Baby Grey Squirrel is not interested in food

[Destyrains]

Hey y’all,

I’ve been working with a 2-3 week old (53g) baby grey squirrel for a couple of days now, and he has no interest in food. I have been feeding him about 2.5ccs of the powdered esbilac puppy powder with probiotics and am careful to warm it before giving it to him. I try to feed him every 2-3 hours, but have dealt with a little bit of diarrhea so I’ve spaced the feedings out some in attempt to not over feed. I’m also super careful and check for dehydration often and replenish fluids if he needs them.

Every time I stimulate him (usually before, in the middle, and after feedings) he goes potty, so everything seems to be working alright, outside of the occasional diarrhea, but I just don’t understand why he doesn’t want to eat. I feed him with a 1cc syringe with a long miracle nipple, hold him upright, and ensure he and the formula stay warm.

Does anyone have any thoughts? Everything I’ve read online says baby squirrels usually want to eat too much, but not mine. It’s a battle just to get the bare minimum in him and it takes close to an hour to feed. I just don’t want to poor guy to starve, but I also feel bad for sort of forcing him to ear. (Don’t worry, I am super careful not to aspirate him, and do not hear any clicking).

I appreciate any and all advice!

[CritterMom]

Try this first: heat the formula more than you are. Logic says that the idea temp should be what mama's normal body temp would be. Unfortunately, his eyes aren't open yet so he hasn't had a chance to read that book! I have seen them go from fussy, pushing it away to mugging me to get it faster with nothing more than a few more degrees...

[Destyrains]

I usually put the syringe in a cup with almost boiling water and let it set for a bit. When I pull it out and test it on my wrist, sometimes it stings because it’s too hot. I would think that’s too hot for the baby as well? I usually wait just a bit more after the stinging point to give it to him, but if you think it should be warmer I can definitely give it a try!

[Mel1959]

As CM suggested, sometimes it takes a little while for them to realize that…..A-the formula doesn’t taste so bad and B-there’s no food coming from anywhere else so they better eat.

I recently had 3 little ones that did the same thing…one in particular. I had rehydrated all of them prior to feeding formula, although they weren’t very dehydrated. With the one that was being stubborn I provided extra feedings of slightly sweetened water and it seemed to help. With these little guys you can’t take no for an answer. You just have to continue offering formula or water drop by drop. I think he’ll eventually come around and recognize this is good for him.