Baby squirrels, often called kits or kittens, are tiny creatures when they are born. They look very different from the grown-up squirrels you might see jumping in trees. They are small, helpless, and need their mommy squirrel to take care of everything for them as they start to grow.
How Big Are They When Born?
When a baby squirrel first comes into the world, it is super small! Think about the size of your thumb or maybe a little bit bigger, like a large grape. They usually measure only about two to three inches long from their nose to the start of their tail.
Because they are so tiny, they are also very light. They weigh much less than a slice of bread, usually only about half an ounce. This small size makes them very fragile, meaning they can get hurt easily. They need to be kept warm and safe in their nest.
Their small size helps the mommy squirrel too. She can carry them gently in her mouth if she needs to move them to a safer place. They fit perfectly curled up in her paws when she feeds them. Being small is part of how they stay protected when they are brand new.
What About Their Fur?
Newborn squirrels don’t look fuzzy like the older ones. When they are first born, they have no fur at all! Their skin is pink, and you can almost see through it in some places. It looks very soft and delicate.
After a few days, maybe around day five or seven, they start to get a little bit of fuzz. It’s not thick fur yet, just very short, soft hairs starting to peek through their pink skin. This first bit of fuzz might be grey or light brown, depending on the type of squirrel.
As the weeks go by, this fuzz gets longer and thicker. By the time they are about five or six weeks old, they start to look much more like a small version of a grown-up squirrel, with a proper coat of fur to keep them warm and help them blend in with the trees.
Are Their Eyes Open?
No, when baby squirrels are born, their eyes are tightly shut. They cannot see anything at all. It’s like they are asleep with their eyes closed all the time. They rely on their sense of touch and smell to understand what’s happening around them.
Their eyes stay closed for quite a while. It usually takes about four to five weeks before their eyelids start to open up. Imagine waiting a whole month before you could see! Once they open, the world must look very new and exciting to them.
Seeing helps them learn about their surroundings, find food, and watch out for danger. Before their eyes open, they depend completely on their mother to guide them and keep them safe from anything that might harm them in the nest.
What Do Their Ears Look Like?
Just like their eyes, a baby squirrel’s ears are not fully ready when they are born. Their ears are small nubs, folded down against their head, and the ear canals are closed. This means they can’t hear anything when they are first born.
It takes time for their ears to develop. Around the same time their eyes start to open, usually between three and five weeks old, their ears will begin to unfold and open up. They start to hear the sounds around them, like their mother’s calls or noises outside the nest.
Being able to hear is very important for a squirrel. It helps them listen for danger, like a cat or a hawk nearby. It also helps them communicate with their mother and siblings, making little squeaking sounds to let others know where they are or if they are hungry.
Do They Have a Bushy Tail?
Grown-up squirrels are famous for their big, bushy tails, but baby squirrels don’t start out that way. When they are born, their tail is very thin and almost hairless, just like the rest of their body. It looks more like a little pink worm attached to them.
As their fur starts to grow all over their body, hair starts to grow on their tail too. It takes many weeks for the tail to get that classic bushy look. Slowly, week by week, the hair gets longer and thicker.
By the time they are ready to leave the nest, around 10 to 12 weeks old, their tail will be much fuller, but maybe still not as magnificent as their parents’. The tail helps them balance when climbing and jumping, and they also use it like a blanket in the cold.
What About Teeth?
Baby squirrels are born without any teeth showing. Their gums are smooth and pink. This makes sense because, for the first few weeks of their life, they only drink their mother’s milk. They don’t need teeth to chew anything yet.
Their first teeth start to come in when they are about three to four weeks old. These are usually the front teeth, called incisors. Squirrels need strong front teeth for gnawing on nuts and seeds later on. These teeth keep growing throughout their whole life!
More teeth, like the cheek teeth used for grinding food, appear a bit later, around six weeks old. Having teeth allows them to start trying solid foods that their mother brings back to the nest, helping them grow strong and learn how to find food for themselves.
Do They Have Claws?
Yes, even tiny newborn squirrels have claws! They are very small and sharp right from the start. You might not see them easily because their feet are so tiny, but the claws are there.
These claws are super important for a squirrel’s life. Even as babies, the claws help them grip onto their mother or the nesting material. As they get older and start to explore, the claws are essential for climbing trees.
The claws help them hang onto bark, run up and down tree trunks, and scamper along branches without falling. Without their sharp claws, squirrels wouldn’t be able to move around their treetop homes nearly as well. They keep their claws sharp naturally through all their climbing and digging.
How Do They Move?
Newborn squirrels can’t move much at all. They can wiggle a little bit, maybe squirm around in the nest, but they cannot walk or crawl properly. Their legs are weak, and they don’t have good control over their bodies yet.
They mostly just huddle together with their brothers and sisters to stay warm. Their mother does all the moving for them if needed. She might pick them up gently in her mouth to rearrange them in the nest or move them if danger is near.
As they get bigger and stronger, around three or four weeks old, they start to get more active. They begin crawling around the nest. By five or six weeks, when their eyes and ears are open, they become much more mobile, exploring their nest area and starting to practice the movements they’ll need for climbing later.
