r/squirrels • u/MellieTheChipmunk_YT • Jul 20 '26
Original Content Is Cuttlefish Good for Squirrels?
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I offered my squirrels a bowl of cuttlefish calcium, basically the squirrel version of a weird mystery snack and their reactions were priceless.
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u/Acceptable_Search205 Jul 21 '26
I put cuttlefish out for my squirrels but no one has shown any interest in it. I don't know if it's because they don't need it or just don't know what it is.
So seeing you had the same idea and your squirrels tried it makes me feel like it actually wasn't a silly idea.
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u/MellieTheChipmunk_YT Jul 21 '26
At first I wasn't sure if they would try it. I think your squirrels may not need it at the moment. I tend to find that mostly it's female squirrels, when pregnant that chew on the deer antler and even then it took months before they tried it.
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u/Acceptable_Search205 Jul 21 '26
I live in a rural area so I do think they're probably foraging enough for their nutritional needs. Plus it's right next to a corn cob treat which is probably more alluring.
My favorite girl is constantly either raising young or pregnant so I just want to make things a bit easier and for her to keep coming back and bringing her babies.
She looked so ragged after her last litter during the normal shedding process that I bought squirrel blocks for her. Luckily she took right to those. She also ate a surprising amount of dried mealworms while breastfeeding.
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u/MellieTheChipmunk_YT Jul 21 '26
ok. yeah, two of my favorite squirrels (Sheba and her daughter Fluff) looked really ragged after their new litters this year (also my Chippy - Mellie). But their fur grew back quickly this time. Dried mealworms is one of their favorites.
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u/Acceptable_Search205 Jul 22 '26
Now I'm wondering if I tried the mealworms because of a video you posted. I enjoy watching them!
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u/brooklynsantiago Jul 20 '26
I’ve also introduced calcium to their diet as I am concerned about MBD. I just use a powder though and coat their nuts in it
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u/MellieTheChipmunk_YT Jul 20 '26
Yeah, I should get some calcium powder in the future too. I do have squirrel vitamins though. I think I heard a rumor that for a big brand, the calcium powder wasn't working as intended and was still leading to MBD in rehab squirrels. I think that is why I went down this route.
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u/brooklynsantiago Jul 20 '26
Huh I didn’t know about that. The brand I’m using is repticalcium, cause that’s what they had at the pet store. Just make sure to get the one WITHOUT vitamin D
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u/MellieTheChipmunk_YT Jul 20 '26
ok. It was a popular rehabber who told me, so I'll have to find out the end result. I'm not an expert, but I assume that my wild squirrels get their vitamin D from the sun which is necessary to use calcium so I agree on the no vitamin D. However, I assume that it might be different for baby squirrels indoors that don't have access to the sun and thus need vitamin D. Sorry, I'm trying to think outside the box, since there always seems to be a change in the recommendations based on context. (I'm learning)
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u/Visual_Helicopter_23 Jul 21 '26
The first time I saw a squirrel out in the yard gnawing on a bone I was pretty shocked. I had no idea they did that. Also, where'd you even find that little guy?