Sweet Pea the squirrel

Our Adventures with Sweet Pea the squirrel

A neighbour found this red squirrel half starved and abandoned at the park. Not willing to give up on the little guy I decided to try and give him a fighting chance. After a bit of research I found a suitable food substitute and took to feeding him every couple of hours for the first few weeks. Once fed, I soon learned, they also needed to be prompted to defecateand urinate until they developed. Not the most glamorous task by any means! He quickly recovered the weight he had lost and began to explore his new surroundings.

Sweet Pea waking up in my toque he made a fine nest out of.

Needless to say wild creatures know no boundaries. Their ability to climb anything and jump incredible distances meant nothing that peaked his curiosity was out of reach. Their tendency to hoard things also had me daily searching for my chisels and other small items. Trying to keep a creature so small,curious and agile under control is not the easiest of tasks.

Videos of Sweet Pea getting into mischief

Sweet Pea trying to get into my Timmies. Thankfully he never managed to get any for all his struggles.

If you ever wanted to quit smoking a little friend like this can be a helpful motivator.

Once he was old enough to fend for himself I slowly began introducing him to the outside world.

I made a carrier out of a small pouch, designed to carry dog treats, where he would nestle in to and poke his head out to peer around.

At first the light, noise and activity around him kept him stuck to me like glue as he took it all in, but slowly he began to venture out on his own and explore his new world

With numerous natural predators in the area I was at first worried he wouldn't last long but his aggressive nature son took hold and he was running the other squirrels out of the yard.

One of the favourite memories I have of him getting out of his own was his first jaunt from his pouch.

I had gone to the local library to get a book. While reaching to pick it from the shelves he ran up my arm and pounced on to the shelves. Another patron looked on in a mix of astonishment and perhaps horror as Sweet Pea started to run towards him.

Luckily with a quick chirp call, which I had imprinted on him, he reversed direction and retuned to the pouch at my hip.

With a sheepish smile I apologized to the gentleman bid him good evening and beat a hasty retreat.

That was only one of the many antics this type of animal can get up to believe me.

Sweet Pea being introduced outside