What if my baby squirrel won't poop?

[amynichole]

Quick recap!
Yesterday we were cutting down tree's on my Mother's farm, we cut down a small cedar that had a hidden squirrels nest in the very top. The nest busted open on the fall and two tiny baby squirrels rolled out. They can't be more than a few days old (totally pink, eyes & ears closed, and small little umbilical cord stumps left.) It was far too cold out to try and replace the nest and wait for mom to come back, so we whisked them inside to get them warm. I've been feeding them every two hours (a mix of esbilac, water, &whipping cream - recommended by a fellow squirrel parent). After every feeding I clean their little faces and arms and then proceed to wipe their bottoms to make them go. The little female pees every time, and a large amount. She has only pooped once and that was after her first formula feeding yesterday at 7pm. The little male pees every other feeding and its usally a very small amount, he has yet to poop at all.

Anything I'm doing wrong? Should they be pooping after every feeding? Not really sure where to go from here since almost all research I've been finding keeps giving me mixed answers.

[DarkLies212]

Welcome to TSB!! Thanks for rescuing these two and looking for help!

Were they slowly introduced to the formula for given full strength? I'm assuming they were mostly hydrated since the tree was cut down as opposed to them crawling out on their own, but it sounds like the little boy may need more hydration.

In my experience, they should poop pretty much every time. When you're feeding, does the milk line go down? Are they bloated at all? If possible, can you post a pic?

Sorry for all the questions, but it helps

[amynichole]

Thank you for responding! I'm not sure how long the Momma was away from them, they were pretty chilly when they were brought to me inside. We gave formula full strength after a few hours of them being warmed up. We were going to give pedialyte, but were told it could kill them. So we avoided it.

I just went and checked on them now and he had some dried bark poop hanging out of his bottom, so I got a warm wash cloth and started wiping and it ALL came out. So much poop lol After a while it changed from a dark shade (like the shade of a newly born babies poop) to a seedy mustard poop.

This picture was taken last night, I'll take another one at their next feeding in a few minutes.

[Sara in NW MS]

It's real important to know how much to feed them. Do you have a kitchen scale that will weigh in grams?? Weigh them, when you find out how much they weigh, you can feed them the proper amount based on their weight. They should be getting between 5-7% of their body weight.

I noticed in the pic they are on a towel. Try to have them on fleece or old tshirts/sweatshirts. Their little nails can get caught in the loops of the towel fabric and cause injuries. Do you have them in a box or a plastic container with air holes? Be sure you have a heating pad under their container, set it to low and keep it under half the container. This will help keep them warm but also allow them to crawl off the heat if they need to. Plastic containers are best for them, cardboard absorbs moisture and creates a very dry environment which can dry their skin or dehydrate them.
They sure are cute!!! Welcome to TSB and thanks for saving those little ones!!! We love to see pics!

[amynichole]

I'm planning on weighing them this evening when my husband can help.

The picture I posted was last night when they first came to me. They're currently in my bathroom (the only safe place in my house from kiddies and cats) in a box that is lined with a inch layer of fleece. The box is on top (half on half off) a heating pad. They mainly stay covered under another layer of fleece and move all around.

I just do their feeding (and took lots of pictures!) The male had a little more poop on him, so I cleaned him off. The female (I do her feedings first because shes SO easy) took the syringe right away and then when it came to cleaning she pooped quite a bit. And like her brother it started out dark and turned to a seedy greenish yellow.
The male didn't make me work so hard to get him to eat this time. He also peed AND pooped at the end of his.

My husband & I have been more worried about the male than female because he's so stubborn when it comes to feedings and the whole bathroom thing.

[DarkLies212]

The greenish poop is a little concerning. Does it have an odor?
Hopefully it's just due to the sudden switch and it'll correct itself when his system adjusts.

Oh, wanted to point out something for your future reference. Pedialyte can be given alone (as in not mixed into the formula powder) for 24 hours. If they're given it for over 48 hours (someone PLEASE correct me if I remembered this wrong) the sodium content will start to negatively effect them.

