Although squirrels can be menaces in the garden, sometimes they’re quite nice to see if they’re causing no harm. Feeding them is the easiest way to encourage them. They might like peanuts but can squirrels eat peanut butter too?
Yes, squirrels can eat peanut butter. It is not toxic or poisonous to squirrels. Peanut butter is rich in fats and necessary proteins, and squirrels love eating it.
Squirrels can not only eat peanut butter, but it is also very healthy for them when given in moderation. Peanut butter has lots of healthy fats and is rich in protein. Too much peanut can lead to weight increase, though.
Squirrels love eating peanut butter, so once you put it out in the yard, they’ll keep coming back for more and will stop going to other places in your yard like the bird feeder or trash cans, so it’s an effective way of lessening the chaos squirrels bring with them.
Squirrels aren’t picky when it comes to food, and there are hardly any food items they don’t like – you can give them anything. Peanut butter is also beneficial, so it’s a good choice to give to them.
Can Squirrels Eat Almond Butter?
Almond butter that is made solely from almonds is good for squirrels. However, it is a little pricier than peanut butter, so you’re better to stick with peanut over almond butter.
Can Squirrels Eat Crunchy Peanut Butter?
Yes, squirrels can eat crunchy peanut butter, but like most peanut butter types, it should be given to them in moderation to avoid any major weight gain.
Is Peanut Butter Poisonous to Squirrels?
No, peanut butter is not poisonous or toxic to squirrels. Peanut butter, if given in moderation to squirrels, is safe and can also make a pretty healthy snack for squirrels.
Consuming more than the normal amount can cause the squirrel to get a lot of sodium, fats, and calories.
Squirrels don’t care about how much their calorie intake is, but a chubby squirrel will have a hard time running away from predators or surviving in the wild in general.
Is Peanut Butter Bad for Squirrels?
Peanut butter has a low ratio of phosphorus and calcium, so giving it a lot to squirrels can have a possibility of them getting a metabolic bone disease, especially if the squirrel is young and you give peanut butter to it every day.
Peanut butter, if given a lot to squirrels consistently every day, can cause them to get very painful diseases.
Another disease of the bones besides metabolic bone disease is the disease that makes the bones porous. Bones become porous if there’s a lack of calcium.
Porous bones can be very dangerous for a squirrel’s health as they can get paralyzed or the bones break whenever they jump or land somewhere. It’s even more deadly for squirrels than for people because jumping and climbing is a common thing to do in a squirrel’s life.
If a young squirrel solely comes to you for food as it likes peanut butter a lot and your yard is easy to access for food, and you only give it peanut butter every day consistently, that can have dire consequences for the poor little squirrel.
As peanut butter lacks the important nutrients they require, it should only be given to squirrels now and then.
Another harmful thing with giving peanut butter is that upon giving squirrels a lot of peanut butter, they seem to stop eating other foods that are actually healthy for them, like fruits, vegetables, and seeds that have necessary nutrients to help them survive and thrive.
To keep the squirrels in your garden healthy and happy, give it up to half a spoon of peanut butter every week.
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How Do You Give Peanut Butter to Squirrels?
Raw peanuts can be dangerous to give to squirrels as raw peanuts have a fungal toxin that can have harmful effects on a squirrel’s liver. Peanut butter goes through enough processing that rids any fungal toxins in it.
There are certain things to keep in mind when giving peanut butter, as peanut butter may have certain things missing from it which are necessary for squirrels, so it isn’t the best or a very nutritious snack for squirrels.
Uunsalted Peanut Butter Is Better
Regular peanut butter brands usually have around fifty to seventy-five milligrams of salt. For a person, this may not be much salt even if they constantly eat a lot of peanut butter, but for squirrels, it’s enough to overwhelm their kidneys.
If too much salt is piled up in a squirrel’s kidneys, it can lead to dangerous outcomes such as kidney failure or death.
Luckily, natural peanut butter has no salt at all. Natural peanut butters only cost a little more than the regular brands and when you’re getting peanut butter, check if the peanut butter has “natural” written on it.
Feed in Moderation
As mentioned earlier, too much peanut butter can be very harmful to squirrels, even if they love eating it a lot.
It’s not very nutritious for them as it lacks calcium and phosphorus, which are necessary for squirrels. Even natural peanut butter, the only type of peanut butter that you should give them, lacks these necessary nutrients.
So, if you don’t want your squirrels to have porous bones or kidney failure, give them peanut butter every once a week and only half a spoon.
Summary
Squirrels are most famous for eating peanuts, so you would think they also love eating peanut butter as much as they would do eating peanuts, and they do!
But as much as giving them peanut butter prevents them from messing up your yard looking for food or scaring off the birds, peanut butter is unhealthy for them if consumed excessively.
Ryan is a keen gardener from the UK who’s spent years dealing with countless, common pests over the years so knows the ins and outs of how to deal with pests in the garden
