Correct dehydration conservatively after warming and avoid turning a weak infant into an aspiration emergency.
Oral hydration is only appropriate when the animal is warm and swallowing normally.
Use a small syringe and let the animal swallow each controlled amount.
Stop if fluid appears at the nose, breathing changes or swallowing becomes abnormal.
Oral fluid is only appropriate after warming and only when the animal is alert enough to swallow normally. Severe dehydration, shock or neurologic weakness can require professional fluid therapy rather than repeated syringe attempts.
Skin “tenting” can be misleading in tiny mammals and should not be the only test.
Merck gives a general neonatal stomach/crop capacity of about 50 mL/kg (about 5 mL per 100 g body weight) and specifically says initial feedings should be conservative. Treat that as an anatomical upper reference — not a target to force into a dehydrated ground squirrel at once. Ground-squirrel species vary dramatically in adult size and development.
If the abdomen stays distended, the animal is not eliminating, or swallowing becomes poor, stop oral attempts and get experienced help.
For a compromised infant, the safest choice is the oral electrolyte/fluid plan given by a permitted rehabilitator or wildlife-capable veterinarian. Do not improvise a salt/electrolyte recipe for a ground squirrel. If you have no professional instruction yet, prioritize warmth, controlled tiny oral amounts only when swallowing is normal, and rapid contact with a rehabilitator instead of mixing multiple internet recipes.
Ground-squirrel care varies by species. The references below cover veterinary neonatal care, wildlife rehabilitation, natural history and release planning; use species-specific ages, social behavior and seasonal timing whenever they are available.