Does the Esbilac powder you have come with PRO & PRE BIOTICS?

[Nancy in New York]

The greenish poop is a little concerning. Does it have an odor?
Hopefully it's just due to the sudden switch and it'll correct itself when his system adjusts.

Oh, wanted to point out something for your future reference. Pedialyte can be given alone (as in not mixed into the formula powder) for 24 hours. If they're given it for over 48 hours (someone PLEASE correct me if I remembered this wrong) the sodium content will start to negatively effect them.

Does the Esbilac powder you have come with PRO & PRE BIOTICS?

Just wanted to point this out.
The pwdered Esbilac that DarkLies has posted is the correct one.
BUT what we are finding is that many of the cans don't have this label anymore.
SO to get the correct formula, look for the third ingredient on the back. It should say
"Dried Whey Protein Concentrate". If it doesn't, that is the old formula.

[Nancy in New York]

Another excellent resource. After you click the link below,
click on the link in the thread and it will take you to Baby Squirrel Care.

http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/s...-Squirrel-Care

[amynichole]

That is the formula we have! I'll have to remember to take a picture of their poop at the next feeding. The only sure way I can describe what it looks like, is gallstones. Horrible comparison, but its what it looks like. I don't recall it having a foul odor or any odor at all. I'm hoping its just their tummies adjusting to the formula (kind of like when a breastfed baby's stool changes when formula is introduced)

My husband just did their last feeding and they both did their business after.

Here are a few pictures I managed to get of them!

First 3 are of the male:


Last 2 are of the female:

[Nancy in New York]

Such precious little souls.
Sorry if you already answered this.
Do you have a weight on them?
Are you using 1 cc syringes and nipples?
Do you want us to try to find a rehabber for you.
Do you have them in a container with a heating pad
half under, set on low?
Again, sorry for asking questions you may have already
answered.

[usfbrad]

Happy to see you posting on the board, you'll get all of the knowledge & advice you'll need from the wonderful people on here.

In case you don't recognize the username, it's Seymour's dad ;-)

[amynichole]

Such precious little souls.
Sorry if you already answered this.
Do you have a weight on them?
Are you using 1 cc syringes and nipples?
Do you want us to try to find a rehabber for you.
Do you have them in a container with a heating pad
half under, set on low?
Again, sorry for asking questions you may have already
answered.

It's totally okay! I'm open to answering all questions as many times as possible lol
-We were going to weigh them, but I forgot to mention it to my husband before their feeding. The male is currently eating now and his sister just finished up. They will eat again in 2 hours and THEN I will weigh them. I set a reminder on both of our phones.
-We were using a 1cc until it kept sticking and. Now we're using a 3cc at the 1cc mark. I just ordered new 1cc syringes & nipples with express shipping. I read a forum on here about pinkies and went nuts on "baby proofing & preparing" better.
-The rehabber thing is still up in the air. My husband is VERY dead set on rehabbing them himself with my help, but I get he final say. For now, I think we're doing okay (with all of yalls guidance) but I will TOTALLY let you know if I think we can't do it anymore.
-After reading the pinkie thread I quickly found a small plastic tub in my cubbard and made it their new home. It is half on half off the heating pad (set to low, and its a continual set one, doesn't shut off) with a lot of cozy fleece inside. I have yet to punch holes in the lid, so it's placed diagonally on top.

They are going pee SO much after their feedings and pooping just as much. I read on another squirrel site that the formula can cause a small case of constipation as they get used to it (especially when given in a strong undiluted dose, like we did - whoops) - which I hope to be the case. Still unsure if the color and texture of their stool is normal. There is currently LOTS of old dried up poo pellets in their new bedding, good sign? (you can see them in the last picture of them in their new bed)

PLEASE give me critiques or advice on anything I should be doing differently.

Here are a few pictures for reference on the set up and the poos.

