? Maybe try a different flavor? He needs to get some protein into him.

    You said he is getting vitamins - the Henry's vitamins? May I ask how much per day?
    He does get powdered protein mixed in his food. We've tried strawberry and vanilla ensure; it worked for a little while and then the fighting started again. More ensure went in his fur and around the room than in his mouth and down the throat. Presently Kimmi is mixing everything with peanut or almond butter and so far so good. I think Kimmi said 1/4 tsp of vitamins and an 1/8 tsp. of the protein.

    We just took new pictures after looking Peanut over very carefully. Another difference today is that there are small bald spots on his head. The paws have had bald spots-we read that happens with MBD. I'll post the pictures as soon as I can.

  17. #37
    nchls_school Guest

    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    This photo, like so many, is blurred. It shows the odd way Peanut sits. He looks rougher than he is; we washed him with plain warm water and he's not quite dry. He was so covered in dry ensure and urine that a bath had to be done-no soap, just water and carefully dried.

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  18. #38
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    The bald spots are likely from the ensure sitting on the fur.

  19. #39
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    Where did you get the amounts for the protein isolate - that IS what you are using, right? I don't thinl 1/8 tsp is nearly enough.

  20. #40
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    Default Re: live trapped squirrels

    He just looks so precious.
    Make sure he's warm enough.
    With MBD they like the warmth since their bones ache.

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