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Thread: Is this squirrel pox?

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    Default Is this squirrel pox?

    I'm having trouble attaching pix of the squirrel's lesions. I will keep trying.

    Found 2 baby squirrels on the ground. I have been hydrating and warming them according to the Squirrel Tales site by Sarah Rowe. About 4 weeks by my guess--maybe a bit younger. I've had them almost a week and their eyes are still closed. They are still not completely hydrated but I'm giving them formula watered down by a quarter and try to get them to drink a little plain water 2 or 3 times a day between meals.

    I have them in a small cardboard box padded with paper towel and tissues on top of a small animal heating pad. I pulled the heating pad out from under the box enough to provide unheated 1/3 space in case they got hot. 3 days ago I found the little boy out of the box on the naked part of the heating pad. I was horrified to find blisters on his tummy. I rearranged and covered everything so this cannot happen again but now both squirrels have lumps and blisters. I'm beginning to think that the blisters and bumps are not from the heating pad but from squirrel pox and that the discomfort from the pox is why he was toasting his tummy. I've been reading everything I can find on the internet about squirrel pox and now am 99% convinced that is it. I'd like to be able to post pix to get confirmation. I've raised baby squirrel rescues before and have never come across this.

    If anyone can help me post the pix, please help. Meantime I'll keep trying.
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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by Kit-Ten View Post
    I'm having trouble attaching pix of the squirrel's lesions. I will keep trying.

    Found 2 baby squirrels on the ground. I have been hydrating and warming them according to the Squirrel Tales site by Sarah Rowe. About 4 weeks by my guess--maybe a bit younger. I've had them almost a week and their eyes are still closed. They are still not completely hydrated but I'm giving them formula watered down by a quarter and try to get them to drink a little plain water 2 or 3 times a day between meals.

    I have them in a small cardboard box padded with paper towel and tissues on top of a small animal heating pad. I pulled the heating pad out from under the box enough to provide unheated 1/3 space in case they got hot. 3 days ago I found the little boy out of the box on the naked part of the heating pad. I was horrified to find blisters on his tummy. I rearranged and covered everything so this cannot happen again but now both squirrels have lumps and blisters. I'm beginning to think that the blisters and bumps are not from the heating pad but from squirrel pox and that the discomfort from the pox is why he was toasting his tummy. I've been reading everything I can find on the internet about squirrel pox and now am 99% convinced that is it. I'd like to be able to post pix to get confirmation. I've raised baby squirrel rescues before and have never come across this.

    If anyone can help me post the pix, please help. Meantime I'll keep trying.
    Name:  girl squirrel1.jpg
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Size:  80.1 KBName:  boy squirrel1.jpg
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Size:  79.7 KB
    First I have never dealt with pox so I can't confirm that is what it is. It could be mange, too much heat or something else. Are there lesions just on the lower sides or do they have them all over? What temp is the heating pad set on? It should be on low and under half the container. You can place a dish rag or hand towel under the unheated part to make the container level.

    What help I can offer is they should be in a deep plastic container with lots of fleece to burrow in. The cardboard, paper towels and tissues are causing them to dry out. I would add a small container with a moist sponge in it to their container to boost the humidity levels. It can be a baby food jar with holes poked in the lid or something similar just as long as they can't tip it over and get hurt.

    Until we figure out what this is some coconut oil or even olive oil could be applied to sooth their skin.
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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    I'm by no means an expert on Pox but it doesn't quite look like pox to me. I reminds me of some babies I once had that laid in their own urine and it caused... um, um, um... omg, the name escapes me! Anyway, it looked raw and blistery but once cleaned and kept clean it dried up and cleared up. Let's hope...

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by ALittleNutty View Post
    First I have never dealt with pox so I can't confirm that is what it is. It could be mange, too much heat or something else. Are there lesions just on the lower sides or do they have them all over? What temp is the heating pad set on? It should be on low and under half the container. You can place a dish rag or hand towel under the unheated part to make the container level.

    What help I can offer is they should be in a deep plastic container with lots of fleece to burrow in. The cardboard, paper towels and tissues are causing them to dry out. I would add a small container with a moist sponge in it to their container to boost the humidity levels. It can be a baby food jar with holes poked in the lid or something similar just as long as they can't tip it over and get hurt.

