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Thread: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

  1. #1
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    Default Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    On the bright side, Mama continues to thrive.

    https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...ured-front-paw

    Mookie, however, is back inside again:

    https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...xed-with-treat

    No sooner did Mama finish her antibiotics three days ago then I noticed that the back of Mookie's right rear leg was bloody. I did not see him for almost two days until yesterday afternoon. He was limping and not able to climb well. So, I bent down so he could get on my arm, then took him inside.

    It does not seem a terrible wound, not even sure it is abscessed. But since Mookie is not a chewer, it is easy enough to keep him on my sun porch for a bit. I started him on clavamox last night, and also applying derma gel to the wound.

    I think the limping is mostly just not wanting to put weight on the wound, rather than leg damage, but better safe than sorry.

    My only question here is this: If the wound proves superficial and heals fairly quickly, do I need to keep him on clavamox a full 10 days?

    Name:  Mookie 20200326 RR wound.jpg
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  3. #2
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Poor Mookie! It's a rough life out there!

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Quote Originally Posted by olorin19 View Post
    On the bright side, Mama continues to thrive.

    https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...ured-front-paw

    Mookie, however, is back inside again:

    https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...xed-with-treat

    No sooner did Mama finish her antibiotics three days ago then I noticed that the back of Mookie's right rear leg was bloody. I did not see him for almost two days until yesterday afternoon. He was limping and not able to climb well. So, I bent down so he could get on my arm, then took him inside.

    It does not seem a terrible wound, not even sure it is abscessed. But since Mookie is not a chewer, it is easy enough to keep him on my sun porch for a bit. I started him on clavamox last night, and also applying derma gel to the wound.

    I think the limping is mostly just not wanting to put weight on the wound, rather than leg damage, but better safe than sorry.

    My only question here is this: If the wound proves superficial and heals fairly quickly, do I need to keep him on clavamox a full 10 days?

    Name:  Mookie 20200326 RR wound.jpg
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    Very likely he would have healed on his own but 5 days should be sufficient.
    Step-N-Stone
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Quote Originally Posted by stepnstone View Post
    Very likely he would have healed on his own but 5 days should be sufficient.
    Thanks stepnstone

    When Mookie came over right before I brought him in, he was moving really poorly. And rather than climb up my sweatpants like normal to get a nut, I actually had to lean down so my forearm was right next to him so he could climb abroad.

    I expected the wound to look worse than it did. He is still not really pushing hard off that leg, and his movements still seem a little off.

    I was hanging out on the porch with him yesterday, and he was lying there on his belly - not all stretched out flat, but with both front and back paws facing forward. That position is normal, except he had his butt elevated oddly.

    Anyways, sorry if my description is not as good as a picture! The point is that it looked weird enough to catch my eye. So last night, I checked higher up his leg, and there is a bald patch on his belly on that same (right) side.

    The first photo is what we took last night. I am wondering if he got a scratch or something up there as well?

    The current injury is in the second photo, and is below the ankle.

    The injury a few months ago with the abscess was above the ankle. That area looks fine now, all the fur grown back, etc. Compare how it looks now (first photo) to a few months ago (third photo).

    03/27/2020
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    -3/26/2020
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    01/25/2020
    Name:  Mookie 20200125 leg (original).jpg
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Below are some better photos of Mookie's belly.

    I palpated the belly last night. While I was gentle, this did not make my boy happy. It seemed puffy, like there was some fluid. I wonder if that black mark indicates a puncture, perhaps by a claw?

    I really do not know, but the belly seems a worse problem than the leg.

    Mookie was not very active yesterday, lying in his nest most of the time. It was a cold and rainy day, and there no squirrels out and about most of the day either, so this may not mean anything.

    Mookie is not jumping up like normal. There is a shelf on my porch by a window that is 30" tall. There is a platform on top so my squirrels can hang out there. Normally, they just jump straight up from the floor and land on the platform. Mookie now climbs to the first level halfway up, then stands on his back legs, grabs the platform, then pulls himself up.

    Name:  Mookie 20200328_01 belly.jpg
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    Name:  Mookie 20200328_02 belly.jpg
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    Name:  Mookie 20200328_03 belly.jpg
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Possible claw from a fight?

    Thank goodness Mookie will let you hold him!

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Quote Originally Posted by RockyPops View Post
    Possible claw from a fight?

    Thank goodness Mookie will let you hold him!
    I am not sure what is going on with his belly, but it does feel puffy, there is a bald patch now, and there is the mark. So I am only speculating.

    What I do with Mookie to be able to give him his meds when he is on the porch is this:

    There is a cage with all his bedding where he sleeps. This is open all day, but once he turns in at night, then I latch him inside.

