Regurgitating and not eating

[Kimuraa]

Hi everyone,

My 6 year old eastern grey is not doing well. He was fine yesterday morning, woke up for his breakfast of Henry's squirrel block, Romain lettuce, Arugula, cauliflower and mushroom. He ate his block, snacked a bit and tucked in for a nap, all very normal activity for him.

But then he slept from 8 am until 2 pm. We tried to rouse him since he's usually active by 11. He was lethargic and would just lay around in weird sleeping spots. He perked up when I offered a second block, but he just took it to hide it, had some water and went back to sleep.

He got up again in the evening around 10 and had more water then went and sat in his litter box (lined with old shirts) and regurgitated 3 times. It looked like gooey squirrel block, and there was a fair amount of it, maybe 1/2 tsp. He drank a bunch more and accepted a blueberry that I coated in a probiotic. He seemed to perk up after regurgitating so I though that was a good sign.

This morning he's still lethargic, he got excited for his block, but he hid it instead of eating. I haven't given him anything else. He also only wants to cuddle. His stomach is soft and I can't find any lumps in it. I have not seen him urinate, but he has pooped and they look normal.

I'm not sure how to help him, I'm in Ontario so I can't take him to a vet.

Thanks for anything you can offer!

[Mel1959]

Does he have out of cage time that he could have eaten something he shouldn’t have? Lots of water to flush his system may help. Or diluted cranberry juice. If he’ll eat yogurt that may also help his stomach with probiotic, plus coating it. Any old stashes in his cage or around in his nesting spots that could have moldy block in them? It may take a little time for his stomach to go back to normal. Keep an eye out for urine to be sure his kidneys are functioning ok.

Keep us posted.

[Kimuraa]

He has a lot of free time out of his cage, but I've been with him for all of it. Though he is a criminal mastermind so he could have gotten something.

I regularly clean out his stores. I wasn't able to find anything in his bedding or anywhere else.

Is unflavored Greek yogurt okay? I'm concerned since he's not eating him block. Could I mush it up and mix with yogurt?

[Mel1959]

Any type of yogurt that doesn’t contain artificial sweeteners is fine. I feed vanilla full fat yogurt. You can grind his block and mix it with whatever you think might entice him to eat. Does he like avocado (no skin or pit)? That could be mushed with his block, too.

Getting him to drink will help flush his system.

[Kimuraa]

He's turning his nose at the mashed up block, that never happens. Avocado is his favorite, but even if I buy them today, they won't soften for a few days. Would mashed butternut squash be safe? I'm hesitant to give him his veggies if he not eating his block.

I just saw him urinate for the first time, seems like the normal amount and normal colour and smell. Maybe he just needs a few days to feel better?

I've been reading all kinds of threads on how it could be MBD or twisted intestines or tumors so I'm really worried

[Tuff]

He's turning his nose at the mashed up block, that never happens. Avocado is his favorite, but even if I buy them today, they won't soften for a few days. Would mashed butternut squash be safe? I'm hesitant to give him his veggies if he not eating his block.

I just saw him urinate for the first time, seems like the normal amount and normal colour and smell. Maybe he just needs a few days to feel better?

I've been reading all kinds of threads on how it could be MBD or twisted intestines or tumors so I'm really worried

I just recently went through this with Tuff...it was so out of the blue when he regurgitated. It took a couple of days for him to eat correctly again. I offered him baby food butternut squash was his favorite. He ate that just a tad. I limited his food intake to when he felt better. Just what he needed at the moment. Rodent block small piece, half a Henry’s block, I mixed Tuff’s calcium in a boo ball praying he would eat that. Do you have any of those? Has he regurgitated since? Is he pooping at all does that look normal?

[Kimuraa]

I can go get some squash. I have lots of frozen Henry's blocks so I'll keep making concoctions until he eats a bit more. He's had about a quarter of a broken up block. He's drinking regularly though!

I hope Tuff is feeling all the way better <3

[Tuff]

I can go get some squash. I have lots of frozen Henry's blocks so I'll keep making concoctions until he eats a bit more. He's had about a quarter of a broken up block. He's drinking regularly though!

