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About the squirrel mating season
The squirrel mating season for squirrels occurs around January and February each spring, and the estrous period lasts about two weeks. Female squirrels begin breeding at 8 to 9 weeks of age and males at 9 to 10 weeks of age.
During the squirrel mating season, squirrels are also in estrus in the fall. During the non-breeding season, adult male and female squirrels occupy certain areas. In the wild, female squirrels will protect a certain area of their territory from others of their species in order to protect squirrel eaters, as do male squirrels. However, during the squirrel mating season, female squirrels apparently relax their protection of their territory and allow male squirrels to enter.
When squirrels are in estrus, females lose their appetite, increase their activity, and become restless and excitable. When breeding in captivity, it is important to select individuals that are fit, have good coat color, good mental condition and a strong appetite. Males require a high libido and strong reproductive ability. Females require strong motherhood, many litters and adequate lactation.
Squirrels mate with one male and one female or one male and multiple females. The gestation period of squirrels is about 35 to 40 days, and they enter lactation at the beginning of April. They can give birth about three times a year, with four to six pups each time. As long as there is enough food, female squirrels can reproduce more than one litter and have a strong reproductive capacity.
The first litter uses the mother’s milk as the source of all its nutritional needs, so special attention should be paid to the mother’s nutritional status at this time. Squirrels are very small at birth, unable to see anything, and develop very slowly, opening their eyes nearly 30 days after birth. Only after a month and a half are squirrels willing to go outdoors.
When the squirrels’ eyes are about to open, they are taken away from their mothers to be close to people. Initially, give the squirrels hot milk (30-40°C) through a straw 3-5 times a day. Gradually switch to milk-soaked bread or other soft food. Even if you start feeding the squirrels when they are older, if you are patient and train them slowly, they will become very close to people and climb on their owners.
This is exactly what you are talking about! This is a female who has already found another one during the squirrel mating season! Oh. When do squirrels give birth?
When do squirrels give birth
The earliest a squirrel can give birth during the squirrel mating season is March, and the latest is August. There are exceptions, but they are very, very rare and basically give birth in the warm spring and summer months.
How to keep squirrels
Keeping squirrels can be fun, but breeding needs to be planned, and while it can be fun when you have a plan, it can be very frustrating if you don’t have a plan or plan well. Whether you plan to have your squirrels breed or not, here are some things you should keep in mind just in case:
Breeding and Mating
Generally, male squirrels become fertile at about one and a half months and females at about two months, and will mate shortly after they are housed together. However, not every mating will result in pregnancy, and not all squirrels will mate.
Pregnancy and Nursing
During lactation, the mother should be given appropriate protein supplements. However, there are cases of “false pregnancy”, where the mother is not pregnant but feels as if she has gained weight, which lasts for about 8 to 10 days.
There is also the phenomenon of “sperm storage”. Female rats will “store sperm” if they feel that their living environment is unsafe. This is why you may find that just as your litter of rats has grown, a second litter is born.
Breeding numbers
Squirrels can give birth to as few as 5 to 6 squirrels at a time, as many as 15 or more, and possibly one baby squirrel. The greater the number of births, the greater the burden on the nursing mother, so more attention must be paid to the mother’s nutritional supply.
Breeding precautions
We would like to remind our squirrel friends not to breed blindly out of curiosity because squirrels have an amazing ability to reproduce! It has been calculated that with 6 squirrels (3 males and 3 females), thousands of squirrels can be bred in a year! Squirrels have no sense of morality. If they are not separated at the end of the month, male and female squirrels will continue to mate and reproduce. Squirrels born to close relatives are often unhealthy. Think of your squirrel’s future before breeding! Family planning also applies to squirrel breeding!
When is the squirrel mating season
April to May is the peak season for mating, when the fertilization rate is higher. The gestation period for females is about 110 days. The young squirrels need to mature for 1 year and can mate in April/May of the next year.
Squirrel Breeding Period
Depending on the species of squirrel, the mating and breeding periods of different squirrels are different.
For example, goldenrod squirrels give birth once a year, and April to May is the peak season of estrus, when the fertilization rate is higher. The gestation period of female squirrels is about 110 days. Generally, young squirrels need to have 1 year of maturity and can mate in April/May of next year. If there are no other squirrels, the same bloodline will also mate, but the result of the same bloodline mating is very bad, the pups have a high chance of dying, so it is better not to have inbreeding. I hope your squirrel will grow up healthily!
To summarize, squirrels generally breed at eight months of age or more after sexual maturity, in December-January and March-May of each year. Snow squirrels have a clean face, are cute and well-behaved, and many people keep them as pets, so if you like snow squirrels, get one and experience the fun of owning one. Every day to share the knowledge of care, experience the fun of raising pets.