HELP!!!! 3yo Fox Squirrel Regurgitating

[stewartnoelle21]

About 48 ish hours ago, my 3yo female fox squirrel got out of bed at 2am and regurgitated about five times. I looked around and noticed that there wasn't any poop. In the morning, I was able to give her a homemade electrolyte solution made of 1 cup water, 1 tsp sugar. She drank a 2tbsp syringe full, and had an almond. She pooped a little bit after that, but her poops were small and mucous-y. She spent most of the day resting. I called around and got an appointment with a vet for the next morning (this morning at 10am). Since regurgitating the first time, she only partially had a walnut in the shell and an almond in the shell. They took fecal samples at the appt, which we are waiting for the results on. They said all her vitals look good, her teeth look good, and they felt her lymph nodes and tummy and said that was all normal. They sent us home with a pee cup to do a urinalysis, which we have not been able to collect a sample for yet. They gave us a laxative, but held off due to her pooping more regularly now. Also her peeing is of a normal color and amount. After we got home from the vet, we let her continue to rest and then fed her a thumb sized piece of acorn squash. Just a little bit ago at around 9pm, she regurgitated again, around 8-9 times. It looks like undigested food and has a pasty consistency. She's lethargic. We tried giving her a syringe of Pedialyte as per recommended by the vet and she didn't want it. I tried the sugar water solution again and she doesn't want that either. I called the vet and they are going to let her vet know at 9am tomorrow, but in the meantime we are looking for any advice or info you may have about what could possibly be causing this. She is only an indoor squirrel and her diet consists of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and some seeds. She's a healthy weight. Please and thank you too all of you!

[SamtheSquirrel2018]

She is only an indoor squirrel and her diet consists of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and some seeds. She's a healthy weight. Please and thank you too all of you!

Hi StewartNoelle and thank you for finding The Squirrel Board! What is the name of your Squirrel? I'm sorry she is having the problems you mentioned and hopefully we can help get things resolved! I am going to make two posts as there is a limit to the book I can publish in one post!

I strongly suspect the possibility Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD). This is a condition where the bones lose Calcium and it can affect nerves, cause decreased appetite, weakness, seizures, fractures from weakened bones and even death if not addressed and treated immediately! MBD can result from the Squirrel not getting adequate calcium absorbed from the gut and metabolized by the body OR it can result from having excessive Phosphorus in the diet (such as would be the case from what you have described as your Squirrel diet OR it can result from a combination of these two problems! Most often, MBD results from a less than optimal Calcium to Phosphorus Ratio in the diet and if this is present for any significant time, MBD can result no matter how much Calcium is actually consumed. An optimal Calcium to Phosphorus Ratio is in the neighborhood of 2 to 1.

For a captive Squirrel (this is any Squirrel that is not in the wild and can be pets, release candidates, Squirrels in care for disease or injuries, etc), the diet should be made up of at least 80% quality Blocks such as Henry's Healthy Blocks (HHBs), Teklad 2018 (or Teklad 2014 for more senior Squirrels) or Mazuri Rat and Mouse Diet! The remaining 20% can simply be Blocks but like most people, Squirrels do like some variety and this can be provided by utilizing HEALTHY dietary constituents preferentially and either totally eliminating any treats such as nuts, fruits and seeds or give these in small amounts and very rarely! Yes, nuts and fruits are treats for a captive Squirrel and if they get any at all, it should be a very rare occurrence! Most of the "treat" category foods contain relatively high levels of Phosphorus and this can lead to MBD regardless of how much Calcium is supplied by other foods! I am pasting a very useful nutritional grading system to help provide the best and healthiest nutritional support for a captive Squirrel that is from Henry's Website. This is in the form of a Pyramid with the most nutritious foods at the wide base of the pyramid and going from the base to the tip; the nutritional value of foods in each level decrease. The lowest level which includes the healthiest foods is "Blocks" and the tip of the pyramid includes nuts, fruits, seed and other "treats" and this level is where the least healthy foods are found; https://henryspets.com/healthy-diet-for-pet-squirrels/

I have pasted links to the Henry's Pets website for information and Emergency treatment of MBD below.

