It is said that every picture tells a story and the devastation left by Hurricane Ian’s wrath needs no words. Neighbors, friends, family and strangers are pulling together to help others pick up the pieces of their lives, if that’s even possible.
I heard a heart-warming story about how a contingent of local animal lovers, a/k/a the Michigan Humane Society Animal Search and Rescue Team, traveled to Lee County, Florida to employ their special skills in water and collapsed building disasters. They will help rescue pets who have become separated from their families. These folks took kennels, crates and supplies to set up temporary shelters to try and lessen the angst of the fur babies and their owners.
If that effort doesn’t give you a warm and fuzzy feeling, then perhaps today’s post will.
When you’re little and cute, you’ve got the world by the tail …
… or so it seems.
It was the Friday before Labor Day, September 2nd to be exact, when I trudged out the door. I use the word “trudge” as it was another stinkin’ hot and humid day and the weekend weather was forecast to be the same. I mused that it was the 11th anniversary of beginning my walking regimen, not only the calendar date, but coincidentally it was also the Friday preceding Labor Day. It was a stinkin’ hot day then too and I only walked one block … “baby steps” I told myself, thus eliminating any shin splints.
This year, in anticipation of the long holiday, I had been preoccupied with planning my weekend walking adventures, which were subsequently dashed after discovering my car was leaking oil. While my 2009 LaCrosse, with its meager mileage of just under 10,000 miles, was not leaking like the Exxon Valdez, I was concerned enough to stay close to home until I took the car in for service.
As mentioned in my previous post, “Dullsville” would describe my favorite nature nook most of the Summer, so I left the camera at home that morning, a decision I would regret a short time later.
Suddenly this ordinary walk morphed into this “tail” er … tale.
In the parking lot I met fellow walker Joanne who had already walked her miles. She told me about a huge eagle circling overhead the entire time she was walking. I suggested it was likely a hawk and said I worried about hawks snatching up squirrels and hoped they were savvy enough to dodge those predators.
I doled out peanuts and sunflower seeds at my first two stops and, after leaving the Safe Haven Tree, I returned to the path. I saw two young women walking toward me. One had something dark moving up and down her right arm. “It’s probably a kitten” I decided as I got closer.
Then I saw it was a tiny black squirrel shimmying up and down her bare arm.
Of course Your Roving Reporter had to get the scoop on this munchkin, all the while berating herself with a few choice words on why she had left her camera at home. This wasn’t the first time a photo op presented itself and I was sans camera.
I learned the two young women, whose names are Jennifer and Terra, walk every day at Council Point Park at various times, so we have never crossed paths before. They told me they had been on the perimeter path, then saw this cute critter in the grass under a tree, next to another baby squirrel, which unfortunately was dead. They assumed the two had fallen from their nest. Squirrels like to build their nests in very tall trees and this was not an especially tall tree …
… and we could not see a nest embedded in the leaves and branches, so we wondered if there were more babies up in the nest.
Although the baby squirrel was a little wobbly at first, it bopped along the perimeter path, as you see in this short video. Terra and Jennifer are speaking in the video.
After Jennifer picked up the baby squirrel, it started prowling up and down her arm and that is when I met them. We had no idea how old it was and Terra asked “is it okay to have a human touch the baby – would its Mama reject it?” My best guess was “maybe if it had no fur and its eyes were closed.” I told them in ten years of walking at this Park, I’d seen plenty of young squirrels, but no baby squirrels.
Terra picked up some peanuts from the ground and Jennifer smashed the shell between her fingers and offered the unshelled peanuts to the baby, but it showed no interest. I told them I had just put a lot of sunflower seeds out at the Safe Haven Tree and perhaps the seeds would appeal to it. Jennifer placed the baby under the tree, where other squirrels were already eating and we all decided it would be fine, Mom would come looking for her baby, or it would be “adopted” by the others. It appeared to be chomping on some sunflower seeds, so I told them with hawks about, it should stay safe here under the tree and not become a target for a hungry hawk.
Jennifer and Terra left and I cut my walk short to return home to grab the camera for some photos of the baby under the tree. These are some of my favorites.
While taking those photos, Henry, one of the regular walkers, stepped off the path to come talk to me. I gave him a synopsis of how this story unfolded thus far and he laughed and said “well, that’s easy – you like squirrels, so you take it home with you!” “Not gonna do that” I said while shaking my head, adding “I’ve got nowhere to keep a squirrel or a cage – no!” He said “I think you should do it – it was meant to be.” He said he had seen one large hawk go after three squirrels already. Yes, that made me worry for this defenseless baby.
In the above pictures, taken at close range, it would appear the baby squirrel was not that small; however, for perspective, see how tiny it is against this leaf …
… or with an adult squirrel close by, once again you see the contrast.
I told Henry about Jill the Squirrel, the internet sensation who tumbled out of a tree during Hurricane Isaac in 2012 and had been raised by humans since she was a baby. Jill is now ten years old and has her own Instagram account with 700,000 followers. “No way” he said as he whipped out his phone and spoke “Jill the Squirrel” into it and I watched him scrolling through some pictures, shaking his head, then he left to finish his walk.
After taking a slew of photos I left to go home to get ready for work. I resisted patting my petite furry friend on the head as it looked up at me and instead said “be good, stay safe and I’ll be back to visit tomorrow.”
Though I am adamant about no more pets in my life, I kept thinking about what Henry said the rest of the day. I felt badly for this orphaned baby and admit I kind of liked the notion of “A Girl and Her Squirrel Rebooted” but no way was I taking in an orphaned squirrel.
Flash forward 24 hours later.
