Teeth Advice

[Peanut147]

Can someone please advise on Chucky’s teeth. He is 10 months old. Top teeth look short and bottom are very pointy. Can trim with advice. Thanks in advance.

[Rock Monkey]

Pulling down the lower lip always make the lower teeth look long.

However, this is why an intentional bite does such damage, the wound from such a bite is very deep, usually resulting in some internal bleeding. (Fortunately, I have only had one such bite.)

In a healthy squirrel the lower teeth pass inside the uppers, making good contact with the back side of the uppers. The wear from chewing serves to keep them at a healthy length and sharpens them as well.

What sort of things does your squirrel get to chew on? (Side note, a squirrel's teeth grow approximately 6" per year.) So a healthy squirrels has to chew on things.

[Rock Monkey]

317151

[Tinkerbelle]

Hi there, nice photos!

I have a squirrel who lost one top incisor as a baby, and yes, the remaining one stays quite short. About the time she was weaned I determined I would have to start trimming her bottom teeth because she actually had the beginning of a small 'crater' forming in the roof of her mouth.

Since then I have trimmed the lower incisors regularly. However, she is now 8 months old, and I'm wondering if it's possible she has adapted the way she chews and may now be able to keep the length maintained by herself.

She is an aggressive chewer. Her favorite things to chew have been the floor, the wall and any door that is between her and where she wants to be. Aarrrggghh! Currently she is going to town on a couple of dead oak branches, since I have banished her to a cage habitat except for brief supervised romps around the house.

I am checking her teeth every few days to keep an eye on them, but unless I see evidence that they are touching the roof of her mouth again I will hold off on trimming them and see what happens. I wonder if that is an approach you can use, and/or whether others on the SB would think it's a bad idea to 'wait and see'.

Hope the feedback helps a bit!

[Peanut147]

Chucky has deer antlers, cherry tree branches, lava block, cuttle bone, and a couple of rocks. He never touches cuttle bone, rocks, lava block, but occasionally the antlers. He has his daily mix of veggies, Henry’s blocks, and a walnut/pecan/or hazelnut daily. Just wortied he’s developing an issue. I will try to get better photos to post.

[Mel1959]

Try getting a bone marrow bone from the supermarket or a butcher. I get them for my dog. They’re about 3-4inches long and filled with marrow....I’m sure it’s a leg bone. Anyway, I give them to my dog and let him get the marrow out. Once he’s done and they lay in the sun for awhile and dry out I put them through my trees by putting a thin branch through the hollow middle. I have seen many of my wild squirrels chewing on them. The edges make it easy for them to get their teeth around and chew on.

[Rock Monkey]

He has his daily mix of veggies, Henry’s blocks, and a walnut/pecan/or hazelnut daily.

Do you give the nuts in the shell or already shelled? If the daily treat of a nut or two is given in the shell this will keep the teeth filed down naturally. For an extra challenge, if needed, you can give black walnuts or hickory nuts. The shells of these nuts are very thick.