On November 16, the Sheriff's Office received a call about a puppy that
had been thrown out of a truck. The puppy turned out to be a baby squirrel
just 15 days old. The Sheriff's Office then called St. Johns Wildlife Care.

 Volunteer Rhonda Williams was given the task to raise and release the
young squirrel. The squirrel was in pretty good shape, a girl, and was later
named Pawney. On February 20, 1999, Pawney was released in Rhonda's backyard, and like many squirrels before her, she chose to stay nearby. The beginning of August is the season for squirrel births. Rhonda had often seen Pawney and could tell she was a new mother.

 On September 15, 1999, two days before Hurricane Floyd, Rhonda walked out of her back door to find Pawney acting very nervous with her baby nearby. As Rhonda moved closer to investigate Pawney and her baby, Pawney jumped on her shoulder while her baby crawled into her hands. She decided to take them to her back porch to weather the storm. She carried them onto her back porch and offered them a cage. Pawney went immediately in and started preparing a nest for her baby.

 After the storm had passed, Rhonda opened the cage door, and out went
Pawney, down the rail and into a tree. Rhonda watched her gather materials
for a nest for over an hour, and after Pawney finished, she returned to the
porch and retrieved her baby. Both Pawney and her baby are still doing quite
well.