Muggsy, 2 year old Eastern Grey, shedding? Do they do this?

[muggsy'sgm]

Hey y'all! Muggsy is nearly 2 years old, a rescue Eastern grey. He's on HHB, pea sprouts, green beans, avocado, apple, berry, watermelon, chayote, almonds, fresh water, and a few supplements (chia seed oil, cranberry concentrate, cannabis flour).

The last week, he has been shedding. A LOT!!!
There are no bald spots, he isn't scratching, and he is eating/pottying well. Not as playful as he was when he was a bit younger...but much more snuggly.
We are still rebuilding after Hurricane Michael, and it's been a stressful week -- we had new windows installed. Muggsy had to be in his cage while the workers were using a "sawsall" and a welding torch to replace the windows in his room.

So...do these fur babies normally shed? Like dogs/cats...couple times a year? Do they lose hair when it gets hotter? Or when they're stressed?

I didn't notice last year.

Just making sure I don't need to freak out. Thanks!!!

[lennysmom]

Both of my NR squirrels shed a couple of times a year. My Angel in particular sheds so much that it looks like a dog has been rubbing all over me after we get done playing when he is going through that.

Yes this is perfectly normal as long as he does not start balding. Squirrels in the wild shed their winter coats when warmer weather starts and even though a squirrel is not living outside, their bodies still go through many of the same cycles as the wild squirrels do. Stress may also play a part in his shedding since all of that has been going on around him coinciding with the sudden shedding. As long as he’s eating well and remains active, I wouldn’t worry too much at this point.

[island rehabber]

Squirrels definitely shed. I would find lots of Owena's fur in little piles stuck to her fleece, or a corner of the cage, when hot weather started and sometimes again in the fall.

[muggsy'sgm]

Thank goodness! He is ridiculous with the shedding right now. I think I'll take a toothbrush to his fur later.

Thank you for the words, y'all.

[Diggie's Friend]

When it came to this time of year, when both the coat and the tail also is in molt, our girl's tail hair would come off in gobs in my hand when I stroked her tail. The funny part was that when I did this she would paw and snoot into my palm to check out her hair nearly every time, like, "What have you got there, that's mine!". I continued to gently stroke her tail during the molting season, as it made her tail less itchy so she didn't over groom her tail. I kept some of her tail hair as a keepsake.

[Diggie's Friend]

Save perhaps for using a really soft brittled toothbrush, it would likely irritate his skin. I tried an eyelash comb on our girl's tail hair once, big mistake! She grabbed it out of my hand and chewed off the comb teeth then dropped it; it wouldn't never do that again! I still have that comb. What a smartie she was; she even held the spoon with her daily applesauce in her paws, having one paw over the bone of the spoon and the other under the bowl of the spoon.