Sunday 13 December 2009

Roger goes off his food



Roger stopped eating. At the turn of midnight 2 days ago he lost all interest in food. The temperature fell below zero in the night, the water in the bird bath had frozen solid and Roger had pneumonia - again!
Before there was time for self-pity to kick in he was moved to the Quail brooder in the kitchen faster than the blink of an eye, faster than a Roe deer taking flight and certainly faster than Roger moved on an average day.
Now in intensive care his spirits rallied and he saw a ray of hope on the horizon. In his quiet, contemplative moments he reflected on the fact that he had seen stardom in his life and his fame was spreading...

ACTION: Keep warm and dry in kitchen; Start regime of Baytril (oral antibiotic) 0.5ml twice a day for 7 days; start Septrin (sulphonamide and antibiotic that deals with certain bacterial infections and also protozoans that cause Coccidiosis, indicated by green poo); Start Telmin for lung worm, Crenosoma striatum,(1 ml a day for 5 days); syringe feed esbilac several times a day to keep Roger hydrated.
N.B. When syringe feeding it is always best to hold a hedgehog in the most upright position possible. This prevents any liquid from being breathed in by accident. This is particularly important with baby hedgehogs that can develop inhalation pneumonia by inadvertently breathing in fluid which then reaches their lungs. With Roger this was the only position that worked, though I tried to hold him more on one side whenever possible.

2 comments:

  1. Delighted to see he is getting better in the next post.

    Does the picture give a clue as to the best way to syringe-feed a hoggie - on his back?

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  2. Not the best picture I now realise as in fact it is always best to hold a hedgehog in the most upright position possible. This prevents any liquid from being breathed in by accident. This is particularly important with baby hedgehogs that can develop inhalation pneumonia by inadvertently breathing in fluid which then reaches their lungs. With Roger this was only the position that worked, though I tried to hold him more on one side whenever possible. I might change the photo as it could be sending out the wrong message re syringe feeding. Thanks for pointing it out.

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