I would recommend that you IMMEDIATELY stop all nuts and fruits and obtain some quality Blocks such as the HHBs (this would be my preferred Block for providing nutrition to a Squirrel with presumed MBD because these Squirrels usually have decreased appetite and their swallowing and gut functioning can be adversely affected by the MBD and the HHBs are a very concentrated, full and optimally balanced nutritional source and the Squirrel only needs to consume two of these blocks (only 10 grams) to get ideal daily Calcium, Vitamin D and all of the other essential nutrients! Also, the HHBs are relatively soft and relatively tasty (all the Squirrels say that and most prefer the Picky Blocks)! I don't as a rule give healthy Squirrel's HHBs because this would be a relatively expensive endeavor to use them as food more many Squirrels but for one who may very well have MBD; the HHBs are ideal! Henry's states that two HHBs (a typical "serving size") contains 275 milligrams of Elemental Calcium. Around 250mg of Elemental Calcium is a good goal amount for DAILY Elemental Calcium so two HHBs will ordinarily cover that very well! The problem is that 2 blocks weighs about 10 grams and this or even three HHBs (this should be the maximum as HHBs are a concentrated nutritional source unlike the other quality Blocks which can be free-fed which means that you can give the Squirrel as much as it wants in a day), will not provide enough food for satiation (feeling full) and other HEALTHY foods such as other quality Blocks and/or other foods from the lower levels of the Pyramid should be provided as well!

I would also recommend that you IMMEDIATELY begin the Emergency Treatment for MBD from Henry's Website! For general nutrition (until the HHBs arrive), I would recommend that your go to PetSmart or one of the other Pet Stores and purchase Mazuri Rat and Mouse Diet. These are hard what are called extruded Blocks and if your Squirrel is reluctant to eat these; it may require you to break them up into a powder and mix this powder with a small amount of baby food such as apple or banana or whatever using just enough baby food to make the powdered Blocks into a thick paste and then try that. Another option early on when appetite and chewing may be somewhat impaired is to also use some formula that is Squirrel quality and if you want to do this also, my recommendation would be to use Esbilac Puppy Milk Replacer POWDER (NOT the liquid) which is also available at most pet stores and even Tractor Supply!

It would be necessary to provide ADDITIONAL Elemental Calcium to make up for he calcium that has been lost from the bones and this additional Calcium is what over a period of several months (to even a year) will help replenish the Calcium that has been lost from the bones. The bones function to store over 99% of the total Calcium present in in most mammalian bodies! So again, it essential that your Squirrels gets both optimal DAILY Calcium (called maintenance Calcium) PLUS additional Calcium (called Treatment Calcium or Supplemental Calcium). Your Squirrel then will require that you add some additional Elemental Calcium every day beside the Calcium he should get everyday (my suggestion would be around 250mg of ADDITIONAL Elemental Calcium divided into 4-5 portions given each day. An very good source for this would be Henry's Calcium carbonate! You can get plain Calcium carbonate on-line or in most food stores or pharmacies BUT if you do go this route, get Calcium carbonate that is withOUT Vitamin D. The Calcium preparations that contain Vitamin D are made for people, not tiny animals and those that contain Vitamin D or any other constituents will contain far to much for a Squirrel and could cause harm or even death in extreme cases!

Again, just PLAIN Calcium carbonate which is what Henry's sells. You can use some Tums (or the generic Calcium carbonate tablet) until you get the supplement form Henry's or wherever and I would recommend that you give your Squirrel a Calcium carbonate tablet NOW! Tums and generic Calcium Carbonate tablets are an excellent source of supplemental Calcium and you can use those if desired through the entire relatively long treatment process as supplemental Calcium along with maintenance Calcium derived from HHBs or other quality Blocks. If this is not MBD that is going on with your Squirrel right now (I suspect that it is though), with the diet you described, it is inevitable and it would be best to make some radical but essential changes to your Squirrels diet! Also, and this is the good news; and that is that IF your Squirrels current problems are not from MBD, the treatment for it is harmless and if this is MBD (as I suspect), the Treatment can literally be life-saving! Here are links to Henry's Information about MBD and Henry's treatment protocol;
https://www.henryspets.com/what-is-m...-bone-disease/
https://henryspets.com/emergency-treatment-for-mbd/

Please keep on with updates about your Squirrel and please get started right now on the MBD Treatment program and also make the very necessary and healthy modifications in your Squirrel's diet!