About 8:30 Saturday morning I set out on the perimeter path, of course this time with my camera in tow. I was eager to see how the baby squirrel had fared. Ducking my head, I entered that sanctuary beneath the tree’s canopy and in the dim light could not find it anywhere. My heart sank. I doled out treats for the regulars, then crept back out into the bright sunlight. Jennifer and Terra arrived just then, saw me and hurried over. I gave them the news. Simultaneously they said “let’s check the tree” which we did and found this poor little soul, very weak and crouched in the grass.
Before they picked up the baby, I asked the girls to pose as I knew I would be writing a post.
Jennifer reached down, picked the baby squirrel up and cradled it in her hands, while Terra petted it. That is the photo you see in the header image.
You can see the baby is almost motionless here in these two shots.
I asked if I could get any photos or videos they took yesterday. Jennifer pulled up my Facebook profile on her phone, then sent me a friend request and the promise of photos and videos.
We all agreed the baby squirrel looked weak and that Mom had not returned to carry her baby by the scruff of the neck back to the nest, likely as she was preyed upon by that big hawk the day before. We now realized this little squirt likely was not weaned, so it didn’t eat any solid food, causing it to be so weak. The girls decided to take the baby home and give it some milk and call a squirrel rehabber. I was walking and taking photos at the Park for several more hours and, when I got home and got online, both Jennifer and Terra had sent me Facebook messages, videos and pictures.
Here is a video of the baby getting milk in an eyedropper before it was turned over to the rehabber. The estimated age of this baby was about four weeks old – research tells me squirrels do not usually leave the nest and hit the ground running until they are ten to twelve weeks old.
Thank you to Jennifer for the videos. I am sending the girls this post as promised. [The photos used in this post are mine as our pics were similar.]
Linda Schaub
WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY 
Aw, what an emotional roller-coaster for you and them and the squirrel. But, fun to read about at the same time. I hope the rehab place is able to hydrate the little squirrel so it survives. Cute photos…it was tiny and definitely not ready to be away from the nest.
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Yes, as a person who likes squirrels and caters to them, I felt so badly leaving it there that first day Shelley. I am sure the mom fell prey to one of the hawks the day before. The babies would likely have stayed in the next if it had happened recently/that morning. The hawks move pretty fast and swoop down and sometimes they work in pairs. I saw that happen one time … squirrel ran under a picnic bench under the pavilion roof and the hawk did an about face, flew the other way and headed to a fence to perch. The hawk watched that squirrel for a long time. It was almost as if the hawk was mad that it missed and was made to look foolish.
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You shouldn’t feel bad, Linda, you do more for the squirrels than anyone I know. You’ve likely prolonged many little critter lives over the years. Pat yourself on the back!
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OK, I guess you’re right Shelley, but I really was feeling badly I didn’t take the initiative on this baby. I’m glad I have some “safe spots” to feed the squirrels and birds with these hawks overhead. Once the snow flies, they are sitting ducks out there in the snow – they become a bullseye. We never had hawks before – just the last three or four years. A few weeks ago I saw a snake with bite marks on it, that a hawk evidently dropped on the path and didn’t go looking for it – ewww.
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It’s hard to see a baby in need. You’re wise to find safe spots to feed the critters.
We have had a lack of hawks, thus the increase in the bunny population. We’ve seen a few more hawks/owls/predators returning lately. The move on when they’ve cleared an area, or they stay when the population of their prey is prevalent. It’s the cycle of their life…keep moving or stay where the food may lay.
Ewww on the snake…yuck.
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Yes, I don’t want to see one snatched up like fellow walker Arnie said he saw last year. I miss him – we walked together sometimes. He was in his early 80s and grew up near a woods and loved nature. He usually walked alone or with a friend of his, sometimes with his wife – she had back problems, so didn’t walk too much. He hadn’t been around and I learned from his friend he passed away in June. I still have an owl on my Birdie Bucket List and, as well as I’ve done with scoping out and photographing new and different birds this year, owls remain elusive. If you think the dead snake is bad, there was a video posted on Wild Birds Unlimited where a Red-Tailed Hawk dove into a garbage can in New York City to retrieve a rat and someone took a video of it, flying out of the can, triumphant with a rat dangling from its talons – yuck.
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Aw, I’m sorry to read about your friend Arnie. That’s nice you shared walks and talks with him at the park.
My friend lives on a riverbank area and she’s had white owls in her trees. Where I work there is one that lives in the trees there too. I hope you get to see one sometime.
Yuck…that does sound gross in more ways than just the rat dangling. Rats are dirty and disgusting, that hawk must’ve been desperate for food.
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I felt badly about Arnie Shelley. He used to share stories about nature and when he and his wife got married, instead of a traditional honeymoon destination, they went to a rugged area and used backpacks, carried tents with them, etc. and “roughed it” for their honeymoon.
I went looking for snowy owls a few years ago after one kept circling around Downtown Detroit, then at night people saw it at Point Mouillee, which is a rural marsh area which attracts a lot of raptors, so I went there one Sunday, but no luck for me. I do see the rehabbed owl at Oakwoods Metropark, but he is spooked by everything and stays in the corner of its enclosure.
The hawk was ruffled up after going headfirst into that garbage can, then flying up to perch again. The rat was huge. I am glad I didn’t see that.
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Aw, Arnie sounds like a great nature friend. My youngest and her hubby had that kind of wedding. They got married just the two of them in the sand dunes of Colorado. They even had to chase their tent when the wind in a storm took it rolling across the dunes.
Owls are hard to see. Occasionally we’ll see a white one flying from tree to tree in the woods behind our house. I’ve never tried to get a picture as by the time I walked to the woods I’m sure it would have flown off.
