Squirrel Aging

Many people have problems with these critters when they are managing their songbirds, so this can come in handy when planning a squirrel program. The age of the squirrel raiding your feeders can tell you if they are breeding nearby or other population traits that might help.

Cooks and hunters use these guidelines:


Assuming your squirrel is not collected on the subway and has no cards in its possession, here are the standard tests for age. None of them are foolproof, so do them all and get a general impression.

1. Ear pliability. A younger animal will have soft, pliable ears even after rigor mortis sets in. An older animal will have dry, stiff ears.

2. Fur condition and tightness to skin. An older animal will have drier fur with more hollowness to the individual hair shafts, and the pelt will be tighter to the muscle. The skin may also be thicker, and show less of a fatty deposit on the underside.

3. Teeth size, coloration and wear. Older animals have worn, smoother and yellower teeth. Whiter, smaller, sharper teeth are the sign of a younger animal.

4. General muscle tone, flexibility, tenderness. A younger animal will retain more pliability even when dead, and a finger poked deeply into a haunch will cause the meat to dent in and then rebound more quickly.

5. Ossification, thickening or fusing in the bone joints, thick, toughened pads on the bottoms of the paws and the leg joints or a protuberant spine and shoulders can signify an older animal in poorer condition.

Speaking of squirrels, I went out to check my repeater trap (1male & 1 female sparrow) just in time to see a squirrel sitting next to it, eating some of the bird seed, and trying to get in!! Needless to say, when he heard me coming he was gone in a flash.

Well you know what you have to do!

well i don't know how old mine squirrel is but he is destructive to my feeders! chewed up my plastic one ! and on top of it he build a nest next to my feeders on the tree!!!!!!

I bought some corn for him on the cob- he is not interested!!!!

That's too bad grose, sounds like they have made themselves at home. My squirrels aren't interested in corn either, I assume that's due to all the free seed!

Hello all! I have four bird feeders with an assortment of different feed. The squirrel population here is huge! Normally I lose feeders to them each year. This year I greased the poles with axle grease from the automotive department at Walmart. Worked like a charm! The first little guy jumped up onto the pole and immediately slid back down. IT WAS AWESOME!! My son and I watched with delight! Ever since that day, I have not even had to re-grease the poles! I have about 6 wonderfully behaved squirrels now that help to clean up the ground! Love it!!