Advice with Balcony Guests

[rkem]

Hello everybody, I will start by saying that I am entirely new to dealing with squirrels and I am looking for advice. Over the past few weeks a squirrel had been building a nest on my balcony. Due to the damage to everything on said balcony I decided that it was time to "evict" the squirrel. To the best of what I could see, the nest was empty.

I was wrong.

After much dismantling and finally getting to the nest (which was under a piece of furniture), I found three babies. Very young, still naked, eyes closed. They were very squirmy but it was a cold day and they were't particularly warm. Much of the giant nest had been thrown away so I had to come up with an alternative. As quickly as I could converted an archival box (I made a hole in the side and filled it with tissue papers and fabric) and placed the babies inside, put more shredded tissue paper on top of them, closed the lid and left the balcony in the hopes that mom would return.

After about an hour she did return and seems to be spending the majority of her time inside the box over the past few days so I'm hoping it is a sign that at least some of the babies are alive. She has also renovated the nest a bit (throwing out some of the materials outside the box).

Now I am perfectly fine with letting mama squirrel use my balcony to raise her babies for as long as it takes. I have moved some of the remaining furniture to sort of shelter the box from any rain or strong wind and we are going to simply avoid the balcony to avoid stressing her out.

I have given her a few nuts as a peace offering in my attempt to lure her back, but I was wondering if there is anything I should give her to supplement her diet and increase the chances that the babies make it?

Thank you.

[island rehabber]

Bless you for letting her raise her tiny ones on your balcony :bowdown. They are so fragile at this age, even moving the nest to a perfectly nice spot could cause her to panic and abandon them.

The most important thing in any squirrel's diet is calcium, and especially important for a nursing mom. See if she will eat some Wild Bites from henryspets.com; many wilds do like them and they will give her excellent nutrition as well as calcium. You can also provide her with fresh water and clean paper towels to shred for nesting material (they love those).

And hey -- we LOVE pix on this site, if you haven't noticed :poke :grin2

[rkem]

Hehehe, even the remote possibility of me catching a glimpse of cute baby squirrels some weeks down the road is reward enough :D. I haven't been able to take pictures because she darts off whenever I enter the balcony and when I found the babies I was in way too much a of a hurry for that.

Although yesterday we sort of tagged team against a would be invader (balcony is covered in so called anti-squirrel wire mesh but obviously they can get in and then often forget how to get out). I just stared him down blocked his path to the nesting box and mama squirrel did the rest. She is now willing to stay on the balcony while I'm there, which is a change. Maybe soon she will stay still for a few pictures and not feel as stressed whenever I am there.

I'll see if I can find a Canadian source for those blocks as they may arrive sooner. I've looked around and there are a few calcium rich foods that I could certainly provide in the meantime. And I have plenty of packing paper leftover from my days of having pet rats. To a certain extent, watching her mark her territory and chatter reminded me of rats ... if you quintupled their energy. :grin2

[SammysMom]

You can give her in shell nuts or even out of shell nuts as long as they are not salted. Maybe offer a bit of avocado. Many of those in captivity love it, but not sure about a wild one. Maybe berries etc will tempt her also.
As IR said, thank-you so much for allowing her to stay to care for her little ones. :grouphug:Love_Icon:grouphug

[astra]

I'll see if I can find a Canadian source for those blocks as they may arrive sooner. :grin2

unfortunately, there is no such source in Canada - speaking from experience.
But www.henryspets.com are very good - shipping takes about a week tops (well, if you are somewhere in rural Canada it may take longer, of course, but if you are in some of the bigger cities - it takes faster).

although wilds don't eat human veggies normally, these are the foods that some wilds, in my experience, ate (in addition to raw, unsalted tree nuts) :
1. belgian endive
2. peeled cucumbers
3. avocado (no pit and no skin - these are deadly toxic, flesh only)
4. peeled apples
5. peeled pears
6. watermelon (seeds removed if there are any)
7. cantaloupe and honeydew
8. sesame seeds <--- these are good because they have decent cal: phos ratio
9. oatmeal (you could sort of make home-made no-bake oatmeal cookies: just take some oatmeal (old-fashioned rolled oats) + natural almond butter; mix shape into balls or some kind of shape)
10. peeled mango bits
11. peeled banana (cut into small pieces, of course)
12. sweet potato - peeled and cut into small pieces.

You could try and experiment with this menu, give a little bit of each several times over the course of a week or so - see what she will end up eating.

Since it's summer right now, there are plenty of outside foods, so when/if she ventures outside of her nest, it means she is finding her good squirrelly diet.
Most likely, whatever you give her will be a supplement to whatever she eats on her own.
But it's great if you could supplement it, because it will save her time and effort: she'll spend less time foraging and more time with her babies, less time outside will keep her safer, too.