I’m glad you didn’t see the hawk/rat situation either! Yuck.
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Yes, I do miss him … I kept thinking he still had the foot injury. He was having issues in recent years. He worked at the post office for years and his job required standing his entire shift. I doubt his wife would walk – she was not a big fan of walking and had back problems.
That would be exciting – a different type of wedding for sure. The money they saved having a huge wedding is spent on get-a-ways for them like the trip to Michigan. That sounds like a win-win to me. If you’re an outdoorsy sort, then go for it. I know several couples who both enjoy the outdoors and found their soulmate.
A fellow blogger was in Florida a year or so ago and got some cute shots of Burrowing Owls. They go into a burrow and pop out like a groundhog would and hunt during the day; they don’t fly, but run after their prey. They are quite small and look like Saw-whet Owls which are common in Michigan.
That hawk/rat situation is not nice at all.
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A job that you sit all day or a job that you stand all day, neither one is great, we need to change positions.
Yes, the $$$$ they saved on not having a wedding yet (they were thinking of some kind of party, maybe, we’ll see!). They spent it on their journey to/from there and other camping trips since.
I’ve never seen Burrowing Owls. That’s very interesting!
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They’re smart – the big wedding is nice, but over in one evening – this way is better.
The Burrowing Owls are very cute and walking about, not flying, makes them even cuter.
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People are so kind and so many have love for animals, so nice to see this Linda 🙂
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I thought it was nice of these animal lovers too Sandra. I told the girls that they saved this baby squirrel’s life; I merely “reported” on it.
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The videos worked perfectly. Yea!
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Yes, I checked early this morning and was happy for that Anne. My first videos used in a blog post, even if they weren’t mine. I know it was a long post, but there was lots to tell about this rescue and a little squirrel that owes its life to these girls.
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What an interesting post this is!
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Glad you liked it Anne. That little squirrel is lucky those girls happened to see him/her in the grass. I would not have noticed it.
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What a beautiful squirrel video. Wonder video for fiddling Little baby squirrel. Very funny photos. Very interesting story write you! I like! Beautiful photography.
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Thank you rajkkhoja. I knew there would be a story to tell, so I’m glad I asked the girls for pictures/videos and I went back home and got my own camera. This little squirrel was so small and very cute. You just recently started following my blog, but I often have posts about the squirrels at the Park, more so in Fall and Winter and, one in particular, (Parker), who has been there many years. He has a lot of personality and likes to jump on my walking shoes or try to jump up and reach the bag of peanuts. Everyone at the Park knows I take photos and feed them.
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Yes, I like this story. Really it’s video is so nice . When l child, I liveing in vilage. I and my friend went to school on walkable road and we see squirrel, we keep the squirrel and eaten peanuts.
My English is poor. You read carefully .
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rajkkhoja, I am glad you enjoyed the story. I was lucky to get the videos from the other walkers. I wasn’t aware you had squirrels where you live. So I learned something. The fellow blogging friend, Susie, whom I mentioned to you came to the U.S. to study and do graduate work for one year, was eager to see squirrels as I often write about Parker, a squirrel at the Park She was also from your country, but I do not recall where she was living as she has since moved.
I understand you completely – you know two languages. One more than me. I studied French for years, but would not readily admit it as I never used it after school was over, so “use it or lose it” when it comes to languages. English is a very difficult language to learn because there are many words that are spelled the same, but have different meanings, or they are spelled differently but do not have the same meaning at all. I pity anyone trying to earn English. I actually learned more about English grammar while studying French.
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Now i live in India in Mumbai. Before I live in Gujarat. My childhood going in small village. There were some forest area.No available vehicle facilities, no bild buildings . I live in rooftop house.
I am so glad too. You always reply my comments.
Thanks lot.
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You are welcome rajkkhojaI, though I am late responding and always behind here, but I sometimes get caught up (rarely). I need to be retired and I look forward to that, just as you likely did. I did think you said you lived in Mumbai. I have to contact Susie … she has been on a long blogging break, surfacing from time to time, but maybe once or twice a year now. Her mom passed away last year, so she has been helping out her dad and one of her daughters will be married so she is busy in that respect too. Susie sent me the link to her mom’s funeral, so I watched it. The customs were so different from here. She was close to her mom.
I would like to live in a small town – people look out for one another and I imagine it is the same in a village. A rooftop house is handy if there are flooding issues like monsoons. Susie used to mention the flooding issues from time to time. I am sorry I am later responding. I shut off my computer as my eyes got heavy. 🙂 Tonight I had internet issues just as I got to WordPress.
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Don’t mind, Iam so glad. You sharing good friendship Susie.
Above you shared about Susie. She is back to India. She completed her study.
You are so good, you have to responded & respected. I am so happy 😊!
Thanks lot!🌷
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Unfortunately Susie had to return to her homeland early due to COVID. One day she was in the last quarter of school, then they closed the university and everyone was sent home. She even had to have someone ship her belongings home long after she had returned home. She completed her graduate degree at home as did the rest of the students. You are welcome!
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My pleasure!
She has studied with you. Where she stay in USA?
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Hi rajkkhoja – Well, Susie did want me to go visit her during the year she was here to get her master’s degree from Yale. She was living in a norm near campus and Yale is in New Haven, Connecticut. The other blogger friend who wrote the post was Anne Mehrling whom I think you follow. I think I may have mentioned to you that Susie asked me what type of clothes she should buy as I was mentioning how cold and snowy our Winters are here in Michigan. She wanted to have everything bought well before her trip over here. I told Susie to get lots of warm clothes to layer up, plus a comforter or even a sleeping bag in case there was a power outage as I don’t know if the dorms would have a generator. I said buy boots too for the snow, all clothes she had never needed nor bought in India. Then there was one small snowfall, barely enough snow to shovel, no bitter cold Winter and then the school year wrapped up about 5-6 weeks early due to the pandemic. P.S. – She liked my squirrel stories and was upset she never saw any squirrels, nor got a chance to feed/interact with them.