See my other post for a continuation!
Regards,
SamtheSquirrel

[SamtheSquirrel2018]

(a continuation with more information)

------I'll also tell you about the difference between Elemental Calcium (a term I have used in this post) as opposed just a source of Calcium such as Calcium Carbonate which contains Calcium but is not pure calcium! For an example, Calcium Carbonate contains Calcium (obviously) but, again, it is not all Calcium; it actually contain only 40% Elemental (or "pure" Calcium). As a very simple example; if you needed 40mg of Elemental Calcium, you would need to weight out 100mg of Calcium Carbonate to get it! From the recommendation I made above; if you were going to give your Squirrel 250mg of Supplemental (given in addition to the Calcium contained in the HHBs or whatever Blocks you are going to use) Elemental Calcium each day (again dividing this up into 4-5 portions), you would need to weigh out 625mg of Calcium Carbonate. Also, of the Calcium supplements; Calcium carbonate has the highest percentage of Elemental Calcium at 40% so it requires the least total amount of "stuff!" In comparison, Calcium Citrate contain only 21% elemental Calcium so you would need to weigh out and give over a full day; 1190mg of Calcium Citrate!

Please weigh your Squirrel using a digital scale expressed in Grams so that we will have a baseline for her weight and we can modify the recommendations if necessary based upon her actual weight!

Another concern that many have expressed is the possible "need" for the Squirrel being outdoors for real sunlight artificial sunlight for your Squirrel's body to make Vitamin D and I would like to categorically say that when your Squirrel consumes 2-3 HHBs, she will getting plenty of Vitamin D and does NOT need real or artificial sunlight and she does NOT need to be outside. There are potential problems and dangers to being outside and and even using the artificial sunlight is NOT necessary either as HHBs or other quality Blocks also contain adequate Vitamin D! By the way, other Blocks such as Teklad 2018 or the Mazuri Rat and Mouse diet that I referred to earlier offer the same nutritional benefits but Blocks other than HHBs should be free-fed and this means that your Squirrel should eat as much as she wants; the potential problem is that with MBD, appetite is depressed so the 2-3 HHBs each day are much preferred early on in the MBD treatment

What arrangements and provisions does your Squirrel have for water? It is essential under any circumstances but especially when you are giving the supplemental Calcium, your Squirrel must be getting adequate hydration and this should be in the form of fresh, pure water available at all times!

Thanks again for reading and for your care and concern for you little Squirrel!
Regards,
SamtheSquirrel

[SamtheSquirrel2018]

About 48 ish hours ago, my 3yo female fox squirrel got out of bed at 2am and regurgitated about five times. I looked around and noticed that there wasn't any poop. In the morning, I was able to give her a homemade electrolyte solution made of 1 cup water, 1 tsp sugar. She drank a 2tbsp syringe full, and had an almond. She pooped a little bit after that, but her poops were small and mucous-y. She spent most of the day resting. I called around and got an appointment with a vet for the next morning (this morning at 10am). Since regurgitating the first time, she only partially had a walnut in the shell and an almond in the shell. They took fecal samples at the appt, which we are waiting for the results on. They said all her vitals look good, her teeth look good, and they felt her lymph nodes and tummy and said that was all normal. They sent us home with a pee cup to do a urinalysis, which we have not been able to collect a sample for yet. They gave us a laxative, but held off due to her pooping more regularly now. Also her peeing is of a normal color and amount. After we got home from the vet, we let her continue to rest and then fed her a thumb sized piece of acorn squash. Just a little bit ago at around 9pm, she regurgitated again, around 8-9 times. It looks like undigested food and has a pasty consistency. She's lethargic. We tried giving her a syringe of Pedialyte as per recommended by the vet and she didn't want it. I tried the sugar water solution again and she doesn't want that either. I called the vet and they are going to let her vet know at 9am tomorrow, but in the meantime we are looking for any advice or info you may have about what could possibly be causing this. She is only an indoor squirrel and her diet consists of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and some seeds. She's a healthy weight. Please and thank you too all of you!

Hello again StewartNoelle:
One other thing I had intended to mention was that while I commend the Veterinarian on performing the Fecal Studies; this is another issue and regardless of what the stool studies may reveal; I strongly believe that your Squirrel's diet must be modified and optimized, ASAP!

