Rocky Not Well

[lmulli0702]

Hello! My boy Rocky that I rescued from my dog over 3 yrs ago when he was a hairless little baby seems to be having problems. He's some what lethargic although eating and one of his eye looks to be glazed over or has a blue like film over it like he may be blind in that eye! He looked fine yesterday but didn't come out of his nest much. He stays outside in his large cage most of the time unless it's below 30F and gets good afternoon sun. His diet is mostly pecans, hazel nuts, broccoli, walnuts, acorns and occasionally a saltine cracker or a couple of chips. He is normally very active but right now he is staying mostly in his box. Could he have some type of infection in his eye and if so what kind of antibiotic could I give him and what dosage? I have some Doxycycline and some Amoxicillin

[squirrelsrule&bunniestoo]

Have you made any changes with Rocky lately, like diet or his cage setup, etc that may be causing some problems. Do you have a full spectrum light for Rocky? He needs sunlight to make Vitamin D and absorb calcium, perhaps that is the problem. Also, Rocky needs a good source of calcium to keep his bones healthy. Does he have a cuddlebone (for birds) or deer antlers to chew on. Both of these are high in calcium. Another good food for Rocky is rodent block. It also has calcium. How much fresh fruits and vegetables does Rocky get? These are essential to keeping him healthy, especially leafy green vegetables like kale. Does Rocky seem to have any trouble when you pick him up (does it seem like it is painful to him)? I am worried that he could have MBD. Not sure if blindness can be a result, but I know that squirrels that have it are very fragile and lethargic. Sorry for so many questions, we just need all the info we can get to figure out what is wrong.

[lmulli0702]

He gets brocolli & carrotts every day and he does have a cuddle bone in his cage. His cage stays on my porch which gets full afternoon sunlight. I have his cage on wheels so that I can bring him in at night but for the last 2 nights I covered his cage with a acrylic type blanket which he proceeded to shred to pieces so I wonder if he could have ingested some of the fibers. I just came in from letting him out on the porch for a while and he seemed just OK, not very spunky but he did eat some walnuts. While I had him out I opened his nest box and it had several pieces of the blanket in it so I took them out.

[squirrelsrule&bunniestoo]

I would keep an eye on him and see how he is in the morning. I used one of those type things with my black squirrels last year (it was actually blinds or something but I used it as a sun shield on really warm days) and they shredded it. They did not have any troubles from it. As for the eye, it is possible that it will clear on its own, I do not think that usually happens thogh. Do you have a vet that you could get him to to check it out? Maybe it is something treatable.

[lmulli0702]

I'm going to keep a close watch and see how he is in the morning and go from there. We have several vets in the area that will treat him if needed.

[island rehabber]

Hi -- did the problems with Rocky's eye coincide with when you put the blanket on his cage? If so, is it possible there is a fiber or piece of something from the blanket in his eye, and now causing infection? See if you can really get a good look at it, or flush it out. Sometimes the most obvious thing is the source of the problem -- whatever has changed in his environment. In this case, you would look to the blanket first because it was new to him.
If the eye was bad before that, it may be a cataract situation that needs to be examined by a wildlife vet. Let us know how he is in the morning., ok? ...it may be necessary to have him checked out since you do have a vet at your disposal.

[thundersquirrel]

are you able to get a picture of his eye onto here?

if he's willing i would inspect the eye very closely with a flashlight. check the amount his pupil responds to light. see if there are any scratches on the eye or if the rims are swollen.

my mother and i used to feed a squirrel in our backyard that was blind in one eye. she was very affectionate for a wild squirrel and did quite well until she died (we believe it was old age, or some disease, we knew her for five years and she was one-eyed that whole time).

if rocky is a pet you should take him to the vet. you'd do as much for a dog or cat, right? once you find out exactly what's wrong it's more likely you can fix it.

[island rehabber]

Yes...it may really be wise to have his eye looked at by a vet if that option is available to you.

[rygel1hardt]

Rocky's diet also needs a major overhaul! He needs to be eating mainly rodent block made for rats and mice as well as lots of fruit and veges and a whole lot less nuts and such. He also needs a few sources of calcium, I have six different types of mineral blocks in each of my squirrels cages plus deer antler, and one cuttlebone so they have choices. As far as natural sources of calcium kale and green leafy veges are usually a good source. As to his medical problems since you have access to vet I would take him as soon as possible. Also I wouldnt put him outside for a while just until he is back to normal as a sick squirrel may have trouble regulating his body temp. Stacey

[thundersquirrel]

how is rocky now?

[squirrelsrule&bunniestoo]

Has anyone heard how Rocky is doing today?

[lmulli0702]

Rocky seems to be better today. He's eating well and his eye looks normal but he's still a little less active than he normally is. I did let him out of his cage this afternoon and he really seemed to enjoy snooping around in the bushes around my house. I must be out of town until thursday so I will post his condition then.

[Apple Corps]

That is the type of news we WANT TO HEAR

[ravenlaws32]

any new updates for rocky?? hope is doing ok .

[MsSquirrelyGirl]

I am praying for Rocky!!! Glad to hear he's scooting around in the bushes!!