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Yes, here is no snowfall no bitter cold winter. Here is mostly hot weather. Very nice you sharing it’s,. But I don’t know Susie. When you tell me she is studied here and now back homeland then I visited her site. She live in South.
Thank you so much! God bless you!
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Well I wish I had met Susie while she was here, but Anne and her late husband John really enjoyed meeting her and they both wrote about it in their blogs. A couple of weeks later COVID hit and she returned home. Thank you rajkkhoja and God bless you too!
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Glad there are good people around to help!
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This is true Kate, because I really didn’t do anything but make suggestions what to feed it and where to put it. I felt badly leaving it there by itself and in retrospect I guess I could have put it into the bag I was toting for peanuts and taken it to my vet. They would have fed it and given it to a rehabber. I didn’t realize it was not weaned until the next day. So these two girls went the extra mile to help save this little critter.
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I’ll admit to being distracted by the tattoos and fingernails in the first photo, but then the story unfolded. And a nice story it is, Linda, especially knowing the baby squirrel is in the hands of a “rehabber”. Better that than in the talons of a preying bird.
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Dave, I originally planned to have the post heading be “When you’re little and cute, you have the world by the tail” accompanied by the baby squirrel’s picture, but when I heard about the Michigan Humane Society’s efforts, I decided to change the post and move the photo showing the girls’ hands up top. This is also the first time I used videos in a blog post – I don’t use that function on my camera and I don’t have a smartphone to create videos. I’m glad you liked the story because it does show how people go the extra mile – I did NOT go the extra mile, despite my love of animals and an affinity for squirrels. Like you, I am glad the baby squirrel is safe and not snatched up in those talons. I fed some squirrels and birds at my house for a couple of years. The gray squirrels were the first to go missing and I missed them right away as they showed up as soon as I opened the door every morning. I asked my neighbor as he knew I fed them and learned a hawk was scoping out my house in a tree across the street. I felt sick when he told me.
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Poor little thing,It’s refreshing to hear about people who care enough to take care of It. It now has a much better chance of surviving!
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I know Wayne. If the baby had been so tiny that its eyes were closed, or it had no fur, it would have been easier to determine how young it was, but here was a squirrel bouncing around, just a mini version of the black squirrels who are small to begin with. Good thing the girls took it home and gave it milk and the rehabber would take it from there – thanks to them it will live. I hope I conveyed how tiny it was in my photos. I do admit I thought about taking it home, but quickly nixed the idea.
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many people came together to save a small creature! A great testimony to good being out there and being active!
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Yes, that is so true Wayne. People are kinder to animals sometimes than to each other. I do not think there is anyone who would not be enamored with a baby critter. Something about the cute looks, the defenseless of them. Do you remember the baby Robin I found sleeping on a sidewalk a few years ago? I couldn’t find a nest it fell from and worried about leaving it there. I took pics of it looking up at me and later saw an adult Robin watching it from a driveway. I always hoped it was its mom – poor thing had a bobbed tail yet and short wing, not fully developed. I wrote a post that night about how I worried about it.
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What a heartwarming story! While is so sad that they baby lost it’s mother and wasn’t thriving, handing it over to the rehabilitation center was an incredible thing to do. Since you adore squirrels… I have a book recommendation for you. You check out a book called “eenie, meenie, miney, Moe, and stilmo.” You will find it absolutely delightful. 🥰❤️
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Glad you liked it LaShelle. I am sure the mother was killed as I know if their youngsters fall out of the nest, they will carry it/them by the scruff of the neck back to the nest. It is sad and I blame the hawk or hawk(s). The hawks work in pairs … one pursues the squirrel by making it run out into the open with no cover and the other hawk swoops down. I do love squirrels and I have a lot of photos and posts about them in this blog. You just recently started following me, but in the Fall and Winter, when I don’t get out to large parks as much due to ice and snow, there are many photos of my little buddies, often shivering out in the cold and nibbling nuts. I try to get there if it’s not too icy to feed them and feel badly if it’s too slippery to walk. I looked on Amazon, found this book – it looks like it will be a fun read. I am going to order a couple of other things from Amazon so I have already put it in my cart. Thanks for the recommendation LaShelle. I love to read but have fallen behind with reading like so many other things because of blogging. I bought a book on Amazon last year, not read it yet, but it had such a good rating, I had to order it – a city girl goes to live in the country (Amish country). Does that plot sound familiar to you? The book is “Not a Perfect Fit: Stories from Jane’s World” by Jane A. Schmidt.
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That sounds like the PERFECT book for me! I’ll have to look that up. How precious that you feed the squirrels in the winter and give so much of yourself to nature. You are a blessing my friend and I’m glad you ordered the book. Read a little at a time and savor it. I just know how much you’ll enjoy it. Nikolai loves when I read to him and we read a lot of Sam Campbell books.