    Until we figure out what this is some coconut oil or even olive oil could be applied to sooth their skin.

    Great advice.
    What formula are you feeding, what amount, and how often?
    These little ones look bloated to me.
    The first one appears to have a hard tummy while
    the second just seems large.
    Are you stimulating them after every feeding?
    What setting is the heating pad on?
    These appear like blisters to me.
    Are they on other areas or just the tummies?

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Are there any lesions around their eyes or any place else other than their belly?

    Some one else asked, what level is the heating pad on...

    Wonder if it could be staph?

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Thank you for the advice. I am feeding them Esbilac with a little whipping cream in the proportions spelled out on the Squirrel Tales site. This formula worked great on my last three baby squirrels who have since been released and still sometimes visit.

    I've been giving them all they are willing to take and then rub their tummies with a special ointment Inotyol from France. It is great for healing scrapes, cuts and burns. They love it and relax. And the stimulation usually brings urine and poop. The reason I feel they are still dehydrated is that their poop is still hard little pellets instead of the soft poop I've been expecting. Getting them to take a little water between meals seems to increase urination and pooping so I think that is good. Their tummies are soft and not nearly as huge as they seem in the pictures. I also rub on a little Neosporin sometimes to keep the lesions from getting infected. The Inotyol is white and accentuates the scabs. I hope it doesn't make it hard to tell what is wrong.

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by Nancy in New York View Post

    Great advice.
    What formula are you feeding, what amount, and how often?
    These little ones look bloated to me.
    The first one appears to have a hard tummy while
    the second just seems large.
    Are you stimulating them after every feeding?
    What setting is the heating pad on?
    These appear like blisters to me.
    Are they on other areas or just the tummies?
    The heating pad is a small animal warming pad with only the very low setting. They have a few bumps on their backs but so far they haven't broken the skin. They start out like white bumps under the skin. I feed them every 3 hours. More often than that they aren't willing to wake up. Later they panic.

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by redwuff View Post
    Are there any lesions around their eyes or any place else other than their belly?

    Some one else asked, what level is the heating pad on...

    Wonder if it could be staph?
    So far no lesions around the eyes, cross my fingers! A few bumps on their backs but I've been rubbing them with ointment and they don't seem to be getting worse. The heating pad is a small K & H pad for using in heated cat and dog beds. It doesn't get very hot and the squirrels never want to got to the unheated parts of the nest.

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by Kit-Ten View Post
    The heating pad is a small animal warming pad with only the very low setting. They have a few bumps on their backs but so far they haven't broken the skin. They start out like white bumps under the skin. I feed them every 3 hours. More often than that they aren't willing to wake up. Later they panic.
    I first thought they were blisters from the heating pad but the original ones are healing and new ones keep cropping up.

    Thank you all for your help!

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by Kit-Ten View Post
    Thank you for the advice. I am feeding them Esbilac with a little whipping cream in the proportions spelled out on the Squirrel Tales site. This formula worked great on my last three baby squirrels who have since been released and still sometimes visit.

    I've been giving them all they are willing to take and then rub their tummies with a special ointment Inotyol from France. It is great for healing scrapes, cuts and burns. They love it and relax. And the stimulation usually brings urine and poop. The reason I feel they are still dehydrated is that their poop is still hard little pellets instead of the soft poop I've been expecting. Getting them to take a little water between meals seems to increase urination and pooping so I think that is good. Their tummies are soft and not nearly as huge as they seem in the pictures. I also rub on a little Neosporin sometimes to keep the lesions from getting infected. The Inotyol is white and accentuates the scabs. I hope it doesn't make it hard to tell what is wrong.
    They shouldn't eat all they can take as this can lead to bloating. 5-7% of weight is the norm and slightly over is okay as long as they don't bloat. Overfeeding can lead to runny stool.

    I looked up Inotyol and it seems to be a mixture of zinc oxide and ichthammol, which is a "drawing" agent. It's probably okay to use.
    Are you cleaning them up well after eating? Formula can actually harm their skin and cause fur loss if left on just like urine can.

    Another possibility is that this is staph.

    With burns it's not unlikely for blisters to show up in stages but since they have them on their backs too I am having my doubts about it being the heat.
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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Has the lesions shown any movement toward healing

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Is the heating 'pad' a hard black plastic that has no temperature control but just plug into electricity?

