Hello SB! Lot's of Questions Here

[Bess5527]

Hello Squirrel Board!

I'm interested in squirrels and know people who have had them as pets. I have a ton of them as of recently in my yard, all youngsters --- girls and boys. It was a real healthy litter, apparently.

I'd like to know if it is ok to feed them nuts, or if I shouldn't be feeding them at all. What are your thoughts?

What is there to tell about me that's interesting? Not a lot. I like all kinds of animals, but I am particularly fascinated with rodentia, for some reason. I think I just like that they are really intelligent and compact. I own rats and I've heard they are a lot like squirrels.

I don't know what people normally say here on the board when introducing themselves. I'm sort of a computer nerd with a lot of interests and I'm co-authoring a book with a friend on bioethics.


glad to be here. hope people are nice to me!:wave123

[virgo062]

Hello Squirrel Board!

I'd like to know if it is ok to feed them nuts, or if I shouldn't be feeding them at all. What are your thoughts?


:Welcome Bess5527

It's perfectly fine to feed healthy wild squirrels nuts...I feed mine Grey Striped Sunflower sees mixed with nuts and they love them.

Be prepared if you start they will multiply I think they tell their aunts and uncles...HEY FREE FOOD HERE:rotfl

It will be hard to stop once you start....They will start begging and looking in your windows and doors:rotfl I feel guilty if I don't feed them twice a day:osnap

[NaturesGift]

yup nuts and also offering yummy fruits and veggies is good as well!
I have fruit trees and they go gaga! my spring releases love Mulberries and have been living in a mulberry tree!!!

Also I buy Henry's Wild bites (blocks) and they love them! Im due to order more!

[Ronda]

Hi ... good to meet you! The only thing I would say about feeding wilds is to be prepared to do it all the time...they will love you for it! I know with birds that feeding wilds can make them somewhat dependent on you to provide food..especially through winter, I think it would be the same with squirrels...so personally I just give all my outdoors friends treats instead of becoming a main food source for them.

[JakesLittlePrincess]

:Welcome
We feed them twice a day. They have learned to knock and open the screen door if I am not fast enough with the food in the morning. We started with two and now there is between 10-12. They sit up in the trees and bark if I don't open the door when they are hungry. Be prepared to be a slave to the squirrels! Tank even joins me for coffee in the morning. :)

[Ronda]

Tank is awesome! Scrat would beat you to the ground for that coffee - she is so bad :shakehead (we just let her have a piece of ice from ours)

[astra]

Welcome!:Welcome
And yes, you can feed them nuts.
Personally, I share with them the nuts I eat myself (almonds, pecans, hazelnuts). My wilds don't care about veggies, but quite a few of them do enjoy some fruit (when there are no nuts around;-): grapes, apple slices, bananas, kiwi, and they love avocado (no pit and no skin - those can be toxic).

I don't think they can become 100% dependant on you. I observed that during summer a lot of them don't stop as often, leave sooner and are even pickier than ever: shelled almonds are not good enough for them and they start turning their noses up on them, looking for something fancier like walnuts, hazelnuts and pecans.
Which means they are not hungry and are not all that interested in your food as the main source of nourishment. It's more of a treat/dessert for them, than their main course.

Just be careful with giving them in-shell nuts because they might end up eating those on your neighbor's porch or something:D .
I used to give them tons of in-shell nuts, till I looked down one day accidentally (I live on a 3rd floor of a house) and saw a lof of shells on the balcony under me, on the ground, on the roof next door...
Now I reserve in-shell nuts for winter only, since snow covers everything and in the spring people do spring clean-ups anyway (or so I am trying to reason this and rationalize;-)).

Also, so that they don't become dependant, just in case, I try to feed them only once a day: am in the winter and pm in the summer (that fits my schedule better).

And yes, they will come banging on your door and they will demand what is rightfully theirs (and you know what squirrels consider "rightfully theirs":D )

If you could get some pictures of your healthy fuzzers, that would even be better :poke :)