Loss of fur? Normal: yes;no

[NicknKara]

Hi There, Squirrel rescuers here. Heres a quick run down about Pluto.
He is a 5month old Eastern Grey Squirrel in Pa, He is very energetic and sweet. But recently we noticed where his femur ends on his rear legs, there are two symmetrical patches where his hair is very light. Almost like he is losing hair or the hair isn't growing much on both sides. Its been like this for a week 1/2 or 2 weeks and has not changed for better nor worse. So we decided to google random squirrel pictures and none had the same mark.. Now we've done some panic researching and from our understanding, loss of fur could be Mange, or Dermatophytosis. But there is no redness or irritation where the fur is not thick. He does not itch it often though.. rhetorically asking, Are we missing something here or is he just shedding baby fur, or Constant movement and rubbing in that particular area..idk.

Has anyone else experienced this? Thanks

Side notes:
He Spends 2-6 hours a day outside of his cage sitting/playing with us for hours.
He eats good too. Over the course of about a month he will run into most of the following foods.

Day2Day: Acorns, Hazelnuts, Almonds, Peanuts, all in shell.
HereNThere: Roman Lettuce, Zucchini, Squash N' Seeds, miniature Tomatoes, Apple, and watermelon on a good day.

[Mialouise]

Does Pluto's diet consist of anything else- like a rodent block? Or just the nuts & veggies you listed above?

[lukaslolamaus]

There is a good chance that Pluto's fur loss is diet related.
It is very important for a squirrel to have a good rodent block in their diet.
The best rodent block recommended is made by Henry's. They are made fresh and need to be stored in the freezer. Their website also has the healthy food pyramid for squirrels listed.
Nuts should only be an occasional treat.

Here is the link to Henry's
https://www.henryspets.com/henrys-healthy-diets/

[NicknKara]

Oh okay, Thank you for the link. we will definitely grab some because we never gave him that before. I'm curious what he has too much of or, lack of in his diet for this to happen? We've done extensive research and must of missed recommendations for Rodent Block.

[Mialouise]

The following is from the Healthy Diet chart for pet squirrels (link below):

"A diet of nuts, seeds and vegetables alone is deficient in calcium, protein, B vitamins, vitamin D and other nutrients. This can cause dull and patchy fur and may lead to lead to metabolic bone disease (MBD) which is fatal in squirrels"

https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?44440-Healthy-Diet-for-Pet-Squirrels

[RockyPops]

The following is from the Healthy Diet chart for pet squirrels (link below):

"A diet of nuts, seeds and vegetables alone is deficient in calcium, protein, B vitamins, vitamin D and other nutrients. This can cause dull and patchy fur and may lead to lead to metabolic bone disease (MBD) which is fatal in squirrels"

https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?44440-Healthy-Diet-for-Pet-Squirrels

Please take this very seriously...

And thank you for helping your baby!

[NicknKara]

So the Rodent block finally came and he chowed down until it was gone. We were thinking of giving him one in the morning and one at night since the bag says two a day, Fingers crossed.

It also says freeze immediately? I know it contains eggs so it should be kept cool, but why not the fridge.
Also when we got the bag, it seriously had a hole in it, so I taped it hoping that helps.

[lukaslolamaus]

All fresh ingredients and no added preservatives are the reason that the blocks need to be frozen.
If you want to you can take a few out of the bag and store them in the refrigerator. All my little ones like them frozen.
One block in the morning and one in the evening works well for me.

[Floppysquirrel04]

My flyer barbered because he had a poor diet for the first year and a half of his life. Even after I changed it, he still would pluck out his own fur, because by then it was such a habit. Sometimes it would start to grow back, but then he’d start chewing again :nono. Does he have a variety of toys in his cage? Does he get free time, and how much each day? Sometimes boredom will cause them to barber. Also, if you have and fleece in his cage, I suggest you wash it with unscented detergent once a month/month and a half and wash once a week with white vinegar. The normal detergent can irritate them. Best of luck!:grin3

[Andy]

Thank you for this site and for this posting. This is my first time here and I have just placed an order at Henry's Healthy Pet website. I have a male eastern grey who is coming up on six months who is also losing hair. I suspected it was diet related which is how I ended on on this website.