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by Daisey007 View Post
    I'm by no means an expert on Pox but it doesn't quite look like pox to me. I reminds me of some babies I once had that laid in their own urine and it caused... um, um, um... omg, the name escapes me! Anyway, it looked raw and blistery but once cleaned and kept clean it dried up and cleared up. Let's hope...
    Thank you Daisey! It would be so great if they could heal on their own. I keep them clean and dry. They have not been urinating a lot (except when I am holding them) and once overnight it soaked through to the cardboard but I have them on several layers of kleenex so I don't think they got wet.

    I also clean them every day with colloidal silver which should kill viruses and bacteria. And it is very safe.

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by redwuff View Post
    Is the heating 'pad' a hard black plastic that has no temperature control but just plug into electricity?
    No, it is a flexible tan but it has no temperature control and just plugs into electricity. It is supposed to be safe for cat beds. You can hardly feel that it is on unless the cat is lying on it and then most of the heat comes from the cat!

    I have other heating pads but they have controls and higher temps and I read where they can malfunction. I'm constantly checking. They were so cold the first couple of days. I had to hold them to warm them up before putting them in the box. Now they seem to be staying warm. Of course I still hold them whenever I can.

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by ALittleNutty View Post
    They shouldn't eat all they can take as this can lead to bloating. 5-7% of weight is the norm and slightly over is okay as long as they don't bloat. Overfeeding can lead to runny stool.

    I looked up Inotyol and it seems to be a mixture of zinc oxide and ichthammol, which is a "drawing" agent. It's probably okay to use.
    Are you cleaning them up well after eating? Formula can actually harm their skin and cause fur loss if left on just like urine can.

    Another possibility is that this is staph.

    With burns it's not unlikely for blisters to show up in stages but since they have them on their backs too I am having my doubts about it being the heat.
    I am drying them off after eating and wrapping them in fresh kleenex. Maybe I should run a damp cotton over them to make sure there is no formul remaining. And I'll definitely back off encouraging them to eat if they get runny stool. Right now their little pellets are so hard it worries me.

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by redwuff View Post
    Has the lesions shown any movement toward healing
    Yes! Some have pretty much disappeared. Most have scabbed and I'm not seeing new bumps under the skin. Of course, with all the scabbing they could be there but not easy to see.

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Quote Originally Posted by Kit-Ten View Post
    I am drying them off after eating and wrapping them in fresh kleenex. Maybe I should run a damp cotton over them to make sure there is no formul remaining. And I'll definitely back off encouraging them to eat if they get runny stool. Right now their little pellets are so hard it worries me.
    Of course I haven't dealt with anything that looks like this but my skin care for them consists of a bath every few days with a drop of Dawn, wiping them with unscented baby wipes after feedings and a little coconut oil about once a week if needed.

    Like I said in my first post I would move them to fleece bedding or old t-shirts in a plastic bin. The paper products can be contributing to the dehydration.
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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Is there a reason you are keeping them in Kleenex? Does the Kleenex have lotion infused in it? When did these lesions appear?

    Sorry for the million questions, but this is a stumper. It does not appear to be like any pox I've seen.

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    I just looked up k and h small animal heating pad and those pads are often used to keep animals warm outdoors in the winter. If this is what your little darlings are on it might be just too hot for them. When you rescued other babies, did you use this heating pad?

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    Default Re: Is this squirrel pox?

    Burns
    Put your hand on the heating pad after it's been on for a while just to make sure it's not getting too hot and that there are no hot spots. Some people put a good pile of fleece, t-shirts, and/or flannel as well between the baby and the heating pad as additional protection from overheating.

    Allergies
    To safeguard against allergies, I personally only wash squirrel laundry with unscented detergent and double or triple rinse it. To my understanding, some squirrels have very sensitive skin and are sensitive to chemicals and require well-rinsed stuff free of scents, free of lotions, etc.

    Something Else
    I will defer to the others about any possibility that this could be caused by a fungus or parasite. If so, I suspect there will be a medication remedy for that, and nothing more serious than what a cat or dog might come down with.

    Not Pox, IMO
    Does NOT look like pox to me. The pox that I have seen has been redish bumps, and in advanced stages, redish bumps sometimes with accompanying crustiness, nothing like this, IMO.

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