Food Aggression?

[emrouse]

Hi I am relatively new to the page but I just have a (hopefully) quick question.
My baby, Elwood, is approx. 8 weeks old on 9/19/14, going by when his eyes opened. He has been perfectly happy and healthy and eating just fine. earlier, I gave him a nut to chew and eat, as I was refilling water and such. He was sitting near the cage door, so when I stuck my hand inside, he made a "growling" noise and jumped at my hand. He has never shown any sort of aggression at all until then. Is it just his age? Is there anything to prevent him being food aggressive, if that is the case?
Any input will be greatly appreciated!!

[stepnstone]

Hi I am relatively new to the page but I just have a (hopefully) quick question.
My baby, Elwood, is approx. 8 weeks old on 9/19/14, going by when his eyes opened. He has been perfectly happy and healthy and eating just fine. earlier, I gave him a nut to chew and eat, as I was refilling water and such. He was sitting near the cage door, so when I stuck my hand inside, he made a "growling" noise and jumped at my hand. He has never shown any sort of aggression at all until then. Is it just his age? Is there anything to prevent him being food aggressive, if that is the case?
Any input will be greatly appreciated!!

Nuts do tend to bring out the aggressive behavior...
They also tend to stash them and become very protective
over their space. You do not want to allow "stashing" and
will need to keep any stashed food cleaned out.
I do hope you are just giving an occasional nut only as a treat
and block is the main staple given and eaten of his solid foods.

[emrouse]

Nuts do tend to bring out the aggressive behavior...
They also tend to stash them and become very protective
over their space. You do not want to allow "stashing" and
will need to keep any stashed food cleaned out.
I do hope you are just giving an occasional nut only as a treat
and block is the main staple given and eaten of his solid foods.

Yes, I only give nuts maybe once every few days if even that often, and I also give him a block and some fresh fruit and veggies daily along with formula. He is my first rescue so I'm still learning about them daily!
Thank you for the info! :)

[nuttysquirrels]

Yes, I only give nuts maybe once every few days if even that often, and I also give him a block and some fresh fruit and veggies daily along with formula. He is my first rescue so I'm still learning about them daily!
Thank you for the info! :)

Funny u say that,, i been noticing my 2 babies have been getting like that when it comes to their 'treats' lol.. mainly my boy though
, i think it's cute lol , their like GRR DONT TOUCH MY TREATS! hehe

[farrelli]

What kind of block and formula do you offer?

[Mommaluvy]

My two males do this .. to me and to each other. 12 weeks now..

[Trooper]

I have found with no uncertainty, that Trooper, my NR does this when he has a nut in his possesion, the nut is nearby and visible or the nut is stashed and I get near the site. he attacks my shoes and bites the heck out of them to the point I had to buy steel-toed boots to protect my feet. Still except for the toes, the shoes are-let's say- no longer waterproof! They look like a colander....:grin2

What is funny about Trooper is that he could be one second bitting the heck out of my shoes and a second later, if I move to a "nuts safe area" he will turn into this "mush of love" and give me kisses, allogrooming and playfull moves. It comes to prove-at least in my observation- that the agresiveness is not personal rather a defensive mechanism nature has instilled in them to protect nourishment. Like they say " you can take an animal out of the wilderness, but you can't take the wild out of the animal".

REgards,

Trooper's dad

[emrouse]

I have found with no uncertainty, that Trooper, my NR does this when he has a nut in his possesion, the nut is nearby and visible or the nut is stashed and I get near the site. he attacks my shoes and bites the heck out of them to the point I had to buy steel-toed boots to protect my feet. Still except for the toes, the shoes are-let's say- no longer waterproof! They look like a colander....:grin2

What is funny about Trooper is that he could be one second bitting the heck out of my shoes and a second later, if I move to a "nuts safe area" he will turn into this "mush of love" and give me kisses, allogrooming and playfull moves. It comes to prove-at least in my observation- that the agresiveness is not personal rather a defensive mechanism nature has instilled in them to protect nourishment. Like they say " you can take an animal out of the wilderness, but you can't take the wild out of the animal".

REgards,

Trooper's dad

Elwood is very affectionate so it was just a shock when he acted this way. Now he is right back to being a sweet little baby sleeping in my shirt lol.

[emrouse]

What kind of block and formula do you offer?

I give him a rodent block I picked up at the pet store for rats and mice and such (not sure of brand) and I give him a esbilac puppy replacement formula which he seems to love.

[Rhapsody]

I always say....... NEVER come between a squirrel and its nut.
(bites and teeth come out ever time - ouch)

[farrelli]

The kind of block is important. Many are crap and bad for them, nothing but seeds and corn. The gold standard is this, a bag will last a month:

http://www.henryspets.com/squirrel-diet/

Oxbow and Harlan Teklad are fine, Kaytee Forti-Diet in a pinch.

[emrouse]

The kind of block is important. Many are crap and bad for them, nothing but seeds and corn. The gold standard is this, a bag will last a month:

http://www.henryspets.com/squirrel-diet/

Oxbow and Harlan Teklad are fine, Kaytee Forti-Diet in a pinch.

Oh awesome! I will be ordering some. Do I need to get the stuff for adults or babies? He is 8 weeks

[Rhapsody]

Oh awesome! I will be ordering some.
Do I need to get the stuff for adults or babies? He is 8 weeks

You will want to order the ones for baby squirrels....... :)
http://www.henryspets.com/hi-protein-blocks/

[sandycheeks]

My Sandy was quite aggressive over nuts as well. She is an outdoor squirrel though.
I found that she was highly aggressive over nuts particularly peanuts. Other foods though it was much less. She got mad over Henry's blocks but only if you put your hand down to give her more. Other stuff like grapes and cherries she would take out of my hand with no issues. If there was a peanut around she was a maniac, she would grab one and run away and growl at us.
Like someone else said DO NOT PUT YOUR HANDS NEAR A WILD ANIMAL WITH FOOD AROUND. Even if your baby is super sweet they will bite you over food.

[RobinTN]

Reading this thread sure helps me feel better! Seems like this is a common behavior. My 7wk Cassie (formerly Cash) does the growl & lunge over her Zupreem monkey biscuits. From what I can tell reading this board, the MBs aren't as much of a treat as a "filler block" to offer in addition to her morning Henry's block & her veggies. But try telling her that! It's like a toddler with an ice cream cone, LOL, you just don't mess with her monkey biscuits! :grin3