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We would like to provide you with our PDF File of foods you should be feeding to your squirrels. Squirrels are predominantly herbivores, and should be provided a variety of fruits, nuts and vegetables to provide optimum nutrition and health. Unfortunately, many people still believe the myth that Peanuts and Field Corn are the best foods to be feeding squirrels. Field corn is mainly starch that is converted by the liver into glucose, (sugar.) Peanuts are not a nut at all, but rather a legume. The composition is fat, ( peanut oil,) and protein. A steady diet of corn and peanuts will make a squirrel fat, but a fat squirrel is by no means a healthy squirrel. To obtain a Free copy of our Food List For Squirrels, click the link at the end of this paragraph. Simply provide your name and e-mail address and we'll send it to you by return e-mail. Don't worry, we will not SPAM or sell your e-mail address! We hate SPAM as much as you do! Click HERE and select"Food List For Squirrels" from the drop-down menu.
What Do Squirrels Eat When They Are Babies?
From birth to around 8 to 9 weeks of age, a Squirrel should be fed formula. There's a lot of controversy on the Internet about what should be used as a formula for Squirrels. Everywhere you go, you'll find Rehabbers insisting that anything less than a popular Puppy formula, will kill Squirrels. At best, this is a myth and a half-truth that is perpetuated by the manufacturers of Puppy formula that insist that feeding a Squirrel Cow's milk will kill the squirrel. It's a half truth in that feeding a squirrel milk right out of a jug will give a baby squirrel diarrhea. This is because their immature digestive system cannot tolerate the enzymes in the milk. Diarrhea that is left unchecked will lead to dehydration. Dehydration will lead to electrolyte imbalance. Electrolyte imbalance will lead to heart arrhythmia and ultimate death from sudden cardiac death. What the formula manufacturers don't want you to know is that you can inactivate the enzymes in milk by the same process they use to make their formula. You see, all puppy formula starts with Cow's Milk,( yeah, the same stuff they tell you will kill squirrels!) Commercial Formula goes through a number of heating processes, both to inactivate the enzymes and to dehydrate the product into powder form. Heating Cow's milk to the point of boiling destroys the enzymes and sterilizes the milk, while preserving all the fat and protein necessary for bone, tissue and organ growth.
MILK FAT AND PROTEIN ARE KEY!
Ask any Pediatrician what the most important component is in any formula, and without fail they will tell you it is the fat and protein that is utilized to form bone and tissue growth. There was a study done by the Ohio State University back in the 1960's where Squirrel Breast Milk was actually obtained from lactating females and analyzed. The results were unbelievable! They found that the fat content of Squirrel Breast Milk ranged from 12 to 24% milk fat! That puts Squirrel milk up there with whale milk as far as being one of the richest in fat content. Now, compare that with what Puppy Formula manufacturer's list as the first ingredient in their formula, "skim milk!"
It's now been proven that the newest form of puppy formula can actually cause great physical harm and even death for your squirrel. Read this independent study and decide for yourself! Be sure to scroll down on the opening page and see the results of feeding this comercial formula!
Here at Squirrel Haven we've used a homemade formula for years to raise all of our squirrels, and have never lost a single squirrel to a formula related death. We offer our recipe Free of Charge. To obtain the recipe for our Squirrel Formula, simply visit our SquirrelNutrition.com by clicking HERE.
MILK FAT AND PROTEIN ARE KEY!
Ask any Pediatrician what the most important component is in any formula, and without fail they will tell you it is the fat and protein that is utilized to form bone and tissue growth. There was a study done by the Ohio State University back in the 1960's where Squirrel Breast Milk was actually obtained from lactating females and analyzed. The results were unbelievable! They found that the fat content of Squirrel Breast Milk ranged from 12 to 24% milk fat! That puts Squirrel milk up there with whale milk as far as being one of the richest in fat content. Now, compare that with what Puppy Formula manufacturer's list as the first ingredient in their formula, "skim milk!"