    So in the morning, I am able to reach inside with my mittens. They are a leather outer with a wool mitten inside that is lined with fleece. So even if Mookie did bite me, I doubt he would get through the leather. And if if he did get through the leather, his teeth would not reach my skin.

    When I reach inside, while Mookie is not happy and knows what is coming, he neither tries to escape nor to bite me. I pick him up so that my left hand is around his upper back, then sit down with him against my belly. (In the morning, I also put a towel under him, as he sometimes pees on me.) I then take the mitten off my right hand, then rub the top of his head, neck, behind the ears, etc. to calm him down a bit. I keep my hand away from his mouth just in case, but he has never tried to bite me. I then use a syringe to give him his clavamox or oral probiotics. He will make noises of protest and sometimes swat at the syringe, but he is mostly resigned to the inevitable. Then I spend another minute or two rubbing his head, neck, etc. and examine where he is injured. I am the only one on the porch for all this, so he is relatively relaxed. If I need to get a photo, then my wife comes out for that.

    I then simply let go of Mookie. He generally climbs up my shoulder then jumps over the the top of his cage to decompress. He does not flee in fear or avoid me, nothing like that. I had a previous overwintered release Dustin. When I let go off Dustin after his meds, he would actually lie on my forearm with his head towards my wrist to decompress. (I believe that when a squirrel lies or sits facing away rather than towards you, this is a sign of trust.) But anyways, Mookie does not decompress on me like Dustin, rather he hops off and decompresses on his cage instead.

    Mookie is then free to roam the porch all day. Mornings and evenings, he has to share the porch briefly with Arya and Iggy, now 8 months old and being overwintered for release. Arya does not approach Mookie. Iggy will try sometimes, and usually Mookie deters this with growling noises. A couple times when Mookie was on the porch in January for a previous injury, he and Iggy did actually sniff each other nose to nose. That has not yet happened in the 2-3 days he has been inside this time.

    Catching Mooke on the porch would not be easy, so at night I simply wait until he returns to his cage. I then latch the cage, go inside and get the clavamox into the syringe, then repeat the morning ritual minus the towel (as he has never peed on me at night). I do not latch him back in the cage at this point, but let him roam around and do whatever he wants. I do not latch the cage for the night until it is dark and he is definitely in his nest for the night.

    What also makes this a whole lot easier is that Mookie does not chew everything in sight. This is the same porch where he was overwintered. Mookie learned back then what was okay to chew and what Dad did not want chewed (i.e. the woodwork). I taught him simply by making "stop that" noises whenever he tried to chew on the woodwork. It seems to me that with young squirrels, they are looking to you for guidance, and are generally capable of learning the rules if you are patient with them and willing to take the chance on a few bite marks in the woodwork while they learn.

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Between last night and this morning, the area on the belly swelled up a fair bit - like there was a ball of fluid under the skin.

    These photos were taken just now. To me, it looks like it is starting to draw to a head and may even have drained a bit.

    Mookie is not at all happy to expose the belly for photos. When he moves around the porch, he does not look like too bad, just not pushing explosively off back legs. He is spending a fair bit of time inside his nest, but it is also another cold rainy day outside.

    Mookie has now had 7 doses of clavamox - started 3/26 evening then 2x daily since then.

    My plan at this point is to keep him on clavamox for the full 10 days.

    Comments/advice welcome as always, thanks!

    Name:  Mookie 20200329_01 belly.jpg
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    Name:  Mookie 20200329_03 belly.jpg
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Since my initial reply I haven't kept up with this forum nor seen your other pictures and concerns until now.
    I will say now I'm glad your going for the whole 10 days of ab's but have to wonder why have the other
    issues surfaced if it's the right med. How was it dosed? Sometimes on particular injuries involving infection,
    stacking ab's might be called for. Could this have been the result of a cat attack?
    If the area that appears coming to a head needs to be drained I'd encourage it. If you could hold a warm/damp
    compress on it that could possibly help soften and open it up.
    Step-N-Stone
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Quote Originally Posted by stepnstone View Post
    Since my initial reply I haven't kept up with this forum nor seen your other pictures and concerns until now.
    I will say now I'm glad your going for the whole 10 days of ab's but have to wonder why have the other
    issues surfaced if it's the right med. How was it dosed? Sometimes on particular injuries involving infection,
    stacking ab's might be called for. Could this have been the result of a cat attack?
    If the area that appears coming to a head needs to be drained I'd encourage it. If you could hold a warm/damp
    compress on it that could possibly help soften and open it up.
    Thanks stepnstone

    I originally saw the bloody leg and so brought Mookie inside and started him on the clavamox for that on 3/26.

