Once when Clabe Wilson had been hunting, he brought home two young squirrel kits in his pockets. They must have been orphaned as they came readily to him. The Wilsons fed them raw oatmeal and milk.
“My, the kids sure think lots of them and, of course, Dad does, too,” his wife Leora wrote their Navy boys, “and I guess I do, too.” Clabe fixed a box for them and they became family entertainment. The bigger one didn’t last long, maybe from overeating.
They named the survivor Rusty. He hid nuts and other small things in the door of the sewing machine cabinet. He’d grab the pencil or pen from someone writing a letter, and scamper away with it.
Clipping from The [Dexter] Sentinel, Sept. 19, 1934
“‘Rusty,’ a recently acquired pet squirrel, is quite the most important member of the Wilson family in Dexter. The boys found the tiny fellow nearly starved, apparently an orphan, so they brought the hungry baby home, fed him bread and milk, and how he has thrived on these rations. He is especially fond of peaches and will also eat all the bread and butter you will offer him. He climbs all over anyone who will pick him up, nosing into pockets and sleeves in search of any hidden crumbs of food. He is quite the cutest pet we have seen in some time.”
Clabe and daughter Doris, then a teenager, took the Model T truck to gather black walnuts in the timber near Bear Creek. They brought home the load and dried it in the yard before attempting to husk them. Although Rusty began to spend less time with the family, he showed up when Doris cracked walnuts on the back step, and helped himself to the ones she’d already managed to open.
Doris was my mother. Her taste for black walnuts came from those Depression Era days.
Clabe had pulled the top off the Model T truck, calling it their “roadster.” He sold it in late 1934 and the family had no automobile until a job as a tenant farmer in 1939 brought them out of poverty.
Leora Wilson took this photo in late 1934 to send to their “Navy boys,” Delbert and Donald, who enlisted early that year. Clabe, Dale, Danny, Junior, and Rusty. Dale and Danny are holding shotguns. Here is a story about Clabe’s gun rule.
Nelly Murariu used the photo in cover artwork for Leora’s Dexter Stories. I like the way it turned out. I bet the Wilson family would be surprised, and probably pleased as well.
Nelly Murariu of PixBeeDesign has designed the covers for all of the “Leora books” and also Meadowlark Songs. She also lays out the interiors, and for the ebooks as well.
Rusty nosed into pockets and sleeves…and hearts. Ours! All these years later. Sending loads of love to you this morning, Joy. You’ve put a massive smile on my face to start my day. Xo! ❤️
Yes, all these years later. Thank you, Vicki!
🥰❤️🥰
I love the squirrel story. I used to have a pet squirrel.
In the house? How long did you get to keep it?
No, at work. I left it wild, but trained him to crawl up my leg and shirt to get his peanuts. I’d feed him every break, lunch and nighttime and he hung out in the big tree by our lunch bench.
No wonder he hung out near you!
I think I enjoy your stories so much because they evoke a much simpler time. Rusty led the good life!
Thank you so much, Linda.
I’ve never heard of squirrels as pets before. We have several, bounding around the yard and in our trees. They are a pleasure to watch, but I’ve never fed them.
We’ve not made pets of ours, but my Favorite Guy has bought corn to spread on the ground for them to keep them out of the bird feeders. We’ve even had them jump off the roof to get to birdseed!
Adorable squirrel story! They are charming little creatures. My aunt Honey had a chipmunk named Mike that we all loved. 🥰
Thank you, Lori. A chipmunk–what fun!
awe that was cute.
Thanks, Billy!
my pleasure.
That photo is one of my favorites!
Mine as well, Liz.
Having a pet squirrel is amazing to me, Joy. I really like squirrels. I was out hunting deer with my bow once and a squirrel jumped on my leg. When I reacted, turning to see him, he jumped off and ran away.
Well, he didn’t stay long enough for you to give it a name! Memorable nevertheless. . .
[…] A Pet Squirrel on a Book Cover by Joy on Joy Neal Kidney […]
Rusty was adorable-and smart! I love squirrels. When I go for my morning strolls, I stuff my pocket with peanuts and place them below certain trees. By the next morning, only the shells remain. 🙂
Clever squirrels! Thank you, Nancy.
I recently bought this book!
Thank you, Dawn. It’s the most favorite of the readers of the Leora stories. Also mine, even though I didn’t want to listen to the stories when I was a kid. I’m so thankful for the letters, photos, and Grandma Leora’s stories to go along with my mother’s and her oldest brother’s.
[…] the photo, Dale and Danny are both holding guns, but Danny was only 11 so he couldn’t carry one on a […]