How to transition from formula to food? Baby food or whole foods...?

[Little Magician]

My 7 week old fox is teething. I gave her some apple wood sticks and HHB are in the mail. I will keep her on FV until she refuses it, but what foods should I use in this transition phase? Baby foods only or is it okay to slice and dice whole veggies, nuts, and fruits. Should skins and peels be removed? If skins and peels are dangerous should spinach and other leafy greens not be given until older? What age? I have the list of nutritious foods for squirrels, just need to know how to prepare them.:dono
Thanks :D

[CritterMom]

I would put a couple rodent blocks in and nothing else at first. You want to get them eating the blocks well before you introduce them to yummy sweet fruit and things or they will NEVER want to eat it.

[Adventurista]

I would put a couple rodent blocks in and nothing else at first. You want to get them eating the blocks well before you introduce them to yummy sweet fruit and things or they will NEVER want to eat it.


Hope no one minds me jumping in....but I'm confused on something. Do they need to eat a "regular" block like the Kaytee as well as the HHB, or is it okay to just feed HHB as the main block? I bought a bag of the Kaytee blocks (which my baby has shown no interest in, other than they apparently make nice pillows) and the HHB is on its way. My baby is just almost 6 wks.

[CritterMom]

"Block" is kind of shorthand - for a manufactured complete diet and I would include HHBs in there. A lot of rehabbers wean onto Zupreem primate biscuits, which are kind of light and airy blocks vs, the Kaytee type which are rock hard.

[squirrelgurl]

so would it be better to put Zupreem or Kaytee blocks in there as well as HHB's? My Cami has gone back to totally snubbing the HHBs :(

[Adventurista]

"Block" is kind of shorthand - for a manufactured complete diet and I would include HHBs in there. A lot of rehabbers wean onto Zupreem primate biscuits, which are kind of light and airy blocks vs, the Kaytee type which are rock hard.


Okay---so I thought I saw a post once that said the HHB is sort of like a supplement and you still have to feed the other generic store-bought blocks, too. That's not true, and I can just feed the HHB? Honestly, I'd rather feed something where I have a better idea of where it's coming from.

[Little Magician]

So can they be started with chopped fresh veggies and fruits? Should skins, peels, anything be removed? Or should they be started with easy to swallow/digest baby food?

[Adventurista]

I hope I can clear this up.

Store bought rodent blocks are 100% complete nutrition (more or less) for rats that must be fed as 80-100% of the diet (50-60 grams of blocks per day for a squirrel, which is a small handful). This is because there are a lot of fillers (non-nutritive ingredients) in commercial rodent blocks.

Henry's Healthy Blocks have 100% complete nutrition for rats also, but with no fillers, so you feed just two blocks per day (around 10 grams). This allows you to make up the rest of the daily diet with healthy veggies, wild seasonal foods, treats, etc. These extra foods are for variety, taste, amusement, and the micronutrients that are only found in fresh foods.

So, no, there is no nutritional reason to feed both HHBs and other types of blocks.

Hope this helps.


Perfect! Yes! I feel a LOT better about giving Kai HHB instead of the Kaytee---I just feel like it's a better product. Thanks for clearing up my confusion! :thankyou

[dewgrl]

I have just ordered the FV 32/40 for my little ones as I hav been doing TONS of reading on here and am taking to heart everything all those with more experience than I have are willing to share.. I want the best for my furbabies and if its ordering FV than thats what it will be. Nibbles is only about 6 weeks old give or take... its hard for me to guess his age as his eyes have been open since we found him... his tail has just started curling up over his back.. top teeth are just popping through but his little belly is still naked so I am only taking a guess at 6 weeks.. the vet that gave him his top to bottom look over agrees he is about 6 weeks.....

We are guessing Squeaks is about 8 weeks old... she is fully furred.. top teeth are in and she is turning into a climbing pro.. she is not taking much int he way of formula and I worry so much that she isnt getting enough to eat.. I try to squeeze just a little more into her with each feeding. She is eating twice what she did yesterday. I must ass that Squeaks has been hrough a little bit if trauma int he last week of her little life... first she was shot at and had a buck shot pellet hit her foot.. then the people I got her from almost let her freeze to death and finally I took her to the vet and she had her poor little toe amputated.. Please reassure me that yes eventually her appetite will pick up.. she isnt sluggish by any means and climbs from all over the new enclosure I just put them in and is a pellet pooping machine at times LOL

I dont want to make dietary mistakes with these little ones so I guess I am asking can I use any kind of store bought rodent block for them for now? Nibbles is still more than content with his formula but has shown some interest in nibbling on things and I dont know if Squeaks is just needing things to eat other than formula.. weening herself maybe???

Sorry for the book but thanks for any suggestions and tips you can offer:thankyou