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That’s what I thought LaShelle – something you might like. I heard or read about it and it is a collection of different stories of Jane’s life as the only non-Amish young woman in Amish country and a goose and a pair of boots are on the front cover. Maybe I’ll read it this Winter too. I am sure I’ll like this Sam Campbell book. I am enjoying the “All Creatures Great and Small” series which will be in Season 3 this coming January. It is just about 8 episodes and I stream it on PBS and I read the books when they were first published many years ago. Nikolai might like those stories about the English country vet James Herriot and his daily trials and tribulations as a country vet. As a child I loved “Rascal” by Sterling North. I wanted to have a pet raccoon after reading it and seeing the Disney movie. I have a lot of snowy pictures from the Park while feeding my furry and feathered friends and flattening a space in the snow with my boot to pour out peanuts and seeds. I get the Jays, Cardinals, Chickadees and Red-Bellied Woodpecker then too. I really enjoy it.
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Sounds like perfection!! I’ll look those up as well! Nikolai LOVES all things nature. He knows a ton fo incredible facts about ocean life and various other topics. It surprises me sometimes to look things up and realize how right he is. 🥰
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I was trying to think of this TV or streaming service I hear advertised all the time. It is not expensive and it is about nature and science. A fellow blogger home schools her kids and I sent it to her, but I don’t know if she got it or not. Here is a site Nikolai would like – do you go into town together for WiFi or maybe view it on your phone together? I know you said you have to go to town to work on posts. I go here myself sometimes – peaceful and you can view webcams of animals. I’ll spell it out so it doesn’t turn into a link and go to SPAM if your settings have links go there automatically. It is:
exploredotorg/livecams
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Once in a while I get good service on my phone but I rarely am able to watch shows with it because it’s only two bars of LTE max. So I can pull up Facebook and WordPress but pictures rarely download. I can read, sometimes respond and that’s about it. So I usually download shows whenever I’m able to do so. Otherwise, I just listened to podcasts and read Kindle and audio books.
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I don’t have a smartphone at all, so if I have no internet (like happened tonight right after I wrote to you as a matter of fact), I’m out of luck. I don’t have a Kindle but after I read all the books around here, I’ll consider it as Amazon has good deals on Kindles and audio books too.
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I love Kindle and audiobooks..it’s the world at your fingertips! I can’t usually find books I want in my small town. I can order them but sometimes I don’t feel like waiting so I get all the books I want whenever I’m in the mood to read (which is 90% of the time LOL).
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That sounds like a good plan to me. I miss reading. When I took the bus to work I always read on the bus and at lunch time. Now I barely read except on a long weekend. Reading will be a priority when I eventually retire. I know some people use “Chirp” for their audio books – do you?
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I haven’t but Ill have to look that one up!
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I know a woman I used to ride the bus with who gets her reading material at the library (electronically) and also via Chirp. It is “Chirpbooksdot.com” Spelling out so it doesn’t go to SPAM. Site says:
**
“Discover bestselling audiobooks for up to 95% off. Free audiobooks app with no subscription fees. Get the best books at low prices, every single day.”
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Brilliant!! I’ll definitely be downloading that!
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Good deal – I’m glad you mentioned the Kindle, as this looks like a good deal.
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Yes it does!!
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What a little cutie! I enjoyed reading its story and am glad it had a happy ending.
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Glad you liked the story Rebecca – it was so tiny and so cute. Thankfully due to the girls giving it some milk and locating a rehabber, it will live.
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It looks really tiny in the video. I’m surprised it survived the fall. Glad to hear it was rescued…and not by you! As much as you love squirrels, Linda, you do not need a squirrel pet. We used to give out free droppers and syringes for customers to feed babies, mostly kittens but sometimes other types of wildlife. Never leave home without your camera again! Are the hawks more common this time of year? or are they circling all summer too? Kate gave you credit for “splooting” in her blog today.
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Joni – it did look so tiny exploring under the tree when I took those pictures. As much as I love squirrels and I did feel badly for it, I would worry picking it up (disease/ticks) and/or taking it home. I don’t think it had teeth, so it wouldn’t have bitten me but it looked so defenseless. I told other bloggers that the baby squirrel owes its life to the girls as they were more hands on. I can’t have a pet here – right now my house is so disorganized and there is the grief factor when you lose them. After I lost Buddy, I said “no more pets” and I meant it this time. I said that with Sugar and my mom had passed away that year, I was no longer working on site … Marge said “you need another bird.” When I lost Buddy a few years later I told her it was her fault (wasn’t nice of me to say that and I later apologized).
That’s nice you gave out droppers and syringes to help out baby animals. Marge’s daughter was mowing her lawn and found a rabbit’s nest. They build them anywhere and it’s not like it’s a deep hole. I didn’t see the babies, but Marge said they were very tiny, no fur, eyes closed. They were using eyedroppers to give them milk, but they didn’t make it and the mother never returned. I don’t recall animal rehabbers being a “thing” back then like it is now? I know the hawks migrate this time of year and I wish our Park hawks would go as well. The raptor migration starts the end of September through the end of November. Thank you for telling me about Kate’s post – I did see it. I’m behind in Reader and was scrolling down and saw the picture and so I read Kate’s post and said “I thought it was one of mine” and thanked her for the shout-out. As I’m typing this, my internet connection was lost, so I’m saving this reply to a Word document. Today was frustrating … two more things not working – this internet issue is temporary, but a pain nonetheless. I cured it with a reboot.
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I remember my younger brother almost had to have rabies shots when he was about 10. Someone had let a squirrel out in the country, and it ran up his shoulder and bite/scratched him, so my mom had to get the vet down, who thought it was unusual that an animal would come that close to a human, but it might have been someone’s pet. Did you get your car fixed re the oil leak?
