Nine Week Old Squirrel with Diarrhea and a Formula Concern.

[Bella's Mom]

Hello, TSB! I'm having a couple of issues with my nine week old baby squirrel, Nika, that I am very concerned about. The first issue is diarrhea. On the 11th of this month she developed really bad diarrhea that smelled like fish. It was a pale yellowish, light brownish color, very runny, and mucusy (don’t know if that’s an actual word).

I got Nika when she was 4 and a half to 5 weeks old. She is a Hurricane Nicholas survivor. She was found during cleanup of storm debris the next day. She was found on the ground with 2 siblings. She was the only survivor. I have been feeding her Fox Valley Day One 20/50 formula since I got her, and she hasn’t had any problems at all with it. She had also started eating a little bit of solid food a couple of weeks ago. I make Boo Balls with a recipe I got from here, TSB, for my other squirrel, Jacob. Nika has been eating some Boo Ball and a small amount of papaya. Just nibbles of papaya, though, really. But on the 11th she ate more Boo Ball than she had been. Not a ton, or anything like that, just more than she had been. Later that same day is when she developed the really bad diarrhea. I thought it might have been from the Boo Balls and/or the papaya so I stopped feeding them both to her, and just continued feeding her formula to her. The diarrhea did not clear up so I took her to my awesome exotic vet, and brought along a stool sample from Nika. I don’t think her diarrhea was from either the papaya or the Boo Balls, because it turned she actually had roundworms. My vet placed Nika on Flagyl and Panacur for 5 days, and I started giving Nika a little sugar water in between feedings. After about 2 and a half days, the diarrhea cleared up, and I continued to give her the medicine as prescribed. Her last dose of the medicine was on Sunday. I also started giving her Boo Balls again, when the diarrhea cleared up, but she wasn’t interested in eating papaya or any other solid food I offered her. She only wanted to eat Boo Balls. But when her diarrhea cleared up, her stool was normal, and there were no more problems with that, even with her eating the Boo Balls….until yesterday…

Yesterday, Nika, again, had more Boo Balls than usual. Again, not a ton, but a little more than usual. And the diarrhea came right back yesterday!😥 Same watery, mucusy consistency, same color, same fishy smell. I am so frustrated, worried about her, and at a complete loss of what could be causing this. So I stopped feeding her the Boo Balls again today, and went back to giving her sugar water in between feedings. Could it be possible that when she eats a little more of the Boo Balls it’s causing her diarrhea? Or could she still have worms? I did make Nika another vet appointment, but I can’t get her in until Friday evening. Of course, I will have to wait and find out what my vet says, but I would really, really appreciate any feedback from anyone on thoughts that may be causing this. Maybe something I’m doing wrong. I’m just really worried and freaking out!😥

The other issue that has me concerned is regarding her formula. When she began eating solid foods, she started wanting less and less of her formula, which does make sense. But at 8 weeks old, there were different feedings that she didn’t want her formula at all. She only wanted Boo Balls. Yesterday, she refused to drink her formula at all. But she was hungry. And she only wanted Boo Balls. That’s why she had more Boo Balls than normal yesterday. Because that’s all she wanted to eat. Today, she is hungry, too, but she refuses to drink her formula. I know she wants Boo Balls because she keeps nibbling on my fingers. That’s how I have been feeding her the Boo Balls. I hold a little bit of it between my finger and thumb, and she eats it from my fingers. That girl is just all about the Boo Balls!😂 She doesn’t want to eat any other solid food I offer her. But I haven’t given her any today because she still has diarrhea. To get her to drink her formula today, I have to take the nipple of the syringe, prop her up on me, hold her arms, and slowly drip the formula into her mouth. So far today, I have only gotten a total of 6mls of formula in her. And I don’t know what to do! Should I not force her to drink the formula, and just let her have Boo Balls? I know she’s hungry, and I don’t want her going hungry. I am also very concerned that she might already be weaning herself off formula, but I don’t want her to do that because she’s only 9 weeks old! I have raised 9 other squirrels, and none of them weaned themselves off formula anywhere near this young. So I am very worried about that, and freaking out about that as well! Please help. Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, TSB!❤️

[Bella's Mom]

Hello? I really need help with these 2 issues, please. Anyone? Thoughts? Advice? Suggestions? Anyone? Please and thank you.

[Mel1959]

To the best of my knowledge when treating roundworm..or other worms..you have to repeat the dosing in 2-3 weeks. I believe it’s to kill any recently hatched worms as many drugs won’t kill the eggs. Panacur is very safe, but the dosing is higher for wild mammals than for goats or domestic animals.

Pyrantel Pamoate (Nemex 2) is another option for roundworm treatment. It tastes good and is very safe. My vet likes to use both of these when treating baby raccoons…just to be extra safe.

I think a repeat vet visit and treatment is probably a good choice. Treating the symptom (diarrhea) with pepto Bismol or another anti-diarrheal medicine is probably not going to take care of the problem. I will share that a knowledgeable rehabber on here swears by treating diarrhea with Fox Valley Dia-stat.

