Do Squirrels Have Sharp Teeth? Chisels That Never Stop

Extremely. The four incisors are chisels that grow about six inches a year and sharpen themselves against each other. They cut hardwood, cable and soft metal.

The self-sharpening mechanism

This is the part worth understanding, because it explains everything else.

• The front face of each incisor is covered in hard enamel
• The back is softer dentine
• Gnawing wears the dentine faster than the enamel
• The result is a permanent bevelled chisel edge

No maintenance, no dulling. The tooth is sharp because it is being worn unevenly, and it is being worn unevenly because the animal is using it.

Open-rooted growth keeps feeding new material in from below at roughly six inches a year. The tooth is a consumable, continuously replaced.

What they cut through

That table is the whole of exclusion work. A roof sealed with foam or timber is reopened within days; the same roof sealed in welded mesh stays sealed.

Why they chew particular things

Gnawing has to happen somewhere. What decides where:

• Edges. An incisor needs an edge to bite around — railing tops, stair nosings, corner posts, joist lips
• Salt. Winter de-icer soaked into decking, hand sweat on handrails. Sodium is scarce in a diet of nuts and seeds, and salt-contaminated timber is far more attractive than clean wood. This is why deck chewing spikes in late winter
• Convenience. Cable runs along the routes they already travel in a roof space
• Marked edges. A previously chewed edge carries scent and offers a ready grip

The bite

Long, narrow, sharp teeth produce a deep puncture, not a tear.

That shape matters: bacteria are carried deep and the wound closes over them, which is why infection is the real risk from a squirrel bite rather than anything exotic.

1. Wash with soap and running water, several minutes
2. Let it bleed rather than squeezing it shut
3. Cover with a clean dressing
4. Seek medical advice the same day
5. Go back if redness spreads, the area is hot or swollen, pus appears, or you develop a fever

Rabies is almost never a factor with small rodents. Infection and tetanus are the standard concerns.

The rest of the mouth

Behind the incisors is a gap — the diastema — and then the cheek teeth, premolars and molars, which grind rather than cut.

Those grow very little and wear normally, which is why nothing in a squirrel’s behaviour is driven by them. The four at the front are doing all the work, all the damage, and all the growing.