It's now been proven that the newest form of puppy formula can actually cause great physical harm and even death for your squirrel. Read this independent study and decide for yourself! Be sure to scroll down on the opening page and see the results of feeding this comercial formula!
Here at Squirrel Haven we've used a homemade formula for years to raise all of our squirrels, and have never lost a single squirrel to a formula related death. We offer our recipe Free of Charge. To obtain the recipe for our Squirrel Formula, simply visit our SquirrelNutrition.com by clicking HERE.
What Do Squirrels Eat After They Wean Off Formula?
Depending on their nutrition status, a baby squirrel will start to wean from 8 to 10 weeks. We've had starving squirrels continue to nurse for as long as 22 weeks. We allow our squirrels to take formula for as long as they want it. We do not stop until they absolutely refuse the formula. At 8 weeks, we start to offer soft chew foods and Maple and Oak twigs for them to start teething on. One of the first foods we introduce, is sweet potato. We use sweet potato because of it's bright orange color. When a baby squirrel first starts to chew on solid food, they treat it like a teething object and will spit it out as fast as they shred it with their teeth. The bright orange color of the sweet potato makes it easy to see on the bottom of their cage. When I stop seeing shredded sweet potato, I know that the squirrel has learned how to swallow solid food and is ready to move on to other foods.
Should Squirrels Be Supplemented With Vitamins?
That's an excellent question! Squirrels need a good source of Calcium to stay healthy. I don't know how many times I've received a panic e-mail from someone telling me their squirrel was doing fine one day and they woke up to find them crippled and not using their rear legs.
Squirrels will develop a condition called Metabolic Bone Disease or Rickets when they are 6 months old if they have not been given a adequate amount of Calcium. The condition causes them to lose the use of their rear legs and will quickly lead to seizures and death if untreated. It also causes their bones to become very brittle and prone to fracture.
Squirrels are totally dependent on their keepers, while in capivity, for their source of Calcium. We use and recommend Squirrel Nut Squares to provide all the vitamins and Calcium a squirrel needs while in captivity. We also recommend Nut Squares for pregnant and lactating females.
For released or wild Squirrels, we recommend Squirrel Biscuits. Squirrel Biscuits are designed to provide a lesser amount of vitamins and calcium plus add the important Vegetables that squirrels don't often get or eat in the wild. We especially feed Squirrel Biscuits during the winter when natural sources of Calcium are harder to come by.
As with all our recipes, we offer our Nut Square and our Squirrel Biscuit Recipes absolutely FREE!
You can obtain your FREE copies of our Recipes by clicking HERE and requesting what you would like from our "pull-down" menu. We will send you a link by return e-mail where you can download a PDF File containing the Recipe(s).
Squirrels will develop a condition called Metabolic Bone Disease or Rickets when they are 6 months old if they have not been given a adequate amount of Calcium. The condition causes them to lose the use of their rear legs and will quickly lead to seizures and death if untreated. It also causes their bones to become very brittle and prone to fracture.
Squirrels are totally dependent on their keepers, while in capivity, for their source of Calcium. We use and recommend Squirrel Nut Squares to provide all the vitamins and Calcium a squirrel needs while in captivity. We also recommend Nut Squares for pregnant and lactating females.
For released or wild Squirrels, we recommend Squirrel Biscuits. Squirrel Biscuits are designed to provide a lesser amount of vitamins and calcium plus add the important Vegetables that squirrels don't often get or eat in the wild. We especially feed Squirrel Biscuits during the winter when natural sources of Calcium are harder to come by.
As with all our recipes, we offer our Nut Square and our Squirrel Biscuit Recipes absolutely FREE!
You can obtain your FREE copies of our Recipes by clicking HERE and requesting what you would like from our "pull-down" menu. We will send you a link by return e-mail where you can download a PDF File containing the Recipe(s).
For Your Convenience, You Can Also Order One Of Our Handy Kits!
For Nut Square Kits, Use This Link:
For Squirrel Biscuit Kits Use This Link:
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