As for the weaning. I agree 9 weeks is a little young, but many squirrels will begin to taper off at this age. Have you tried putting the formula in a bowl to see if she’ll drink it that way. Many squirrels love yogurt too which would be good for her gut. I always add a little spoon of full fat vanilla yogurt to formula for the extra probiotics.

Have you tried offering some vegetables like kale, squash, pumpkin and broccoli? I like to buy those pre-chopped salad kits that contain kale and other vegetables. It makes it easy to provide a wide variety of greens without needing to buy a bunch of individual items.

Which rodent block are you using for your boo balls? And what other ingredients are you adding to them?

[Bella's Mom]

Thank you so much for your response! And thank you for the information about treating roundworms. I didn’t know any of that, and that’s very helpful information. When I called my vet to make the appointment, I also asked if I should continue giving her the Flagyl and the Panacur. My vet instructed me to continue giving her the Flagyl, but not the Panacur. I will ask about the Nemex 2 during Nika's appointment.

Yes, I most definitely want to treat the cause of the diarrhea, not just the symptom. Like you said, just treating the symptom is not likely to fix the problem. I did want to try and get her some relief, though, until I could get her back to the vet on Friday to find out what’s going on with her. But since I already have the Flagyl, and it is for treating diarrhea, I didn’t want to add anything else, like Pepto Bismol, because I didn’t want to possibly complicate things further, or have an anti-diarrheal medicine possibly interact negatively with the Flagyl. But that is great information to know about the Fox Valley Dia-stat. Since I started Nika back on the Flagyl on Tuesday when she got diarrhea again, it has cleared up considerably. Most of her poop is completely solid now, thank goodness! But I am still taking her to her vet appointment because I just know there is a problem. There is something causing the diarrhea, and she can’t just stay on Flagyl forever, just treating the symptom, not the cause.

No, I have not tried putting the formula in a bowl. That’s a great idea, so thank you for that, and I will definitely try that. She wouldn’t drink anymore formula yesterday, and she would only drink 3mls today, so far. I did end up just letting her have Boo Balls yesterday because she was hungry, and that’s literally all she wanted to eat for the past 2 days, no matter what I offered her. Yes, I have given her yogurt before. I have never put it in her formula, but that’s a great idea! She just licks it off a small spoon I hold for her. But for the past 2 days she didn’t want to have any yogurt, either. But the Boo Balls I make have BeneBac Plus in them. The recipe I found on here for the Boo Balls said you could put BeneBac in the Boo Balls, but that you didn’t have to. I have been making them for 3 years now, and I have always just put the BeneBac in them. My vet knows I put Benebac in the Boo Balls, and she says it’s fine to do that. So when Nika eats the Boo Balls, she’s getting probiotics. On the days she doesn’t eat Boo Balls, which is very rare, I give her the yogurt.
I tried offering her kale, spinach, and collard greens in the past, when she was just starting to eat solid food, but she just turned her nose up at them, and wouldn’t eat any of it. In the past I have bought those pre-chopped bags of baby kale and spinach. But I do want her to have a wider variety of veggies so she doesn’t get bored with her food. But are squash, pumpkin, and broccoli okay for them to have? I know there is a list of foods somewhere here on TSB that gives the calcium to phosphorus ratios of certain veggies, fruits, and nuts. But I haven’t looked at it in years, and I don’t know how or where to find it on here. I have always tried to just stick to the leafy greens that have a higher calcium to phosphorus ratio. But a wider variety of veggies would probably be a good idea, I’m just scared of giving my squirrels anything less than the 2 to 1 calcium to phosphorus ratios.

I actually use 4 different rodent blocks in the Boo Balls I make because that’s what this particular recipe I found on here 3 years ago said to do. I did actually find 2 or 3 different recipes for them, that varied just slightly. But this is the particular recipe I went with. The rodent blocks I use are Mazuri Rat and Mouse Diet, Kaytee Forti Diet Pro Health for Mice and Rats, Oxbow Essentials Adult Rat Food, and Sunseed Critter Cubes. The other ingredients I put in from the recipe are 1 teaspoon of nuts (sometimes I use pecans, sometimes almonds), 2 Tums (but if I don’t have any Tums I use the equivalent in milligrams of a powdered calcium carbonate that was recommend somewhere on here from a licensed rehabber), the BeneBac Plus I mentioned earlier, veggie baby food (like kale, spinach, and green beans), one Omega 369 capsule (this recipe said you could put this in, but you didn’t have to, but I always do), and a little coconut oil, just enough to get the mixture to stick together. My neuro squirrel, Jacob, loves them and does great with them. He has never had any digestive, or any other issues, from consuming the Boo Balls I make. I just wonder if anything in them is upsetting Nika’s digestive system? I wouldn’t think so, but you just never know. I thought it might have been the Boo Balls last time she got diarrhea, but it wasn’t. The roundworms were causing that.

But I still keep offering Nika foods that she initially doesn’t seem to like. And so far today, in addition to Nika’s 3mls of formula, she has eaten some yougurt, papaya, kale, and one Henry’s Healthy Block. So YAY!!! I just started out with those things, right off the bat this morning, and I just didn’t offer her any Boo Balls. She was sniffing around and hunting around for them, at first. But I just kept offering her the other foods. And to my wonderful surprise, she ate them!😁 I know the Boo Balls are good for her, too, but that just cannot be the only thing she eats every day. Again, thank you so much for your response, your help, your information, and your suggestions. I really appreciate it!❤️ I feel a little more at ease now with some of your suggestions I can try, and the information you have given me.