I'm kinda wondering about what stool studies are being done. An ideal fecal study is what is called Fecal Flotation Test and it is way to see eggs and cysts of intestinal parasites as we rarely see the parasites themselves but the flotation test is usually done during the visit as it really doesn't take much time. It may be that they were just too busy and that is what is being done but they were going to to perform that test when time became available.
Please keep on with the updates!
Regards,
SamtheSquirrel

[SamtheSquirrel2018]

Hello again, here is another link to a page on Henry's website that has a pyramid with the healthiest foods at the wide base (blocks) and treats (nuts, fruits, etc) at the pointed top. Quality Blocks should comprise at least 80% of a captive Squirrel's diet and the remainder should be from the lower levels of the pyramid and treats should be given very rarely (if at all)!

https://henryspets.com/healthy-diet-for-pet-squirrels/

Thanks again and please let us know how your Squirrel is doing!
Regards,
SamtheSquirrel

[stewartnoelle21]

Hi SamtheSquirrel,


Thank you so much for all of this valuable information, I am getting her some of the products you mentioned right away. Her name is Billy. I also picked her up a vitamin supplement yesterday from the vet. I would like to state that I’ve tried Henry’s rodent blocks in the past and she absolutely refused to eat them…I will try the picky blocks and see if we have better luck. We’ve also tried feeding her exotic nutrition’s Squirrel Complete and she didn’t like that either. As far as Billy’s current situation, does MBD cause regurgitation or only the symptoms you mentioned? So far she has only exhibited some lethargy after regurgitating, but other than that hasn’t had additional symptoms of MBD that you listed. We’re back at the vet right now and I’m going to ask them further questions to explore MBD as a possibility, but I just wanted to see if there are any other possibilities that I could mention to them. I know an esophageal blockage due to a shell could be a possibility, so I am going to ask for xrays and rehydration because I’ve struggled to get her to drink anything since yesterday. As far as her water supply, she has a water fountain with continuous flow of fresh pure water. She also has a water dish with filtered water. Her weight as of yesterday at the vet was 1.7 ish pounds. Again, thank you so much for your help.

[RamiS]

Hi there -

Your doing great. So, about the henry blocks, my boy refused them as well, but then I got him the picky blocks, he liked those, then I kept 2-3 different bags in the freezer (picky, hazelnut blocks and walnut blocks). Also, must have 2 a day, no exceptions. Remember, outdoor squirrels get natural sun, so they dont need the extra vitamine like captive squirrels do, so its actually life or death with these blocks. I would get the following from henry's:

Henry calcuim
2-3 different block flavors

Let us know if you have any questions,

Oh and yeah, I would stop any fruits, nuts, treats of any kind at the moment until you get her to start on the blocks. Also, they love snap peas (not many, 2-3 in the morning and the same in the afternoon/evening) and maybe a small slice or 2 of soft avocado, and as a treat, 2-3 blueberries.

[Spanky]

I would stay away form the The Exotic Nutrition. No nuts, seeds or dried corn... avoid all calcium robbing foods.

She will eat the Henry's if she does not have a choice and gets hungry enough. I promise she will not starve herself to death with perfectly healthy food available to eat. This is like changing a toddler than has lived on fast foods, sugar cereal and gummy bear diet to a more wholesome, nutritional diet.... they'll throw fits and fight you every step of the way, but know it has to be done for their own well being.

If you are getting x-rays, that should show the weakening in the bones from MBD. They'll appear darker and more translucent versus the bright white in a x-ray of healthy bones.

MBD is treatable and recoverable (if not progressed too far) but it is a difficult and long journey that requires determination and commitment!

[SamtheSquirrel2018]

Hi SamtheSquirrel,


Thank you so much for all of this valuable information, I am getting her some of the products you mentioned right away. Her name is Billy. I also picked her up a vitamin supplement yesterday from the vet. I would like to state that I’ve tried Henry’s rodent blocks in the past and she absolutely refused to eat them…I will try the picky blocks and see if we have better luck. We’ve also tried feeding her exotic nutrition’s Squirrel Complete and she didn’t like that either. As far as Billy’s current situation, does MBD cause regurgitation or only the symptoms you mentioned? So far she has only exhibited some lethargy after regurgitating, but other than that hasn’t had additional symptoms of MBD that you listed. We’re back at the vet right now and I’m going to ask them further questions to explore MBD as a possibility, but I just wanted to see if there are any other possibilities that I could mention to them. I know an esophageal blockage due to a shell could be a possibility, so I am going to ask for xrays and rehydration because I’ve struggled to get her to drink anything since yesterday. As far as her water supply, she has a water fountain with continuous flow of fresh pure water. She also has a water dish with filtered water. Her weight as of yesterday at the vet was 1.7 ish pounds. Again, thank you so much for your help.

