Advice for feeding backyard friends

[The Nut Lady]

Hello everyone. I feed about 4 -6 backyard friends (Eastern gray squirrels) everyday and I'm looking for advice on how to best support their nutrition without making them reliant on humans for food. I love seeing them but at the same time I don't want to selfishly over feed them at the cost of their heath and independence. This is what I've been feeding them:
-Henry's Wild Bites
-Raw walnut pieces
-Whole nuts in the shell (walnuts, pecans, almonds)
-fruit (blueberries, apple, banana, coconut, and avocado)

They eat all of the above, but in an effort to balance their diet better, especially in the calcium dept, I've tried veggies but with no success (spring mix, collard greens, carrot, broccoli, tomatoes, parsley).

They usually get fed twice a day (sometime only once), and as a guess, I would say each squirrels total daily consumption from me is:
-1 full Henry's Wild Bites (1/2 piece, twice a day)
-1 to 2 walnuts (in the form of shelled pieces that they eat right away)
-3 to 4 whole nuts (the variety listed above) that 95% of the time they run off and bury them
-1 to 2 blueberries
-1 Tbs of avocado
-1 sq. inch each of the following: apple, banana, and coconut

Questions:
1. Is this too many nuts, even for wild squirrels? I don't want to hurt them by causing calcium deficiency.
2. Is this too much food (portion-wise) to be provided by humans and will this result in dependence? As much as I enjoy feeding them, I will do it less if that's what is best for them.
3. Any suggestions on how to encourage vegetable consumption and decrease screen time? (just kidding on the 2nd part :grin2)

Thanks in advance for any input. I love these little guys and just want to do right by them.

[The Nut Lady]

Update: one of these squirrels looks to be a momma (visible, larger nipples). Any advice on what to feed them would be helpful. Thanks!

[Diggie's Friend]

We supported our female yard squirrel friend Ms. Diggie for many years by sprinkling calcium citrate powder on walnut pieces. She had lots of babies over her 9 year lifespan in the wild.

Pure Bulk Calcium citrate powder is lower in volume measure than, "NOW" brand Calcium citrate powder of equal calcium elemental milligram content.

This source is supported for purity and content via a 3 party analysis and produced in the USA. https://purebulk.com/products/calcium-citrate-usa

The choice of organic English Walnuts pieces we use to feed our wilds we get from Trader Joe's. Unlike some of the pieces from, "395" which were soft not fresh; the kernels from T-Joe's, have always found to be fresh and have a snap to them. Organic and fresh both matters! https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?66871-Diggie-s-Bites-collection-of-database-sources-on-food&p=1345541#post1345541

[The Nut Lady]

Thank you so much for your reply! I've been on the fence about buying calcium powder but I think I will pull the trigger on it now; thank you for the link to a good supplier. In regards to the walnuts pieces, I actually buy mine from Trader Joe's but not the organic ones. I should have known better and will switch to the organic ones. I am mindful of that (for myself and the squirrels) and only provide organic options when what I give is from the "dirty dozen" (12 most pesticide-containing fruits and veg). I do however give these friends whole nuts, since they can bury/store those (not to mention good for their teeth). I buy these from the local grocery store and they are not organic. I've yet to find an organic option. Thoughts on this? Also, since quantity is relative, can you provide me an idea of what is a healthy amount of nuts to provide a wild/backyard squirrel? I read that wilds are self-limiting, but from what I see with these fellas, they will spend all day running back and forth from the porch if I keep providing food (shelled or whole nuts). Seems like they could do it all day and will even bury nut pieces (which tells me to stop giving). As much as I love seeing them and giving them what they want, I get that they are like children when it comes to diet and I don't want to enable an unhealthy life.
Thanks again for your response. I love these little critters and I've enjoyed reading all these posts and soaking up all the info. I'm new to this forum and so glad I found it. What a wonderful bunch of folks!

[Diggie's Friend]

Good question!

In the east, where humidity is a major factor for molding nuts in the fall, it is surely a concern for feeding them unshelled. Yet in the wild, when nuts are in abundance, tree squirrels given the choice of eating goods nuts or bad ones, will choose the good one's. In, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factor" they got that that right!. Our girl, whom we gave too many nuts to way back when we didn't know the risk, we saw she opened then discarded moldy ones. She had her look and see in that; yet when nuts become scarce, giving unshelled nuts to wilds could be problematic, for then competition for food in late fall into early winter comes down to the survival. When there are still enough nuts to go around we see moldy nuts discarded. The concern then is for younger or weaker squirrels during the seasons of the year when nuts are scarce, that may choose to eat them to survive? A solution, though not perfect, might be to employ a strategy of putting out only shelled organic nuts in a nut bar set up for the wilds when nuts become scarce and competition intense over nuts. This may vary from location to location, and also in years when the nut mast (harvest) fails. Moreover, in early winter through early summer just prior to the first green acorns and pinecones becoming available would be when to only offer shelled nuts.

[The Nut Lady]

Hi all. Ok, so I just received my Calcium Citrate powder from Pure Bulk. Any advise on how much to put on these walnut pieces? My thought was just to put some of the walnut pieces in a baggie with some of the powder and shake it up,figuring some will stick. Just don't want to give too little or too much (I read that too much calcium can cause kidney stones). I also give these squirrel friends avocado and apple pieces, which I could sprinkle the calcium powder on. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

[Diggie's Friend]

Sound like a good plant to me!

Me used a little mist sprayer to dampen the walnut pieces that helps the powder to adhere better.

Using 3/8 Tsp. of Calcium citrate powder to approx. 3/8 cup of walnut pieces, and a slotted olive spoon to sprinkle the calcium onto the nut pieces.

The leftover powder we use later in the day to support a second feeding of the squirrels that visit our yard.

Our dear yard squirrel friend, Ms. Diggie, visited us nearly everyday, she was given extra helpings of of the prepared organic walnuts

with Calcium Citrate powder to support her and her two litters of babies she had twice a year.

Here are photos of Mama Diggie; and with her triplets in tow. She lived to reach 9 years having claimed our yard as her personal territory.

One days she just showed up up scratching at our backdoor and invited herself into our lives.

We miss her allot, but take pleasure in the many generations of her young.

Ms. Diggie was great grand progeny of a female that we raised and released in our yard.

[The Nut Lady]

Thank you so much! I will do that today. And those pics are great :)

[Diggie's Friend]

Unlike Calcium carbonate which readily bonds with oxalic acid into insoluble Calcium oxalate which the body cannot utilize in the bones and cells;

Calcium citrate that remains soluble, inhibits this bonding, which preserves calcium availability to the body and bones, and also improves kidney function.