I hope Tuff is feeling all the way better <3

Tuff is back to 110% he is a trooper!!!! Praying your baby makes a full recovery. If he is drinking and that is staying down, I wouldn’t panic to bad (lol me telling you that cause I freaked out). I just slowly offered him what he wanted. If he didn’t want it I didn’t worry. Do you have a vet? Of course there are many many people here that are marvelous rehabbers that can offer more advice.

[Kimuraa]

No vet, I'm in Ontario where you can't keep squirrels so all the fantastic members of the squirrelboard have been life savers!

[Kimuraa]

He's refusing to drink, but he'll accept blueberries and butternut squash. I've tried mushing a block into those and he loses interest. He usually loves his block, it's his favorite.

I've started syringing him water, how much should I make sure he has per day?

[Mel1959]

I don’t know the amount of water per day. I’d just give him some u til he fights too much and doesn’t want anymore. Be careful you don’t aspirate him with the water.

[Kimuraa]

I'm giving him 10 ccs of water every 3 hours. I give it to him slowly so he has a chance to drink it properly.

He's only accepting blueberries, raw butternut squash and plain yogurt. I have the vitamin and protein powder from Henry's, maybe He's okay without his blocks if I mix some of that powder into some yogurt for a few days?

He still has no energy. Just leaves his bed to urinate then goes back.

[Tuff]

I'm giving him 10 ccs of water every 3 hours. I give it to him slowly so he has a chance to drink it properly.

He's only accepting blueberries, raw butternut squash and plain yogurt. I have the vitamin and protein powder from Henry's, maybe He's okay without his blocks if I mix some of that powder into some yogurt for a few days?

He still has no energy. Just leaves his bed to urinate then goes back.

When Tuff regurgitated it looked and smelled like rodent blocks...he will barely eat those to this day. I know he needs them but he just doesn’t want them like he did. I can’t say this is the same case with yours. Tuff will wait til the end of his meal to eat them. Bless your babies heart...keep us updated.

[Mel1959]

You can mix some of the vitamins in with his yogurt. I think the pouch says no more than 1/4 tsp per day per 1 lb of body weight. Poor guy, I hope he gets to feeling better soon.

[Kimuraa]

Be seems to be getting worse. No more regurgitating, but he just lays on his side most of the time and really hates having water. Ive tried adding a bit of organic juice to the water to sweeten it but he still doesn't want to dribk. He also hasn't pooped in awhile, but maybe because he's not eating much?

[Mel1959]

This doesn’t sound good. There could be something significant going on inside him like kidney failure, liver problems or heart issues. Squirrels suffer from a lot of the same medical problems that humans do. Without a vet to diagnose what’s going on we’re just shooting in the dark.

What areas are you close to in Canada?

[Kimuraa]

So he's definitely way more active today. He's eating his blocks, but not his veggies. He's drinking, peeing and pooping properly. Though he seems a little shaky walking around. Maybe still just feeling a bit weak?

I'm near Toronto so vets in Ontario are pretty much out and I can't drive him 6 hours to Quebec.

I think he may have just eaten something old and gross and now he's feeling better I hope.

[Mel1959]

[Tuff]

So he's definitely way more active today. He's eating his blocks, but not his veggies. He's drinking, peeing and pooping properly. Though he seems a little shaky walking around. Maybe still just feeling a bit weak?

I'm near Toronto so vets in Ontario are pretty much out and I can't drive him 6 hours to Quebec.

I think he may have just eaten something old and gross and now he's feeling better I hope.

Maybe it was something like that. Praying for his full recovery!!! Hopefully by you keeping him hydrated it flushed what ever it was out of his system. Keep us updated..❤️

[Kimuraa]

He's still not his full self, but he definitely seems much better. He's drinking a lot and eating his blocks if we break them up and watch him eat. Otherwise he hides them.

He hasn't touched his regular veggies ( Romain lettuce, arugala, mushrooms and cauliflower) but he will eat butternut squash. I'm just trying to limit how much of that he gets since it's in the group 3 veggies.

Thanks everyone for your support!