Originally Posted by
Fallinwhisper
Sounds like I'm in the same boat with Pip. She wont touch any Rodent Block that I can get at the pet stores. I cant even get her to eat veggies most of the time. She does like grapes and apples though. I am currently offering her some pellets. The brand is called Sunseed and its called Vita-rat - Vitamins & Mineral Enriched, High Protein formulation and Calcium fortified. (http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/p..._id=102&Page=). To me, it just looks like Gerbil food. It has some pellets, whole sunflower seeds, some other goodies. She will only pick out the seeds and wont touch the rest. There are a few whole pieces of Rodent Block in there, she just tosses them aside, literally. lol She will throw her food if she doesn't like it. I also have some alfalfa. Not sure if that is good for them or not. She seems to like picking at it. The only treats that I do give her is maybe an almond or acorn and some little Peach wood pieces from the pet store. She loves to nibble on those.
Id love to make some of my own Rodent Blocks and find one that she will eat! She looks healthy to me. Active, shiny coat, etc. So she is eating, she's just very picky. I just want to be sure she is eating and liking something healthy!
The trouble with those seed-mix type foods is exactly what you said: they pick out what they want (the seeds) and leave the rest. Squirrels have a VERY high calcium requirement--almost 100 times the requirement for people when you consider their small body size. Seeds actually deplete calcium from the body. Also, a diet based on fruit, seeds, and nuts will be severely protein deficient. And that's not even considering all the other vitamins and minerals they need. She may look healthy now, but I can't tell you how many squirrel moms come to TSB saying their squirrel was fine yesterday and now she's having seizures.....many of them die. Please read the "Healthy Diet" located in the Squirrel Nutrition forum. In a "nutshell":
--80% of her diet MUST be rodent blocks, or if she won't eat those, the squirrel blocks. The recipe is in the Nutrition forum.
--The rest of her diet must be vegetables from the list in the "Healthy Diet for Pet Squirrels" plus natural foods from outside.
--Occasional treats can include fruit, extra nuts, or other yummies.
A lot of squirrels won't touch commercial rodent block, but almost all of them love the TSB squirrel blocks.
Good luck, and if you have questions, just ask.