Teeth issues

[Patagium]

Benni started chewing on his cage bars a couple weeks ago, he seems to does it when he wants out and I'm awake (I live in a studio so we share a room, and he cannot come out when I can't watch him cause he's gone into the oven before).

His top right incisors seems really small, about half the width of the other incisor, and is also very short from him chewing on the bars on that one side. His right incisor seems to be normal size but I'm worried he's just been tilting his head to use his left incisor (even for inshell nuts) because it looks even smaller since two days ago. I could bring him somewhere to trim his teeth but don't like putting him under, will the tooth eventually normalize if he stops chewing the bars?

How do I get him to stop chewing on the bars? I have his cage covered by a sheet except for the front, and he tends to pull the sheet inside when I try to cover the spot he goes to chew, so he picked another spot to go chew. Could I put something spicy on the bars to discourage him to put his mouth on it?

If I can get a picture I will but he is so squirmy it's hard to get the teeth

[stepnstone]

Benni started chewing on his cage bars a couple weeks ago, he seems to does it when he wants out and I'm awake (I live in a studio so we share a room, and he cannot come out when I can't watch him cause he's gone into the oven before).

His top right incisors seems really small, about half the width of the other incisor, and is also very short from him chewing on the bars on that one side. His right incisor seems to be normal size but I'm worried he's just been tilting his head to use his left incisor (even for inshell nuts) because it looks even smaller since two days ago. I could bring him somewhere to trim his teeth but don't like putting him under, will the tooth eventually normalize if he stops chewing the bars?

How do I get him to stop chewing on the bars? I have his cage covered by a sheet except for the front, and he tends to pull the sheet inside when I try to cover the spot he goes to chew, so he picked another spot to go chew. Could I put something spicy on the bars to discourage him to put his mouth on it?

If I can get a picture I will but he is so squirmy it's hard to get the teeth

This is a serious problem that could turn into life threatening complications.
He may very well need to have his teeth trimmed to be evened out so they can grow correctly.
I suspect if he's able to wrap his mouth around the bars to chew on them to this extent the bar
spacing is too wide for a squirrel. The recommended bar spacing should not be more then 1/2 inch
with 1/4 inch being ideal.

[Patagium]

Thanks stepnstone,

the cage has 1/2 inch spacing but he his a flyer and has a smaller head so he is still capable of chewing. I could opt for ordering a new cage but in the mean time could I put cayenne pepper or anything?

[stepnstone]

Thanks stepnstone,

the cage has 1/2 inch spacing but he his a flyer and has a smaller head so he is still capable of chewing. I could opt for ordering a new cage but in the mean time could I put cayenne pepper or anything?

I personally would not use or recommend cayenne pepper as I don't believe the smell alone would deter a squirrel from putting it's mouth on it. Some members suggest and have had good results from a product called Bitter Apple which can be found among pet supplies. I never had much luck with using it myself. What I did find as a deterrent that worked for me was a diluted white vinegar sprayed on the area mine was chewing, I say deterrent because I had to keep spraying the area once it dried until my little finally decided it wasn't worth chewing anymore.
I did look through our forums to see what others might suggest and the consensus is pretty much the same. Tighter bar spacing with cages made out of 1/4" hardware cloth. A larger cage to prevent boredom, (height is important) More out of cage time, plenty of items to chew on, branches, antler, etc. More toys and things to climb and entertain themselves with and on.

We do have a breed specific area for flyers ( http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/f...Squirrel-Forum ) you may want to try a new post in the General Flying Squirrel Discussion forum and see if other flyer folk can give you a better insight on what they have done to handle their flyers. I personally have only raised 1 flyer for a short period of time and can not attest to their behavior as "pets."

[Patagium]

Thank you so much! Your information was super helpful!