[Nancy in New York]

Do you have other animals?
IF not, can you give them a little more air?
That is probably good enough, but I am a worrier.
If you just turn the top more, that would be better.
ALSO the bin looks shallow, but hard to tell.
Just keep the blankets away from the sides, because pinkies can
crawl up and we just don't want them crawling out.
A deeper bin would work much better.
I typically have them in a taller one that is smaller.
Let me find a picture and I will post it here.
There poop will change for a while while they are adjusting
to the formula.
The scale is a very important part of feeding as we typically feed
them 5-7% of their body weight, so we need to know how much to feed.

Sounds like you are doing great so far.
Thanks for helping these little ones!

edit: I just looked at the bin again. It doesn't look as shallow as I initially thought!

[amynichole]

We have a cat, but she only stays in the front end of the house. She refuses to go down the hallway unless the vacuum comes out or we have visitors. They're in our bathroom with the door shut, so I can adjust their lid. I just didn't know how important the lid is at this stage (I'm worrying about them drying out)

We feed them soon, and we have the scale out and ready to go. Little girl is pooping A LOT, she's even going in their bed without any stimulation. However, now we're concerned with dehydration. We did the little skin test and her skin did not snap back like his. She also just looks saggy? I read dehydration can be fatal fast and she's pooping and peeing SO much, and eating so well. So I'm totally lost on what to do.

[Nancy in New York]

We have a cat, but she only stays in the front end of the house. She refuses to go down the hallway unless the vacuum comes out or we have visitors. They're in our bathroom with the door shut, so I can adjust their lid. I just didn't know how important the lid is at this stage (I'm worrying about them drying out)

We feed them soon, and we have the scale out and ready to go. Little girl is pooping A LOT, she's even going in their bed without any stimulation. However, now we're concerned with dehydration. We did the little skin test and her skin did not snap back like his. She also just looks saggy? I read dehydration can be fatal fast and she's pooping and peeing SO much, and eating so well. So I'm totally lost on what to do.

It's very difficult to test a pinkies hydraton with the skin "tenting".
Typically their skin does NOT go back as quickly when they're this
small. If you are giving 5-7% of their body weight every feeding,
she should be fine. If you are concerned you can offer her some water
in between feedings with a HINT of sugar or honey.
IF they don't eat the "suggested" amounts, don't force,
but write down what they do eat and the times.

Can you either post the city you are in OR pm me?
Since squirrels can mask problems easily, I would just like
to try to find someone close to you, in case there is a problem.

Far too often we are scrambling at the last minute to find
someone that can help.

[UDoWhat]

OMG those babies are beautiful and it sounds like you guys are doing great. I do find that it helps to do hydration fluid, like Nancy in New York said, a few times a day.

Your eagerness to learn about taking care of those babies is a breath of fresh air.


Redwuff

[amynichole]

Okay, things have been so crazy! But we managed to weigh them. They're both 1.10oz (31 grams)
Starting last night, the little female began to not want to finish her syringe (she takes almost all of it but the last tiny bit) and now the male has started it too. The female is back to peeing lots but no stool.

Nancy, I'll send you a PM now

[amynichole]

Forgive me if this is already posted somewhere!
I've looked as best as I can while wrangling a 3 year old, nursing a 5 month old, and tending two my pinkies (btw, the first to are children LOL)

We've weighed the pinkies and now I'm trying to make sure I'm feeding them enough and at the right times.
I think I've found my sweet spot for them when it comes to formula temp & time but I still want to double triple check everything else!

Thanks in advance!

[DarkLies212]

Typically we do 5%-7% of body weight. I know there's a cheat sheet of calculations posted here somewhere...

Or is that not what you meant?

EDIT: Here's the cheat sheet!SquirrelBoard Feeding CheatSheet.pdf

[SammysMom]

We will happily trade information for PICS!!! Which formula are they on and tell us more...some of us are pinkie lovers and it isn't time yet so we are living vicariously through you!