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Yes, that does worry me so that when Parker hops on my toes of my shoes, I allow that (fun pics sometimes), but when he started climbing onto my sweatpants in the Winter, I didn’t want that … they are still a wild animal. I am cautious about them and reading what happened to your brother makes me stay wary. I got the car leak fixed – new oil pan I think it was ($587.00) and a week later the new oil leak, but he said it was residual oil and he was right. It only lasted a few days – luckily, knock on wood, the car is in good shape and I went over the 10,000-mile mark Saturday. I took it for a 63-mile roundtrip drive on Saturday to a new venue and I may go back there again when the leaves turn color – we have green leaves right now. I had not visited that state park since I was about 12-13 years old. So, I got a new Sunoco card for my gas – had to pay to get it mailed as the other one was not working at the pump card reader and I’d rather not have to go into the store if possible … went for gas after the allergist/shots this morning. New card does not read either. I may do what you do – will look around. It’s always busy there, no matter when I go, with lottery, food, cigarettes, long line. And tomorrow morning I have a locksmith coming as the second lock is jamming … fed up. I wanted him next month – I have stuff everywhere in the living room … I am sure he’s seen worse, but still. And of course, it will be a beautiful morning/day. What do you have planned for Thanksgiving?
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Nothing much – I’ll cook a small turkey breast on Sunday, but am going to do some of the sides, dressing, squash, cranberries earlier so the kitchen doesn’t get too hot. We may go for a drive to an apple orchard on Sat. if it’s nice and the spy apples are in. I’m still dealing with the itchy welts – yesterday I ran errands in town and the sun coming into on my right arm in the car was like murder, so I’m still trying to stay out of the direct sunlight. But if I wear long sleeves the feel of clothing against my skin is bad too. Today I picked up all the clutter in the house, as the maids are coming tomorrow to clean, and made a batch of butter tarts. I haven’t been baking but felt the need for some treats. I’m beginning to think this will never go away and I’ll have chronic uticaria. I can sure tell when the antihistamine wears off and it barely takes the edge off. The only thing that really helps is cold packs on the worst spots. It’s very depressing.
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That sounds like a nice dinner Joni – that is what we did as well, just the right portion with the sides. I’ve not had butter tarts in forever. My grandmother used to buy them at a bakery near her house for when we visited and we’d take some home. My mom made small pecan tarts, but they were not as syrupy as a butter tart, more like ground nuts in a type of paste. She made those and also damson plum filled mini tarts and the bigger ones she made were for mincemeat, just at the holidays. I suspect your misery will be compounded by the colder weather and the need to wear sweaters/jackets. I hope they can come up with a better solution for you without using a steroid cream.
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PS. My REader looks different tonight – only one photo displayed at top of post? Is yours like that?
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I looked to see how much was posted today as I’m behind and I saw that as well with dots like a gallery to see the photos – not sure I like that, do you? I could not always put the four favorite pics to show up in Reader as the “story” in the post wouldn’t flow. I wonder why they continually fiddle with display?
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The changes always seem to make things worse. When I checked my last post, only 1 of my four photos previously posted in the header was displayed. The other thing I don’t like is when you click on the star for like, it’s so faint a blue that you can’t tell whether you liked it or not. That used to be how I could tell where I left off in Reader. It’s no longer solid blue. I don’t remember them announcing these changes.
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I have to look at that star color as that is how I know where I left off as well. I follow a calendar of unusual holidays – it previews for the next day and when I am in Reader if I can, I try to get to that and “like” it so I can easily see where I left off. I have a problem where I am in the Comments section and “like” and then when I finish in Comments and close out, then go to the notifications area with the bell, all the posts I liked are “not liked” … I often wonder if the toggle button doesn’t work for me. It’s all to much sometimes. No, I didn’t see those changes in that post of new Block Editor features last week. It is frustrating sometimes.
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What a heartwarming story, Linda! I’ve never seen a squirrel so tiny, but that’s because it would normally still be hidden in the nest. Hats off to you and Terra and Jennifer for working together to save its life. Godspeed, little one! Thank you so much for sharing the amazing pictures and the videos.
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I’m glad you liked the story Barbara and I’m happy I could get some pictures of that baby after going home to grab the camera. The odd thing was it looked like it was just young and I would never have guessed it was really just a baby with all that fur and that bushy tail. Knowing how I like squirrels, I have to say when it looked up at me, I really wondered if it was okay to leave it there. September was an interesting month for critters. The next day was part 2 of the baby squirrel and the big ducks, then I had an interesting encounter with some guinea pea fowl a week later at Heritage Park. I have a lot of photos to pick through.
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Getting the picture with the adult squirrel in it for size comparison was so helpful to appreciating what a tiny baby it was. All that fur probably kept him warm enough until he could be rescued. Had to google guinea peafowl — looks like a hybrid?
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I’m glad I thought to do the size comparison Barbara because in the the other four or five pictures I was looming over the baby squirrel so you could not tell its size. I would not have known what these odd-looking birds were that day except a fellow blogger from Tennessee writes a blog similar to ours and Rebecca saw them on the road and took pictures. So I had to take a closer look as the body shape was similar. I was told that they are “Lavender Guinea Fowl” and I hope the pics come out because there were four and they together in a group most of the time. Their bodies all kind of morphed together. Because I’m so far behind sorting pictures, I may push these four birds ahead and do a short post. I always write a draft the day I come home from a walk, so I don’t forget anything. I’ll send you the link to Rebecca’s post so you can see her Guinea Pea Fowl in a separate comment.
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Barbara – here is Rebecca’s post so you can see these unusual-looking birds. I think the ones I saw looked the same – they have an odd body shape and interesting plumage and they make a lot of noise too.
https://walkingonacountryroad.com/2022/08/29/crossing-paths-with-guinea-fowls/
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Thanks for the link, Linda. What a surprise to come across such a different looking bird.