    I noticed the bald patch on the belly on 3/27, then noticed that it was swollen on 3/28. It was definitely getting more swollen over the course on 3/29, and by the evening of 3/29 it looked like a head was forming and that there might have been some discharge.

    This morning 3/30, I would say that it has shrunk a good bit smaller. I would guess there has been discharge, but there is no obvious evidence as presumably Mookie would clean himself.

    Mookie is moving much better this morning as well.

    Thanks for the suggestion on the hot compress. I will try that later today.

    I am in a suburban neighborhood and we do see the occasional cat lurking about, although not that often.

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Update 4/1

    While the swelling has come down, it is certainly not gone away entirely. Mookie has now had 6 days of 2x daily clavamox.

    If there are still signs of swelling and/or infection after 10 days, what next?

    A few more days of clavamox?

    Another antibiotic? If so, what might be best?

    Mookie looks good while moving and climbing, but he does seem to be sleeping or resting a fair bit. And obviously, while much reduced, the belly does not feel back to normal just yet.

    I will try and get a photo later today to post.

    Thanks!

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Okay, so here are two photos from 4/1 (last night) preceded by one from 3/29 for reference.

    It is really hard to get good photos, but my impression is that the swollen area continues to shrink and there is less tenderness and inflammation.

    With that said, there is still something under the skin. It kind of feels to me like there is scar issue, or at least non-liquid something that does not belong, if that makes sense.

    I would say that these photos do a fair job of capturing the color change from 3/29 to 4/1 if not the 3D aspect of the swelling.

    As of this morning, Mookie has completed 7 days or 14 doses.

    3/29
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    4/1
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    4/1
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Poor baby! Thet have such a rough life.

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    So as of this morning, Mookie has been on clavamox for 9 days, so only a day to go on that.

    While the belly does not look all inflamed on the surface, there is definitely still something squishy there that does not belong - might be the size of a garbonzo.

    So what to do?

    Continue with clavamox a few more days?

    Try another med? If so, what med?

    Any help would be greatly appreciated!

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Just checked Mookie's belly again after giving him probiotics.

    I am fairly certain the swelling has gotten bigger since this morning.

    While he seems healthy and energetic, the swelling still being there after 9 days on clavamox has me worried. And again, it seem bigger than this morning.

    Below is a photo we just took. The photo does a decent job capturing the color accurately, but does not really get the size.

    Any advice greatly appreciated!

    Name:  Mookie 20200404 belly.jpg
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    I would add that throughout this process, the swelling has typically seemed smaller in the morning than the afternoon - not just the afternoon from the day before but often the afternoon of the same day as well.

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  31. #17
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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Update:

    I've not managed to get any expert opinions here at TSB for quite awhile - quite understandable, as I imagine everyone has more pressing matters on their mind in the midst of COVID19!

    So, I ended up making the decision to extend the clavamox to 12 full days, thus evening of 3/26 through morning of 4/7.

    My last post was 4/4, and at that point it seemed like the swelling might have started to increase slightly after 9 days on clavamox, thus the decision to extend from 10 days to 12 days.

    The last few days on clavamox, the swelling definitely decreased. And even better: when I checked him last night and midday today (after his probiotics), the swelling seems smaller than when checked yesterday morning after his final dose of clavamox.

    My plan at this point is to give him probiotics and check the swelling every day for a few more days to make sure there is no recurrence.

    I will also see if my wife can get a good luck at Mookie's belly tonight under a magnifying glass to check if there is any peach fuzz appearing.

    Since I am working from home, there is no huge urgency to get Mookie back outside at my end, although no doubt Mookie would disagree!

    I am planning on moving my overwintered siblings Arya and Iggy outside this weekend, where they will spend 2-3 weeks in their release cages. These will be right next to Mookie's release cage, so it will be squirrel central there when he gets out there as well.

    Advice/comments welcome as always, and stay safe, everyone.

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Sorry your having trouble getting answers or suggestions. I wish I could help but I just don't know.

    Sometimes everyone here is just swamped.

    Keep us updated on Mookie's condition.

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    What does Mookie’s belly feel like now? Does it still feel hard like there’s something under the skin? Is there tenderness when you touch it? How is Mookie acting now? Does he seem to have any discomfort? Answers to these questions would be helpful to determine if the antibiotic knocked out the infection or if he needs a course of a different antibiotic.

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    Default Re: Mookie - wound on right rear leg

    Phot from 4/8 = about 36 hours after last does of calvamox -

    Swelling is smaller than then -

    Name:  Mookie 20200408 belly.jpg
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