You can also consider feeding them the following treats:
- Pecans
- Sunflower seeds
- Bird seed blends
- Mealworms
- Fresh vegetables
- Fresh fruit
- Butternut squash
- Pine nuts
Why feeding squirrels can be dangerous?
Why feeding squirrels can be dangerous. When squirrels, whether native or not, becomes dependent on humans for food, they can lose the instinct to feed themselves and lose their fear of humans An area overpopulated with squirrels can mean an increase in diseases (like Lyme disease) that can be transmitted to pets, humans and other rodents (like more squirrels).
How much should a baby squirrel eat?
Rehydration
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 teaspoons regular table sugar
- 1 quart warm water
- NOTE: This is NOT a formula that the baby should be on for an extended period of time, it is only for rehydration.
What should you feed a baby squirrel?
- Blocks should be the baby squirrel's first solid food.
- Be careful to remove any seeds, pits, skin, or strings, as these can cause choking in a baby squirrel.
- Never try to wean a baby squirrel off formula; let them wean themselves.
What kind of Formula do you feed a baby squirrel?
- When using a powdered formula, ideally, each night you would mix up the amount of formula you will need for the next day. ...
- In the morning, stir the formula and draw up enough syringes of cold formula for your first feeding of the day.
- Microwave a coffee mug of water until it is hot (but not boiling). ...
What can you feed a baby squirrel from home?
At about 6 weeks old your squirrel will be ready to start nibbling on solid food. These foods may include kale, broccoli, apples, grapes, sweet potato, and hard-shelled nuts out of the shell and a good quality rodent diet.
What can you feed a baby flying squirrel?
Flying squirrel babies eat milk until they are 5 weeks old. After that, they are free to have any foraged food, including hard nuts and seeds. In fact, baby flying squirrels need to eat solid food in order to keep their teeth filed down!
Can you keep a baby flying squirrel?
If cared for properly, flying squirrels can be affectionate pets. The first few weeks after bringing them home is the most important. Hand feeding and daily handling will help them bond with you. Due to flying squirrels' exotic status, they are illegal to own in 10 states.
What do you do with a baby flying squirrel?
No matter how tempting, DO NOT ALLOW SMALL CHILDREN TO HOLD THE BABY FLYING SQUIRREL. #9) RELEASE: At 7-8 weeks of age, start hanging your cage outside in a tree. If the weather is cool, not cold, hang it out anyway, but make sure it has a house and warm bedding to climb into.
Do flying squirrels eat carrots?
At least 40% of their diet should be fresh fruit to keep their digestive system working smoothly. Fresh fruits may include apples, grapes, oranges, peaches, pears or plums. Other foods that may be included in their diet are carrots, mealworms and sunflower seeds.
Do flying squirrels eat fruit?
Flying squirrels are omnivores. They eat a variety of foods, including seeds, nuts, fungi, fruit, and insects. Southern flying squirrels are considered one of the most carnivorous squirrels because they supplement their diet with eggs, birds, and carrion.
How do you raise a baby flying squirrel?
Diet. Be sure to keep fresh, clean water available at all times. Water can be placed in a water bottle or a small dish, and either needs to be washed each time water is refilled. Offer commercial squirrel or hamster food daily, as well as fresh fruits, nuts and seed.
How long can a flying squirrel live without water?
Without water, a squirrel faces death if it becomes more than 10% dehydrated. In adult squirrels, this level of dehydration could take 2-3 days and young squirrels 1-2 days.
Can flying squirrels be pets?
The following states do not allow residents to keep flying squirrels as pets: Alabama, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, Utah (Southern Flying Squirrels are banned), Vermont and Virginia.
What fruit do flying squirrels eat?
Fruits. In the wild, flying squirrels are opportunistic foragers, and will eat fruit growing in their environment. For southern flying squirrels, this may include berries, pears, apples or plums.
Do flying squirrels like peanut butter?
Flying squirrels love the nutty taste of peanut butter and sunflower seeds. These are great options to set in your traps to lure them in.
Can flying squirrels eat sugar glider food?
Flying Squirrels ARE NOT Sugar Gliders! Never feed flying squirrels commercial diets for sugar gliders.
What's the best thing to feed a baby squirrel?
Place uncooked rice or bird seed in a sock and warm in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. Wrap the sock in a soft towel and place it with the baby in an open container [e.g., a box]. Remember, do not give the baby food or water!
