Flying squirrel hates his vegetables, need advice!

[MrBean]

So I've been raising Mr. Bean the flying squirrel since he was about 3 weeks old in September. He eats his HHB just fine but I don't think he is eating any veggies. I wake up in the morning and they look untouched every night. If i put fruit in there, its always gone but i try not to give him much fruit because I know he will eat it before the veggies. I limit his nuts as treats but I think he's just been working the cute angle with me and my boyfriend and getting extras to stash.

So i cleaned out all his stashes and started the tough love routine. We're on day 5 and he is still not touching his veggies at all. In addition, he isn't sleeping deeply during the day like usual. He is constantly active, constantly wants out of the cage and when he is out, he's looking for food.

I've been feeding raw (legumes, squash, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, green bean, sugar snap peas, radishes, carrots, mushrooms - a big random assortment) but just recently saw a post about blanching/boiling. Tried that and had SOME interest but no bites.

I think cooking is the best answer to getting him to munch on his veggies but im afraid he doesnt like how they are after boiling.

Anyone else deal with a super picky flying squirrel or have some advice for cooking the food in an alternative way that's healthy and safe?

[Mel1959]

My flyer is not super picky, but I definitely throw out a significant amount of veggies every day. :tap I probably give him too much, which is why. Have you looked at the suggested diet for flyers? There are a huge number of items they can have. Protein is very important and should be offered daily. Vary the source. If you look in the Breed Specific section on this forum and go to the sub heading for flyers you can review the list of suggested foods for flyers. My guy eats some yogurt every day and just recently hasnt been thrilled with formula. He’s a little more than a year old.

All you can do is try a variety of foods. It could be that he’s eating too many blocks and not hungry for other foods. I’d limit his blocks to 1 per day. Cut it in half and give half in the morning and the other half at night.

As flyers get older they become more nocturnal. Young flyers spend more time awake during the day then they do when they’re older.

[Diggie's Friend]

The flying squirrels have a far more carnivorous bent than do the larger N.A. tree squirrels; same with the N.A. Red squirrel. This is due to their higher metabolic rate requiring higher portions of protein and fats to support them. Try roasted or boiled chicken, that should make him happy; just watch your fingers so he doesn't think you want it too!

Here is another source he is sure to go for that replaces the wild insect larva; but just a couple daily.
Cutting them put works out nicely, as you can measure a Tsp. full that way.

https://vita-mealie.weebly.com/dried-superworm-listings.html

Organic egg Yolk and white together, is also an excellent source of protein and fat he will be sure to love! Poached (not fried) to where it is begins to where the yolk begins to solidify into more of a gel consistency prior to it turning yellow and opaque in color of hard boiled, nor still liquid yolk. The white has to be fully cooked though to feed it. Egg while is actually the gold standard for protein, very healthy, but always needs to be fed with cooked yolk.

You can feed dried pumpkin or squash seeds also, as they are a good source of zinc besides fat and protein; just not salted. Limiting these is needful as they are high in phosphorus, so no free feeding.