Squirrel, Interrupted

Around the second week of July, when I was enjoying morning coffee on the front porch, I noticed a squirrel scampering on the other side of the driveway with one of his rear legs cocked up rather high. He was hustling on just three legs. It didn't seem to impair his mobility much but it certainly looked unfortunate and painful.

Fast forward to July 16, the afternoon I drove in from a principals' retreat being held in Chapel Hill. Cyprus managed to zero in quickly on this same squirrel, who was not doing as well as he had been. He kept her at bay by scurrying under bushes and climbing up under the tiller, and then heading into a drainpipe, and then perching on the struts under my car. But eventually he ran out of steam which allowed me to grab him with gloves.

Here's where I'm looking for Donna Whitley-Smith to allow me a bit back into her good graces: I called Wildlife Rehab, Inc., here in Winston-Salem, and they directed me to a vet they work with and told me to take the squirrel in. I did so that very afternoon, but I fear they probably had only one choice for it: to euthanize the poor little rascal. I think I was seeing raw exposed tendons and a hugely swollen rear leg. But the little guy's fighting spirit and will to live were most impressive.