Skin Color Changes
As mentioned, a newborn squirrel’s skin is typically pink and seems quite thin. You might even see little blood vessels underneath. This pink color is because there’s no fur covering it yet, and their skin is delicate.
As the first layer of fuzz starts to grow in after about a week, the skin underneath begins to darken slightly. It might look grayish or brownish depending on the eventual fur color of the squirrel species (like grey squirrels or fox squirrels).
Once their full coat of fur grows in over the next several weeks, you won’t see their skin color much anymore, except maybe on their nose, paws, or ears. The fur provides warmth, camouflage, and protection for the skin underneath as they grow into young squirrels.
Dependence on Mother
Because they are born so undeveloped – blind, deaf, furless, and unable to move much – baby squirrels are completely dependent on their mother for survival. She provides everything they need during these early, vulnerable weeks.
The mother squirrel builds a safe, warm nest, often high in a tree cavity or in a leafy structure called a drey. She keeps her babies warm with her own body heat and feeds them her milk, which is rich in nutrients to help them grow quickly.
She also keeps the nest clean and protects her young from predators or bad weather. If she senses danger, she might move her entire litter, one by one, to a backup nest location. This total reliance highlights how helpless young squirrels are initially.
Growing Stronger Legs
While their legs are weak at birth, they develop relatively quickly compared to some other features. The need to eventually climb and run is crucial for a squirrel’s survival, so leg development is important.
In the first few weeks, the legs get stronger, allowing the babies to start squirming and pushing against each other in the nest. By the time they are crawling around four weeks old, their legs are functional, though still a bit wobbly.
This strengthening continues rapidly. By six to eight weeks, they are practicing climbing inside or near the nest entrance. Their coordination improves, preparing them for the complex acrobatics they’ll perform as adults jumping from branch to branch.
Whisker Development
Whiskers are important sensory tools for many animals, including squirrels. Baby squirrels are born with very short, underdeveloped whiskers, or sometimes they are barely visible at all.
Like their fur, their whiskers grow over the first few weeks. These long, stiff hairs around their nose, chin, and eyes help them feel their way around, especially in the dark or in tight spaces like a tree hole nest.
Whiskers help them judge the size of openings and sense objects near their face. This is vital for navigating their environment safely, especially before their eyesight is fully developed or when moving around at night or inside dark tree cavities.
Size Compared to Siblings
Baby squirrels are usually born in litters, meaning there are typically two to five babies born at the same time. Within a litter, the babies are generally very similar in size at birth.
However, small differences can exist, and sometimes one baby might be slightly smaller or weaker than its siblings. The mother squirrel usually cares for all her babies equally, but the stronger ones might sometimes get more milk.
As they grow, most siblings will develop at a similar pace, reaching milestones like opening their eyes or growing fur around the same time. They huddle together for warmth and will start playing together as they become more mobile in the nest.
Changes Week by Week
The first few weeks of a baby squirrel’s life involve rapid changes. Week one is mostly about staying warm and drinking milk, with maybe the first signs of fuzz appearing. By week two or three, fur is more noticeable, and they might start squirming more actively. Teeth begin emerging.
Weeks four and five are major milestones, as eyes and ears usually open, transforming how they perceive the world. They start crawling and exploring the nest. By week six, they look like miniature squirrels, have more teeth, and are much more active.
From week six to about week twelve, they focus on developing coordination, practicing climbing and jumping near the nest, and starting to eat solid foods. They become increasingly independent, preparing to leave the nest and survive on their own.
Conclusion
Young squirrels start life incredibly small, pink, and helpless. Born without fur, sight, or hearing, they rely entirely on their mother. Over several weeks, they go through amazing changes: fur grows in, eyes and ears open, teeth emerge, and they develop sharp claws. They learn to move, climb, and explore, transforming from fragile newborns into miniature versions of the agile creatures we see in parks and woods. Understanding these early stages helps us appreciate the journey these tiny animals take to become independent.
FAQs
1. Where do mother squirrels build their nests for babies?
Mother squirrels usually build nests in safe, hidden places. This could be high up in a hole in a tree (a cavity) or in a leafy nest they build themselves, called a drey, often located in the fork of branches. Sometimes they might even use attics or chimneys if they can get in.
2. How long do baby squirrels drink their mother’s milk?
Baby squirrels drink only their mother’s milk for the first six to seven weeks of their lives. After that, they start to try solid foods like buds, seeds, or nuts that their mother brings back or that they find near the nest, but they might continue to nurse occasionally until they are about ten to twelve weeks old.
3. When do young squirrels leave the nest for good?
Young squirrels typically start exploring outside the nest around eight weeks old, but they usually leave the nest for good and become independent when they are about ten to twelve weeks old. By this time, they have learned how to find food and avoid danger from their mother.
4. What sounds do baby squirrels make?
Baby squirrels make quiet squeaking or clicking sounds, especially when they are very young and hungry or cold. These sounds help the mother find them or know they need attention. As they get a little older, they might make louder distress calls if they fall out of the nest or get separated.
5. Are baby squirrels born at a certain time of year?
Yes, most squirrels have babies one or two times per year. The most common times for baby squirrels to be born are in the late winter/early spring (like February to April) and sometimes again in the late summer (like July to August). This timing often depends on the weather and food availability.
