Thumbelina the squirrel was only the size of a walnut when her parents found her

They say the best things come in small packages, and that’s certainly true for Thumbelina (@little_thumbelina_girl) the squirrel! The pint-sized pet of Michael and Christina brings joy to her many fans on social media, and makes more of a difference to their lives than she’ll ever know.

Michael and Christina rescued Thumbelina when she was just a couple of hours old. “We just fell in love with her,” Christina tells In The Know. “She’s our baby.”

Thumbelina started her rehabilitation journey just like all of Michael and Christina’s other squirrel fosters, but they noticed that she wasn’t hitting milestones, like jumping and climbing, along with the other babies.

“She didn’t develop the survival skills that squirrels need,” explains Michael. “So we sort of embraced it, and she’s just a part of our family now,” says Christina.

When it comes to Thumbelina’s name, it came when the squirrel was just 2 days old and could fit in a walnut shell, which is what the fairy tale character after whom she’s named used as a bed.

And though she may be small, Thumbelina was made for the big screen of social media. It all started when—like any proud pet parents—Michael and Christina had thousands of photos and videos of Thumbelina in their phones. “We found it funny so we were like, maybe somebody else will find it funny,” admits Christina. Then, they started sharing their favorite Thumbelina moments online, and the squirrel’s social media presence quickly grew.

“I think we enjoy sharing her with everyone because of the response that we get, [like] ‘She’s so cute,’ and ‘We love watching her every day,’ but then we started to get ones from people who were going through some tough times,” shares Michael.
While she may just be living her fabulous little squirrel life, Thumbelina has a big effect on her fans. “We had a woman who was sick with cancer, or somebody that’s lost a loved one, or even if it’s just a birthday wish, you just feel like you’re doing something to help people by being able to share her,” Christina elaborates. “Somehow in some weird way, you’re making a difference in people’s lives.”

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