You could also give her paper towels and tissue paper like kleenex for her nest - just leave these outside and if she thinks she could use them, she'll use them.

Others will chime in.

[rkem]

Thanks for the ideas of food. With regards to sweet potatoes, would that be cooked or raw? I remember that with my rats raw sweet potatoes were a big no no while cooked ones were ok so I'm curious.

I've tried a few things and so far she doesn't seem to be a fan of carrots but likes apples (I was amused that she removed the peel ... just like a rat does) and she likes rolled oats and sesame seeds and cooked green peas (she peels those too). I think she ate the few bits of cilantro, but no luck on the celery.

[astra]

Thanks for the ideas of food. With regards to sweet potatoes, would that be cooked or raw? I remember that with my rats raw sweet potatoes were a big no no while cooked ones were ok so I'm curious.

I've tried a few things and so far she doesn't seem to be a fan of carrots but likes apples (I was amused that she removed the peel ... just like a rat does) and she likes rolled oats and sesame seeds and cooked green peas (she peels those too). I think she ate the few bits of cilantro, but no luck on the celery.

sweet potato - raw
Some sqs like cooked, but I've only used raw with the wilds.

Yes, they peel apples (and pretty much anything :)), so I give them all stuff already peeled - just a precaution for the youngsters who are not yet good at peeling/knowing to peel. Just to be on the safe side.

You could also try sugar snap peas - these are always a favourite with many sqs. So, maybe, she'll like them, too.

[rkem]

Bytes are ordered but they will take 5 to 10 days to get here. In the meantime I got her a piece of deer antler (turns out bulk barn sells them for dogs) to see if she will chew on that and I made her some little balls with sesame seed paste, almond meal, flax meal, rolled oats and a bit of peanut butter to hold it all together when chilled. Those were definitely squirrel approved ... and kind of human approved too :P

[island rehabber]

......I made her some little balls with sesame seed paste, almond meal, flax meal, rolled oats and a bit of peanut butter to hold it all together when chilled. Those were definitely squirrel approved ... and kind of human approved too :P

rkem, you rock!
:blowkiss

[Coralreefer]

Hello everybody, I will start by saying that I am entirely new to dealing with squirrels and I am looking for advice. Over the past few weeks a squirrel had been building a nest on my balcony. Due to the damage to everything on said balcony I decided that it was time to "evict" the squirrel. To the best of what I could see, the nest was empty.

I was wrong.

After much dismantling and finally getting to the nest (which was under a piece of furniture), I found three babies. Very young, still naked, eyes closed. They were very squirmy but it was a cold day and they were't particularly warm. Much of the giant nest had been thrown away so I had to come up with an alternative. As quickly as I could converted an archival box (I made a hole in the side and filled it with tissue papers and fabric) and placed the babies inside, put more shredded tissue paper on top of them, closed the lid and left the balcony in the hopes that mom would return.

After about an hour she did return and seems to be spending the majority of her time inside the box over the past few days so I'm hoping it is a sign that at least some of the babies are alive. She has also renovated the nest a bit (throwing out some of the materials outside the box).

Now I am perfectly fine with letting mama squirrel use my balcony to raise her babies for as long as it takes. I have moved some of the remaining furniture to sort of shelter the box from any rain or strong wind and we are going to simply avoid the balcony to avoid stressing her out.

I have given her a few nuts as a peace offering in my attempt to lure her back, but I was wondering if there is anything I should give her to supplement her diet and increase the chances that the babies make it?

Thank you.

There has already been some great advice for you.
Seeing that I just wanted to thank you for being one of the good guys!

So many people are uncaring and calloused.
They would have thrown the nest and babies right off the balcony without a care.

Again, thank you for being one of the good people in the world and letting this squirrel family use your balcony for a safe place to grow up. :clap

[Rocky1]

sweet potato - raw
Some sqs like cooked, but I've only used raw with the wilds.

Yes, they peel apples (and pretty much anything :)), so I give them all stuff already peeled - just a precaution for the youngsters who are not yet good at peeling/knowing to peel. Just to be on the safe side.

You could also try sugar snap peas - these are always a favourite with many sqs. So, maybe, she'll like them, too.

Wilds...

Anyone know if sweet potatoes super healthy for squirrels? I've been wanting to get more creative with my treats for the eastern grey wilds over here, but they only seem to like junk food! Calcium: phosphorus ratio is, 0.8:1, which I think wouldn't contribute to MBD. Not sure what other nutrition problems/needs squirrels have?

I was tempted to buy a antler for the wilds that visit me, but I've hesitated due a concern about splintering. Does anyone know if antlers tend to splinter when squirrels eat them in the wild, and if so, if that is problematic? (In contrast, in captivity supervision can play a role. Not so much outside when the antler has run off with a squirrel and out of sight.)