How do you raise a baby flying squirrel?
Diet. Be sure to keep fresh, clean water available at all times. Water can be placed in a water bottle or a small dish, and either needs to be washed each time water is refilled. Offer commercial squirrel or hamster food daily, as well as fresh fruits, nuts and seed.
What kind of milk do you feed a baby squirrel?
Baby squirrels need Pedialyte and puppy milk to grow. You can feed a baby squirrel with a bottle and it will bond to you as its “mother.” You have to keep baby squirrels warm and massage their genitals to make them pee.
At what age can baby squirrels eat solid food?
approximately 6 weeks oldWeaning a Baby Squirrel. Try to continue feeding formula until at least 16 weeks old. At approximately 6 weeks old, you can start to introduce solid foods.
Community Q&A
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
About This Article
This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Christopher M. Osborne, PhD. Christopher Osborne has been a wikiHow Content Creator since 2015. He is also a historian who holds a PhD from The University of Notre Dame and has taught at universities in and around Pittsburgh, PA.
Distribution
The natural range of Southern flying squirrel is considerably large, stretching from southeastern Canada to the eastern United States, Mexico, and Honduras. The preferred habitat of this species is forest, dominated by maple, beech, hickory, oak, poplar, and other seed-producing hardwoods. The rodent also favors mixed conifer/deciduous forests.
Habits and Lifestyle
Southern flying squirrels are nocturnal and highly social animals and may fly and forage together in large groups. Additionally, they often aggregate together in dens, especially as seasonal temperatures decline in order to conserve energy.
Diet and Nutrition
As omnivorous animals, Southern flying squirrels have a rather diverse diet. They feed upon nuts, acorns, seeds, berries, fruit, moths, junebugs, leaf buds, bark, eggs, and cheeks of birds, young mice, insects, carrion as well as fungus.
Mating Habits
Southern flying squirrels are polygynandrous (promiscuous) meaning that males and females mate with multiple partners. They have two breeding seasons per year: one occurs from January to April, and the other one lasts from June to August. The gestation period lasts for 40 days, yielding 1-6 young with an average of 2-3 per litter.
Population
The population of this species as a whole doesn't face any serious threats. However, populations in certain areas suffer from habitat loss, combined with the loss of cavity-bearing and mast-producing trees that are an important part of their habitat.
Fun Facts for Kids
The favorite food of this rodent is hickory nuts and acorns. One way to detect if there as Southern flying squirrels in the area is the presence of piles of gnawed hickory nuts, found at the base of large hickory trees.
Characteristics, Housing, Diet, and Other Information
Lianne McLeod, DVM, is a small animal and exotic pet expert with over a decade of experience writing about veterinary care. After caring for animals in her veterinarian practice, Lianne went on to study biology and research water quality and chronic disease at the University of Saskatchewan.
Southern Flying Squirrel Behavior and Temperament
Like sugar gliders, southern flying squirrels form an intense bond with their owners if acquired at a young age from a breeder. They are usually quite happy to spend time climbing and playing on their owner (as though the human is a tree). They will feel quite comfortable and safe, hiding in sleeves or a pocket in their owner's clothing.
Housing the Southern Flying Squirrel
Southern flying squirrels are not large, so they can make do with a reasonably small cage. To thrive, they need room to run and climb. Vertical space is more important than floor space, so a tall cage is best. An enclosure designed for sugar gliders can work well, as long as the spacing in the mesh is narrow (1/2 inch by 1 inch at most).
Food and Water
In the wild, southern flying squirrels eat a variety of nuts, seeds, fruits, and insects. In captivity, they do well with a varied diet that can include :
Common Health Problems
Southern flying squirrels do not need any routine vaccinations and are not susceptible to any well-known diseases. It is common for them to develop calcium deficiency problems, but a calcium block in the cage can help prevent those issues.
Is It Legal to Own a Pet Southern Flying Squirrel?
Check the legality of keeping southern flying squirrels as pets as the laws vary and change over time.
Purchasing Your Southern Flying Squirrel
Before you buy a southern flying squirrel, make sure you have a local exotic veterinarian who can treat your pet if emergencies arise. Exotic veterinarians are often an excellent place to start for a referral for local, verifiable breeders. If these squirrels are local in your area, do not attempt to take one in from the wild.
