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Special Considerations Regarding Corn For Squirrels Given that squirrels are highly likely to get killed by predators, or starve to death during the winter, I am not concerned that they might eat too many corn kernels and get a little chubby.
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The corn can also serve as a supplemental food source that allows squirrels to stash more of their natural food sources for winter consumption. The fat stores serve both as an energy source and a layer of internal insulation.įeeding squirrels corn can help them bulk up and add the needed fat layer. Squirrels will also gorge on available food in autumn in an effort to create internal fat stores. Squirrels spend most of the autumn gathering and stashing nuts, fungi and other food sources in various caches so they will have a winter food source. One of the key factors that determines whether a squirrel survives a winter is the availability of food. I have covered the topic of squirrel predators elsewhere and want to focus on the impact of food availability upon squirrel mortality. Most squirrels never live past their first year due to two main factors: The reality is that squirrels lead a hard life. Squirrels eat until they are not hungry and are highly active throughout the day. That is, if squirrels spent their day binge eating the germ from corn kernels and streaming Netflix then they would end up fat as pigs. While I can appreciate the logic of the argument it is not particularly compelling as the argument projects human behavior onto squirrels. On one hand the argument is that if a squirrel’s diet is composed primarily of nutrient dense foods then it will end up overweight and unhealthy.
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Why Some People Say Corn is Bad for Squirrels The issue is whether or not it is healthy for a squirrel to eat such a nutrient dense food. The germ is composed primarily of oils and a variety of proteins ( source). When a squirrel eats a kernel of corn it will eat the nutrient dense germ and throw away the starch laden bran ( source).
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Whether or not corn is good or bad for squirrels is a question that sets off an interesting debate. These stores are selling corn as feed to cattle, pig and horse farmers who need inexpensive food for their livestock.ĭried corn gets considerably more expensive if you buy it from a Big Box store that has it packaged as pet food. You can also feed the squirrels corn on the cob with one of our Picnic Table Squirrel Feeders or feed them loose corn with a box feeder.ĭried corn is incredibly inexpensive IF you can purchase it from a farm supply store. If you are feeding the squirrels in your backyard then dried corn is the most affordable food choice. The one type of corn that I have never been able to get my squirrels to eat is old fashioned “Indian Corn”. Squirrels are not picky eaters and will eat just about any type of corn that you put in front of them. Squirrels will typically eat the germ portion of the kernel and discard the bran.” Squirrels love to eat corn, either fresh or dried. One common question I see about feeding squirrels concerns their choice of food, specifically people want to know, “Do Squirrels Eat Corn?” Do Squirrels Eat Corn? If you are just starting to feed squirrels then here is a strong chance you are trying to figure out inexpensive foods that they will love. We have a lot of fun feeding squirrels at our house.