Currently, I only feed the wilds around here walnuts and water and do so on occasion, not regularly given that drawing a crowd of squirrels might irritate my neighbors. Sometimes I take a jog and toss out some walnuts a couple blocks away in a park as a way of being kind without risking drawing a crowd at my home.

[Rocky1]

Calcium: phosphorus ratio is, 0.8:1,.

Don't trust this ratio I provided. I just noticed that every calcium to phosphorus ratio chart seems to say something different...

[island rehabber]

It's been pretty much established that the correct ratio for squirrels is:



2 Calcium: 1 phosphorous

[astra]

Wilds...

Anyone know if sweet potatoes super healthy for squirrels? I've been wanting to get more creative with my treats for the eastern grey wilds over here, but they only seem to like junk food! Calcium: phosphorus ratio is, 0.8:1, which I think wouldn't contribute to MBD. Not sure what other nutrition problems/needs squirrels have?

I was tempted to buy a antler for the wilds that visit me, but I've hesitated due a concern about splintering. Does anyone know if antlers tend to splinter when squirrels eat them in the wild, and if so, if that is problematic? (In contrast, in captivity supervision can play a role. Not so much outside when the antler has run off with a squirrel and out of sight.)

Currently, I only feed the wilds around here walnuts and water and do so on occasion, not regularly given that drawing a crowd of squirrels might irritate my neighbors. Sometimes I take a jog and toss out some walnuts a couple blocks away in a park as a way of being kind without risking drawing a crowd at my home.

It is nearly impossible to ensure that ALL foods one feeds to a squirrel will have the ideal cal: phos ratio. It's just not going to happen, because this ratio varies greatly even across the "good" greens and veggies (e.g., even "good" broccoli and cauliflower do not have the ideal ratio).
Some greens do, and others - don't.
So, the goal is to strive and feed as many of the greens and veggies with the "ideal" ratio along with as many who are the closest to that ideal (not perfectly, but very close).
That's one of the main reasons why in Healthy Squirrel Diet the "good" veggies are divided into groups (can be fed daily, occasionally etc).

What is even more important is not to feed the "offenders" that are CLEARLY "bad," that are clearly VERY Far from the ratio (such as corn and sunflower seeds, or pine nuts etc.)

By providing the "ideal" veggies + very close to the "ideal" and avoiding the clearly "bad" ones, all this on top of the quality rodent block = one will get a good, stable diet and a healthy squirrel.
Watching the cal: phos ratio and avoiding the obvious "offenders" is of paramount, absolute, crucial importance for the 'captive" squirrels (rehab and ESPECIALLY the NR (non-releasable ones).
For the NR this is the "toppest" priority.

But when feeding wilds, the cal: phos is not as urgent.
Wilds, especially, during late spring, summer and early autumn have plenty of natural "wild" foods that keep them healthy, I am sure, with the correct cal: phos ratio ;).
What you feed them is more of a supplemental type of thing.
Wilds will never eat our "human" greens with the ideal cal: phos ratio because they have much more superior wild greens for that. (I'll concede that there might be some wilds somewhere who will eat "human" greens with pleasure. I just have never witnessed that... yet...).

Of course, that does not mean that it's a green light to feed the "offenders," such as sunflower seeds and corn to the wilds.
Similarly to the birds who are fed white bread and then develop wing and other deformities, it is possible that squirrels may eat too much of these "offenders" to the point of not "having enough room" for the good wild foods.
The risk is especially real for the youngsters and for the times when food is scarce (winter and early spring).
Therefore, it is best if the cheap "offenders" (sunflower seeds, corn, even peanuts and others) are not given even to the wilds (especially, not in daily, regular, unlimited "buffet").

So, as long as you give your squirrels the good tree nuts, some fruit, and whatever else you can afford to give them - you and your wilds should be fine.
It is great when some people can get "wild bites" (available at www.henryspets.com) or equivalent and feed those, even if occasionally, or at least during winter - that's "awesome" :), but if not - even good tree nuts and whatever fruit/"wilds-approved-veggies" you could give should be fine.

A few words about peanuts:
occasional ROASTED UNSALTED peanuts are ok (just not as the staple of your outside "buffet").
The problem with peanuts is not just the bad cal: phos ratio.
Another problem is aflatoxins.
Since peanuts are legumes and are grown in the ground, they are prone to moulding, and this mould contains aflatoxins - deadly for squirrels (and for humans, too - but humans need much larger dose than sqs).
It's not visible, and even roasting often does not get rid of it.
Therefore, raw peanuts should not be fed ever.
Roasted are a little bit better, but still.