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You’re welcome Barbara. If I’d have seen those roly-poly, odd-looking birds and had not seen Rebecca’s post, I wouldn’t have known what they were and since they were hanging around a children’s birthday party, where the kids were in cowgirl costumes and there was a clown, I likely would have thought they were part of the entertainment. I hope I got a few good pictures as they were really on the move. I really should learn how to do the video function on the camera.
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A nice story about this little squirrel. I imagine a lot of little baby animals do not live for long in this world. So nice that these ladies decided to help this little squirrel.
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Thanks Peggy. As a nature lover, I know you would enjoy reading about this baby and the efforts by the ladies to get it home to get it some nourishment, then to a rehabber. I guess we all dropped the ball by waiting 24 hours, but believed it was okay as it was so lively. I felt badly for the baby who fell to its death. As wonderful as nature is sometimes, it is also cruel as well.
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Yes, there are a lot of cruel acts in nature. My husband had a pet squirrel when he was a teenager. He found it when it was about the size of the one you described in your blog post.
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I’ll bet your husband’s pet squirrel was as loyal and playful as a dog Peggy. According to a wild animal rehabbing site I follow, the squirrels imprint on humans quickly and become loyal companions. The same woman takes in many fawns each Spring and they are so attached to her, after being released, they return on a daily basis, then later with their offspring.
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Your photos are wonderful. This is one cutie patootie baby squirrel. I hope that it lives a long and healthy life. If nothing else these women gave it a fighting chance. I’m not familiar with Jill the Squirrel.
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Thank you Ally- glad you liked the photos. This was one cute little baby squirrel – who can resist a baby animal? These women saved its life and I’m glad it was okay after it got some milk and to a rehabber because you saw how weak it was in those two photos, so unlike just 24 hours earlier when it was so animated.
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I forgot to add about Jill the Squirrel in my reply and I can’t find it right now – WP is displaying kind of odd tonight – in Reader as well which you won’t see as you use Feedly. A friend of mine lived in Florida and he had his own group of squirrels he fed at his apartment and we traded squirrel photos and he followed my blog. He told me about Jill and said I had to check it out. I am on Instagram but only to follow a blogger who began a walking regimen and took lots of photos and posted there and asked me to follow her. Jill’s humans have a cage for her, but she is more like a family pet, which cuddles with them, sleeps tucked under a blanket. It really is cute. Sometime have a look for a smile.
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I’m glad the girls were able to rescue the little squirrel. Awfully cute!
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Yes, they were more diligent than I was Eilene. Because of their efforts this cutie pie will live. I wanted to name it and it sure would have made it easier to have a moniker instead of “baby squirrel” as I wrote the post.
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Miss Linda……………………………that is a most wonderful story………………….thank you for sharing it ……………………..See…………………there are other people who like to walk the park and love animals…………………………
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Ann Marie – I knew you, as a nature lover, would like reading this story about the baby. I know you miss walking at this Park as well. After having so little happening all Summer at this venue, there was this squirrel story parts one and two, then the big ducks the next day. I am happy seeing others enjoying the Park like I do, not just for a place to get your walking steps in.
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Sweet story with a happy tail ending, Linda. I love your passion for squirrels. I enjoy watching the squirrels around here in my yard.
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Glad you liked this story TD and I too am glad it had a happy ending. I am all for happy endings when animals are involved. This is the tenth year I have walked at this Park and do enjoy interacting with the squirrels. I have no pets, so I spoil them and lavish attention and treats on them all year around, especially in Fall and Winter. I liked it better when I could dole out treats right on the path, but these big hawks cruising overhead are worrisome. The squirrels are cute although admittedly they chew things and in my case, the telephone wires, which have to be repaired every few years as they chew off the insulated covering. I’m probably the only person still with a landline, so the only person requesting an ATT repair!
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What a lovely story…. I have a love/dislike relationship with the squirrels. I can’t hate them whatsoever. I enjoy watching their antics. They are really quite clever. I don’t mind them eating the birdseed that falls to the ground….I DO mind when they and their chipmunk friends take down a feeder and take in less than a day what could feed the birds all week. It’s their woods, too. I get that. Just one of those things.
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Thank you orthodoxmom3 and thank you for following my blog as well. I used to feed the squirrels around my house for years and then we got hawks in the neighborhood – they got some of my little guys, so I stopped. I do lavish attention and treats on the squirrels at the park where I walk daily but worry about the hawks there as well, so I don’t feed them while walking on the path, but now feed them in three safe locations where I know the hawk can’t swoop down. The antics are cute as is the begging (which always gets me as I am a soft touch). I have a favorite squirrel named Parker that I’ve been interacting with for years – he has quite the personality. I also had that problem with the squirrels tipping the birdfeeder and helping itself here at the house. My neighbor and I named that squirrel “Sammy” and he would go between our two houses, visiting the feeders, despite us putting them in spots to thwart his ravaging, he’d swing down from my oak tree by one leg, or shimmy along her gazebo and hang by his hind feet and feast. 🙂
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How cute and what a great story. Did I ever tell you my dad hunted and shot a baby squirrel through the top of the ear knocking it out of the nest. He felt so bad he brought it home and we raised it until it was old enough to let go.
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Glad you liked the story Diane – this little squirrel was so cute. No I don’t think you told me as I would have remembered your family raising it after the injury. Well I am glad that baby survived thanks to the TLC it got. Did it stay by your house afterward?
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What a heartwarming story! So glad this baby squirrel got the help it needed and will stay safe, away from the hawks! Linda, you are an adventurous roving reporter who find interesting nature tales to tell us. Love it!
