ViralHogA kind-hearted woman dedicated herself to caring for an injured baby squirrel, and made a ‘best friend for life’ in the process.
When Sheila Mattie’s friend rang to say he’d found two baby squirrels in need of some TLC, the caring woman knew just what to do.
One of the squirrel babies had suffered a broken paw, and Sheila knew he would need her undivided attention. She gave the girl squirrel to her friend Kristen and took the injured boy squirrel home with her.
Sheila named the adorable critter Crash Bandipoop, and under her watchful eye he ‘got better and better’.
During the time Crash spent with Sheila, he proved to be a sociable little chap; spending time hanging out with Sheila’s sister, five-year-old daughter and even her Great Pyrenees dog, Diesel.
Sheila said:
He even jumped on Diesel’s face once and of course I raised a good dog so he let Crash jump on him like a jungle gym.
I fed Crash so much stuff while he was in my care he tried all kinds of new things. But no matter where he adventured off to in my care he would never be more than five feet away from me. He always had to know where I was and if I wasn’t around he freaked out!
His favorite spot to sleep was in my bra, and to be honest he even came to work with me the whole time I had him. Nobody knew I had a baby squirrel sleeping sound in my bosom! Actually, my dad still doesn’t know I had the squirrel in the house! Oh well, he’ll find out when he sees this video.
Fortunately, little Crash soon regained his strength all thanks to the loving, gentle nature of his human foster mummy.
Healed and ready for an adventurous life in the wild, Sheila knew it was time to cut the apron strings and let her tiny buddy roam free.
However, Crash wasn’t about to say goodbye to his loyal best friend. One week after Sheila released him in her backyard, he returned for a catch-up and has been visiting her every day since.
Sheila said:
Finally he was jumping around like a psycho so I knew it was time to release him. I couldn’t think to just let him go anywhere so I let him go in my backyard.
After not seeing him for a week I was sure he was a goner but then one day after I had a horrible day I came outside to him waiting for me on my back porch. He jumped right on me no problem and has no come back every single day since. He loves his mama! And I have a best friend for life!
Sheila’s story quickly went viral, with many people warming to the friendship between a woman and her squirrel. One person described the unlikely bond as ‘beautiful and touching’ while another said it was ‘awesome’.
It just goes to show how friendship can be found in some truly unexpected places. If only more people could be as lovely as Sheila, the world could be a much cuddlier place!
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.