So, feed whatever you can out of the various "good" foods, avoid feeding the "offenders" and you should be fine.

others will chime in.:thumbsup

[astra]

a few words re: blocks for the wilds.

as mentioned before, www.henryspets.com sells "wild bites" intended for the wild squirrels specifically.

some people buy commercial block and doctor it to make it more palatable for the wilds (I think, CritterMom does that)

some people buy commercial block like Harlan Teklad (online) and make "booballs" out of them (ground block + ground tree nuts + (sometimes) formula)

some people buy vitamins and protein on www.henryspets.com and make their own home-made Henry's Health block (goes a long way)

another option: making no-bake home-made oatmeal "cookies"- use old-fashioned rolled oats + sesame seeds + natural nut butter (natural almond butter or hazelnut butter are best, for obvious reasons) <--- mix and shape into some kind of shape.
To this you can add calcium powder (available at www.henryspets.com) - but you will have to do some calculations, so that you do not overdose with calcium either. Just aim roughly at a serving g of calcium per "cookie" and what the serving is - indicated on the package.
Or you could use Henry's vitamins, instead.

But again - if all you could do is tree nuts and some fruit (and avocado on occasion ;)) - that should be fine, too.

Keep an eye on Christmas nut sales now.:) You can stock up very well.

PS regarding calcium.
It is not advisable to use calcium for reptiles (or even human calcium) not only because of the added vit. D, which is too much for sqs, but also because of the texture.
"reptilian" cal powder is not fine enough for sqs (and same sometimes goes for human cal powder), and the coarse texture can be very rough on a sq GIT.
The powder sold on henry's site is fine enough for sqs, and without any vit. D added either.

[rkem]

Here is mama squirrel not being impressed with the slow room service this morning. I'm noticing that now instead of running away or watching anxiously from outside my so called squirrel proof wiring :P rushes onto the balcony. She still stays near the tires but is clearly expecting some treats and creeps closer if I take too long to clean up and leave the new food.

260171

260170

In the end I don't want her to become tame ... not everybody is as nice as me, but I'm also happy that I don't seem to be causing her massive anxiety every time I show up.

[SammysMom]

Nobody here will ever say these little ones are dummies! She is as slick as can be! :grouphug:Love_Icon:grouphug

[CritterMom]

They are a lot smarter than you think. She understands that YOU are nice, and doesn't see you as a general representative of humankind. I would not worry about her becoming tame to anyone else not also helping her out!

[Rocky1]

...Wilds will never eat our "human" greens with the ideal cal: phos ratio because they have much more superior wild greens for that. (I'll concede that there might be some wilds somewhere who will eat "human" greens with pleasure. I just have never witnessed that... yet...).

Of course, that does not mean that it's a green light to feed the "offenders," such as sunflower seeds and corn to the wilds.
Similarly to the birds who are fed white bread and then develop wing and other deformities, it is possible that squirrels may eat too much of these "offenders" to the point of not "having enough room" for the good wild foods.
The risk is especially real for the youngsters and for the times when food is scarce (winter and early spring).
Therefore, it is best if the cheap "offenders" (sunflower seeds, corn, even peanuts and others) are not given even to the wilds (especially, not in daily, regular, unlimited "buffet").

So, as long as you give your squirrels the good tree nuts, some fruit, and whatever else you can afford to give them - you and your wilds should be fine...

I appreciate your thoughtful response. The part in the quote above is what I figured. My preference is to give the wilds natural non-homemade looking foods right off the trees and vines. I'm still considering giving them an antler as well... Anyone have trouble with antlers splintering? Hesitating because of the splintering concern.

(Right now, it's walnuts and water from me. If anyone foresees a problem with walnuts and water, let me know please. Additionally, I plan to print that nutrition chart from a capable computer next time I'm on one. I'm usually on a chrome book registered as guest so I cannot view that document.)

[CritterMom]

Antlers are fine - I keep sheds in my squirrels cage all the time. They don't take big bites; they shave them with their bottom teeth and only get powder.

If you can find them almonds and hazelnuts are probably the healthiest nuts (or the least unhealthy as the case may be).

[rkem]

They are a lot smarter than you think. She understands that YOU are nice, and doesn't see you as a general representative of humankind. I would not worry about her becoming tame to anyone else not also helping her out!

You were right! I ran into her (a small scar on her nose makes her easy to identify) in the parking lot and she skittered up a tree. I called out to her, she looked at me, came back down and waited there, barely two feet off the ground, clearly expecting treats. She will happily chill and eat while I'm on the balcony but if anybody else comes in, she runs off.

[Rocky1]

You were right! I ran into her (a small scar on her nose makes her easy to identify) in the parking lot and she skittered up a tree. I called out to her, she looked at me, came back down and waited there, barely two feet off the ground, clearly expecting treats. She will happily chill and eat while I'm on the balcony but if anybody else comes in, she runs off.

This is good to know. If most squirrels are like that, I will not feel guilty for "taming" squirrels near me. For now, I'm erring on the side of caution and not being too friendly.