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Thank you Esther. I had some angst on the Friday after I said “goodbye” and went home. I am grateful that it got help from the girls, then the rehabber and will live … it is probably twice that size now since it was a month ago already!
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Very encouraging! Kiddos were interested in your story and asked me how the little squirrel was doing.
We just saw a small squirrel laid flat on the road today; probably got run over by a car. It seemed a small one. Sadness.
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Yes, a kindness to an animal always puts mankind in a better light, doesn’t it Esther? I wish that Jennifer had told me what rehabber took the baby squirrel as I would have done a follow-up on it and asked for a photo, but she didn’t say and I didn’t want to ask since I already asked for photos/pictures. I hope it is okay now, but I have to say that except when it was weak on the second day, it was quite animated, sweetly bopping along the perimeter path and exploring under and around the Safe Haven Tree. I am always sad when I see squirrels run over on the road. If you notice when they cross, they will run across half-way, then pause, and return back where they started, only to zip across a second time and then get hit.
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Under the circumstances I think you were right to leave the baby to see if Moma found it. Being raised by her would have been best. Sometimes well-intentioned humans can mess things up. Thankfully in this case you and the girls were able to return in time to save it.
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Ruth, I was hoping it was safe under the tree or Mom would come for it … I am positive she was the victim of that big hawk. I checked every time I walked by the tree to see if any other squirrels fell (or climbed) out of the nest and landed on the floor, but there were none. I thought the other squirrels would take an interest in its welfare, but they didn’t seem interested. A few years ago, some Pekin ducklings were abandoned at Elizabeth Park and a woman guided them to Pekin adults by luring them along the boardwalk with corn and the adults “adopted” the ducklings. There are a few Pekin ducks which live in a cove all year around, so this was a great idea on her part. This woman walks at Elizabeth Park daily so could monitor the relationship. Thankfully this little baby squirrel will live and the rehabber will take care of it.
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So glad that that beautiful youngster was being helped! Great shots, Linda! 😊
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Thanks Tom – it was so cute and bouncing around, sniffing leaves, prowling around the grass – the first time out of the nest and so much to explore! The rehabber will help nurture it until it is released. I’m glad it had a happy ending.
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You are certainly not the only person still with a landline, Linda! Several of my neighbors use their landline telephones. And I’m considering having my line re-installed and service added. I’m in an 80+ old cottage which was built when this town was being born. I’ve been living in it just over two years. A person walking the neighborhood knocked on my door to tell me that the power utility poll in my neighbors backyard was glowing red. I called the emergency power department who came out immediately. They said it was hot about to start fire and this was common because the squirrels run back and forth all day!
I still love watching the squirrels. I certainly would not want a squirrel as a house pet. Wildlife for sure!
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AT&T raises my landline costs almost every month TD and I took off long-distance calls and interzone calls as I never use them. I have to keep caller I.D. as I get tons of junk calls all day long and have worked from home since 2011. My late neighbor had her landline through her internet provider and every time Comcast had a hiccup, she lost her phone/internet/cable TV. But if you need to make an emergency call, the landline is better as the call can be tracked; a cellphone cannot be tracked as easily to your location. That is a scary situation with the glowing – thank goodness for the kindly walker who just happened to glance up and saw it! It is like when a transformer blows – it is a small explosion and sometimes bursts into flames. We have a lot of squirrels in the neighborhood and they are mischievous. They got into my grandmother’s attic years ago and did a lot damage. It’s always something isn’t it?
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The info on landlines is good to know, Linda. The considering idea of re- installing one may not be what I would need with my particular situation. Thank you for your wisdom!
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You’re so welcome TD. I learned that info and decided to keep it after I retire … I had thought of getting a smartphone instead of the landline, but have now changed my mind. I rarely use the flip phone – it is just for emergencies.
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Wow, you all came along at just the right time!
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Yes JP, it was a lucky little critter since the girls decided to take it home, then to a rehabber. You know my affinity for squirrels – I did a lot of worrying even though I didn’t bring it home with me.
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wow – such an adventure Linda
and at first I did not realize how small the baby was until I saw it near the leaf and then in the hands.
also, you truly are the Roving Reporter and this story had a nice ending – hope the rehab place can save the baby
_
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Yes, it was really something Yvette. I am glad I was able to get pictures of the baby near the leaf to show how tiny it was. Because it had fur and a tail, it appeared to look like an adult. I think it should do well at the rehab place as it really perked up once it got some milk into it – we didn’t realize it wasn’t weaned yet. The poor mom likely was prey for a hawk.
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Yes – the momma likely became part of the food chain
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Nature is cruel sometimes isn’t it? I saw a huge hawk at this Park the other day. I had hoped they had all left the area and gone South as the raptor migration season is now, but no such luck.
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Yes – can be very cruel indeed
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Yes, I hope I never see one get snatched up – one of the walkers did see that as he walked on the perimeter path one morning.
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also – that photo of terra and Jennifer’s hands (the first one in the post) is on of my favorite photos of the year – so good
the nails, the tattoos – the crossed wrists – and so culture rich – just love it
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Thank you Yvette. I originally was going to use it a little later in the post, but thought the same thing how powerful it was and used it instead of a photo of the baby.
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Yes – great to start with it and reading your comment just now reminded me how seasoned you are with creating posts and thinking of flow!
Because there is a time to lead up to a peak photo and then a time to start with a power image!
It is such a beautiful photo and I thought of it a few times today
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Thank you so much for your comments Yvette. When I took that header image photo, I really was taking it of the squirrel to show how tiny it was in their hands – on the screen I realized it was no longer about the squirrel.
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😊
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