How we Met
I was at my parent’s house in the woods soon after my dad died when I first met our rescue squirrel,”Tico.” I was sitting on the porch stairs, and I noticed something in the driveway under one of the vehicles. He had almost no fur, and kind of resembled a baby mouse. He was a bit smaller than his picture above and with less fur. I’m not sure how, but I knew he had to be a squirrel of some sort. He was moving a little bit, eyes still closed, and helpless.
I waited to see if the mama would perhaps come looking for him. Later after my visit, I checked on him. He was still there. He was sure to get ran over, or picked up by a bird or other predator if I left him long enough, so I had a decision to make. Someone gave me a small box, and I gently placed the little guy inside. Like a scene from Napoleon Dynamite, my family looked at me with a look that said “Whatcha gonna do today, Napoleon?” Well, I didn’t know right away. However, I was a bit nervous about what my husband’s reaction would be when I showed up with this wee little critter.
Bringing Him Home
I am known as a nature and animal lover at heart by my family, however I’m not one to bring random critters home. Besides that, we had just had our seventh baby, and I was caring for a newborn, as well as the rest of the family. I didn’t have much time to spare. My husband, though surprised and a bit troubled at my latest surprise guest, quickly helped me tend to the little guy.
We did some studying and soon had him eating a milk replacement formulated for baby squirrels. We kept him warm in a fleece hat and safe in a cat carrier. At night while I woke up to feed our newborn human, my husband got up to feed Tico. The guy that only hunted squirrels and ate them, was now raising one.
Growing Fast
In the following weeks, Tico grew quickly. He was now thriving. He was the cutest and funnest little guy ever. Tico loved to play and cuddle. Besides his squirrel formula (we used Fox Valley formula for squirrels. He soon was able to begin eating small rodent/squirrel biscuits like these found on Amazon. These prepared him for eating harder things later on, and they had a lot of added nutrients. He continued to eat and grow and eat and grow!
It wasn’t long after bringing him home that we identified him as a fox squirrel. He had almost no hair when we met him, so it wasn’t immediately obvious. Fox squirrels are the largest species of climbing squirrels native to North America, and definitely my favorite to watch. Gray squirrels are also popular in our area of the U.S. There are actually over 200 species of squirrels in the world!
As Tico grew, we decided he needed a larger enclosure. He wasn’t yet ready to be on his own. So we got to work planning and building. It had to be tall enough for him to climb all around. After all, that’s what squirrels do.
We put some large branches inside the enclosure and my husband made a very nice house for him to sleep in. We tried to not spoil Tico in a way that would make it harder for him to survive on his own. However, I think he was a bit spoiled. Hey, he was super cute and a whole lot of fun. We loved this little guy.
Squirrels as Pets
Fun fact: in the 18th and 19th century, squirrels were the most popular pet in America. Do you remember Bob Ross’s pet squirrel, “Peapod?” Theodore Roosevelt had pet squirrels. Benjamin Franklin even wrote a poem for one who died entitled, “Poor Mungo.” Grey Squirrels were the most popular to be kept as pets. Various squirrels could easily be found in markets and were favored by the wealthy and upper class.
Though Tico was certainly a fascinating little guy, we did not plan on keeping him as a pet. Nor did we ever think of getting a pet squirrel. However, after having Tico for awhile I can definitely see why people have loved the companionship of these animals for centuries. I suppose it’s worth noting that in recent years many states in the U.S. have placed restrictions on keeping squirrels as pets, so check with your state laws before keeping one. I do believe these special animals may be best in the wild, but with proper love, care, space and training I can see how they can be lovable pets like many rodents.
Returning to Nature
As Tico grew, he became more and more active. His claws got sharper and larger and his bite got stronger. Handling him became more tricky. He loved to be with us and meant no harm, but if you were not careful he could give a good scratch.
It was clear to me that he was ready to begin getting used to the great outdoors. He was now eating a variety of foods fit for squirrels and no longer drinking his milk like he used to. Fall was also fast approaching and I wanted to give him plenty of time to get adjusted to the outdoors before the cold set in.
When the time seemed right, we moved his enclosure outdoors. Before letting him out and about from his enclosure, we let him get used to the sights, sounds and smells of his new environment. Over time, we let him out more and more. One night we went out to close his enclosure and to our dismay we couldn’t find him. After a very worry-filled night, we found him the next day. It turned out he had just chosen another tree by the garden to call home. Even though it was a bit stressful when he went missing, it showed us that he could survive at night on his own.
The backyard was now Tico’s home. During the morning and early evening hours I could see him interacting with other squirrels. It usually seemed positive. I was no longer worried about Tico. As time went on, we kept our distance a little more. We wanted to allow him time to adjust to his new life without too much interference on our part. He would still come down and visit when we called, especially for nuts.
It’s been almost 4 years ago that we met Tico. We no longer have contact with him, or so we think. Interestingly enough, since we released Tico we’ve had numerous squirrels come visit us. Some of these little guys even knock on our back door looking for a treat. Did he communicate about us in the squirrel community? One of them could very well be Tico, but because most fox squirrels look nearly identical, except for their weight, we’re never quite sure. Every time we get an overly friendly one come by our door though, we do wonder.
I found Tico during a difficult time in our lives. Though we were joyous at the birth of our newest son, my father had also passed at that time and much of the world as we knew it was still quite different from the pandemic. Tico brought a lot of fun into our lives and we are thankul for the opportunity we had to care for one of God’s most loveable and fun little creations (my opionion of course). As for my husband, he says I ruined squirrel hunting for him.
Watch our short video below on our first few weeks with “Tico” our Rescue Squirrel.
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