Thanks StewartNoelle and hello Billy! As you may know, Squirrels and much if not all of Rodentia are incapable of actual vomiting which is a highly coordinated action the requires integration of certain brainstem signals and coordinated nerve stimulation to the stomach and to the diaphragm which forcefully ejects gastric contents out of the stomach and into the esophagus (the food tube so to speak) and outward from there! Squirrels are able to regurgitate and this is totally passive! IF, for instance, the is a blockage at the junction of the esophagus and the stomach, any swallowed "stuff" can accumulate in the esophagus and will is a real sense overflow as more is swallowed! IF Billy is not swallowing without regurgitation occurring, this does in fact suggest a mechanical problem such as a foreign body lodged in the esophagus such as the shell you mentioned (a good example)! I did not get the impression from your original post that Billy could not swallow anything without regurgitating. IF this is the case, this definitely an emergency! Radiographs (x-ray studies) do not should any soft tissue in detail and any foreign body that might be present must be what is called radiopaque (x-rays can't pass through it) such as bone or many metals. Again, if Billy is unable to swallow fluids (sometimes a restriction in the esophagus or elsewhere will permit the passage of fluids but not solids or semisolids as the case may be. Not being able to effectively swallow fluids will quickly lead to dehydration and an intervention is absolutely required! Please clarify this and update us on what your Veterinarian had to say and what was done!

To answer your question about MBD causing regurgitation, yes it is possible and that is because MBD affects the absorption, utilization and storage of Calcium and muscle activity of any kind can be adversely affected. Swallowing is a very complex nerve and muscular event that seem simple but is really quite the opposite. Also, we call this MBD but there are a number of Metabolic Bone diseases but they have many commonalities and with Squirrels, we know that they have a relatively high Calcium requirement and the cause of most every case of MBD is one of the three possibilities I mentioned and the treatment required is virtually always the same; More Calcium and elimination of foods that may interfere with Calcium absorption, utilization and storage such as the "treats" that were mentioned and many others as well!

Also as I mentioned, from what your describe as the constituents of Billy's diet, I suspect that he already has MBD or is developing it regardless of what else might be going on with his swallowing! I would still strongly recommend that you begin the Treatment for MBD and make appropriate modifications in Billy's diet! As Spanky mention, if an x-ray study is performed, it may show evidence of MBD and "clinch" this diagnosis BUT the converse is NOT true and that is that if an x-ray study seems to demonstrate normal bones; it does NOT rule out MBD! That is because a relatively large amount of Calcium must be lost from the bones before the bones begin to appear less dense or exhibit other abnormalities from the MBD itself!
Thanks again for being such an attentive, concerned, conscientious, loving Squirrel-person! Billy is lucky to have you (and you him)!

Regards,
SamtheSquirrel

[stewartnoelle21]

UPDATE!!!

While Billy was at the vet, I went out and picked up mazuri rat and mouse diet as per recommended, until the henry's picky blocks come in the mail. I also have Vionate, a nutritional supplement from the vet.

Billy's X-rays came back perfect. She has some trapped gas in her tummy along with some food.
Waiting on blood work and stool samples to come back.
Billy got IV fluids and an antibiotic injection in case there is an infection in her gut, as well as an anti nausea injection.
While Billy was sedated, the vet checked her throat and found no signs of a blockage.
If regurgitation persists, Billy needs to get an ultrasound to continue investigating.


They sent us home with omnivore care to supplement her, They also said to feed her smaller portions of her normal diet to not over expand her stomach.

She is home now resting. Not really interested in eating.
Still trying to collect a urine sample but will report back tomorrow with the results from the vet!

[SamtheSquirrel2018]

Hi StewartNoelle:
How is Billy doing?
Regards,
SamtheSquirrel