About squirrels

This is a true story.

A woman called a local wildlife rehabilitation center to ask for advice. She told the rehab employee that she’d found a baby squirrel on the ground beneath a nest, and she’d put the baby back in the nest, but the mother squirrel pushed it out again.

“What should I do?” she asked, on the verge of tears.

The rehab person explained that sometimes a mother will abandon or remove one of her young if it is sickly or she’s unable to care for it adequately in order to devote her energies to the young that will thrive. The staffer also noted that people should call the center first before they do anything, since sometimes the mother will reject a baby that has human scent on it. Since the caller had already handled the baby, though, the staffer suggested that she try one more time to return the baby to the nest.

The caller said she would do so.

An hour later, the caller was back on the line, in tears, saying the mother had once again booted out the baby.

“Bring it to us, and we’ll see what we can do,” the staff person said.

When the caller showed up at the center with the baby, it was all the rehab person could do not to laugh out loud.

The baby was a rabbit.

Not a squirrel.

“That would explain why the mother kept pushing it out of the nest,” the staffer commented.

This story tells me two things: 1. Some people can’t tell the difference between a bunny and a squirrel (some outdoor time might be a good idea there!);  and 2. I think like a squirrel. I wouldn’t want another species taking up residence in my house, either.  They’d eat different foods than I do. Their behaviors would seem weird to me. Their hours of activity would be the opposite of mine.

I think I just described new high school graduates.

Maybe I need to take a page from the squirrel’s parenting handbook…