What is bad about corn?

[djarenspace9]

I was wondering why it's bad to give corn to gray squirrels...I have always given mine fresh corn. I was surprised to see fresh and dry corn as foods to avoid.

[PBluejay2]

Corn is extremely high in phosphorus, which can leech away available calcium, and calcium is very important to the health of squirrels. A little corn every now and then shouldn't hurt, but you don't it to be a staple of their diet.

[mindy65]

Boy I missed this one, your saying not to give corn, whether its sweet corn on the cob or the horse corn on the cob isn't good for them???

[4skwerlz]

Boy I missed this one, your saying not to give corn, whether its sweet corn on the cob or the horse corn on the cob isn't good for them???

Corn is high in phosphorus, as PBJ mentioned, which could unbalance the calcium/phosphorus ratio. (If you're feeding Henry's Blocks, you don't have to worry too much about this, as the calc/phos ratio of HHB is adjusted accordingly.)

Corn is also very high in sugars and starches, and a pet or captive squirrel can't metabolize too many high-energy foods because they aren't nearly as active as a wild squirrel. Feeding energy-rich foods to a pet squirrel can cause overweight, high blood sugar levels, and possibly lead to metabolic syndrome or diabetes down the road.

In short, corn should be considered a TREAT; not good nutrition. A little bit once in a while is fine, but not every day.