Home >> Science & Nature >> Animals & Science

How to Feed Red Squirrels

Habitat destruction and changes in farming practices threaten the red squirrel across much of their range, including the United Kingdom. While undisturbed habitat is the main thing these appealing animals need, extra food never goes amiss. Enticing red squirrels into your garden also provides opportunities to watch and photograph them.

Things You'll Need

Nuts
Bird feeders
Fresh fruit and sweet vegetables
Knife
String
Cuttlefish bone
Hammer
Nails
Rodent-safe disinfectant

Instructions

- 1
  Provide a mixture of nuts, except Brazil nuts, on a bird table that is accessible to squirrels. Alternatively, fill bird feeders with sunflower seeds and shelled nuts and hang from the branches of trees. Ensure that the feeding station is inaccessible to cats, or at least a few yards from any dense vegetation or other hiding places that could contain a lurking cat or other predator.
- 2
  Slice fresh fruit, such as apples, and sweet vegetables, such as carrots. Place on the bird table or thread onto string and tie from tree branches. Squirrels do not just eat nuts; they appreciate a variety of foods.
- 3
  Nail a cuttlefish bone, available from pet suppliers, to a tree. Red squirrels need a source of calcium.
- 4
  Encourage natural foraging, and prevent the squirrels becoming too dependent on you, by feeding every three to four days rather than every day.

Animals & Science