[Mel1959]

I’m glad I could help.

I have never heard of Sunseed critter cubes, I’ll have to look them up. I also make boo balls for the wild squirrels. I use Envigo Harlan Teklad 2014 or 2018 blocks. I don’t add additional calcium, but I do add dry Fox Valley 20/50 and Ultraboost along with baby food, coconut oil, avocado oil and some ground nuts.

Here’s the link for the healthy diet https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...-Pet-Squirrels

And here’s the link for the calcium to phosphorous ratio https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...sphorus-Ratios

Edit: I looked up the Sunseed Critter Cubes and the ingredients raised a red flag with me. The first ingredient is corn and the second ingredient is soybean. Neither of these items are good for squirrels…corn being exceptionally high in phosphorous. I think if I were you Id try omitting this item from your boo balls and see if Jacob will still eat them.

[HRT4SQRLS]

This is the chart you are referring too.

https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...7&d=1232419601

The chart is a guide. You won’t be able to create a perfect 2:1 diet so I wouldn’t even try. You need to mix things up. While the leafy greens have a great Ca: P ratio, they can also be high in oxalates which can be problematic if fed in excess.

They can have some of the less healthy veggies in moderation. Things like avocado on the Ca:P chart looks pretty bad but I never met a squirrel that didn’t adore it. It does have other health attributes though.
Sometimes what you don’t feed is more important than what you do feed. I’ve never heard of a squirrel getting MBD from eating too much squash. MBD is usually from eating too many nuts. It’s all about mixing it up, balance and moderation.

[Bella's Mom]

I’m glad I could help.

I have never heard of Sunseed critter cubes, I’ll have to look them up. I also make boo balls for the wild squirrels. I use Envigo Harlan Teklad 2014 or 2018 blocks. I don’t add additional calcium, but I do add dry Fox Valley 20/50 and Ultraboost along with baby food, coconut oil, avocado oil and some ground nuts.

Here’s the link for the healthy diet https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...-Pet-Squirrels

And here’s the link for the calcium to phosphorous ratio https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...sphorus-Ratios

Edit: I looked up the Sunseed Critter Cubes and the ingredients raised a red flag with me. The first ingredient is corn and the second ingredient is soybean. Neither of these items are good for squirrels…corn being exceptionally high in phosphorous. I think if I were you Id try omitting this item from your boo balls and see if Jacob will still eat them.

Oh, thank you so much for those links! I really appreciate it!❤️ And thank you for looking up the Sunseed Critter Cubes. I do know that corn and soy are not good for squirrels, and I know corn has a high phosphorus content. I NEVER feed my squirrels corn, not even the wild ones. But I did not know that Sunseed Critter Cubes have corn and soy in them. When I read that from you, I went and looked at the ingredients on the bag, and sure enough, there it was! Corn and soy! Like I said, I found that recipe on here for the Boo Balls I make. Since I did find it here, on TSB, I just assumed I could trust that none of those ingredients would be harmful for squirrels. So I just didn’t check the ingredients of all the rodent blocks, but I should have. And from now on, I will! Most definitely I will be eliminating the Sunseed Critter Cubes from the Boo Balls I make! I am sure Jacob, and Nika, too, will still eat them without those in it. Jacob has always been a very good eater. And he probably won’t even notice they’re missing.😂

[Bella's Mom]

This is the chart you are referring too.

https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/...7&d=1232419601

The chart is a guide. You won’t be able to create a perfect 2:1 diet so I wouldn’t even try. You need to mix things up. While the leafy greens have a great Ca: P ratio, they can also be high in oxalates which can be problematic if fed in excess.

They can have some of the less healthy veggies in moderation. Things like avocado on the Ca:P chart looks pretty bad but I never met a squirrel that didn’t adore it. It does have other health attributes though.
Sometimes what you don’t feed is more important than what you do feed. I’ve never heard of a squirrel getting MBD from eating too much squash. MBD is usually from eating too many nuts. It’s all about mixing it up, balance and moderation.

Thank you so much for your response, and thank you for the link!❤️ I actually had that chart downloaded on my old phone, but that phone broke. It wouldn’t even turn on anymore so I had to get a new phone. And I couldn’t find that chart on here. Of the 10 squirrels I have rescued over the years, I only had one squirrel, the very first squirrel I rescued, not like avocado. The rest of them loved it! And all but two of those squirrels, the ones I have now, Jacob and Nika, just ate leafy greens without hesitation. Neither Jacob, nor Nika, will eat them at all. But I understand about not feeding them in excess, and about offering a variety of foods and mixing things up. Thank you again!😁

[stepnstone]

I have never heard of Sunseed critter cubes,

Scroll over the ingredients
...but they do throw some calcium in there to juggle with what it depletes I suppose.

https://www.chewy.com/sunseed-vita-p...xoCjR4QAvD_BwE