Wakeman, with help from her mother, Elena, has spent about three years providing orphan squirrels with the treatment and care they need before being released again into the wild.

“Being able to let them go is so great,” Wakeman said. “Some of the cases are so sad because the mothers have died and the babies are malnourished, and you’re able to put them back in the wild just like they were.”

When an orphaned squirrel is reported in her family’s area, Wakeman said she’ll receive a page from a representative with Friends of Wildlife, an Ann Arbor-based organization that rehabilitates raccoons, rabbits, foxes, deer and other native animals.

With the organization’s clearance, Wakeman and her mother arrange a location to pick up the animal, which is usually no more than 14 weeks old, from the person who spotted it.

Initial treatment includes warming the animal with hand warmers, followed by hydrating the animal and treating ant bites and minor injuries.

Receiving the animal too late is a common occurrence, however.

“When they don’t make it, you can tell because they start showing it right away,” Wakeman said. “You do everything you can, but it’s hard.”

The second major step, Wakeman said, is introducing the animal to formulas and soft foods.

Once they reach 12-14 weeks old, the animals develop a fear of humans and must be kept outdoors and fed only at night, she said.

The squirrel is finally released into the Wakemans’ backyard when the animal reaches close to 16 weeks old.

“It’s a significant time commitment,” Elena Wakeman said. “It takes several weeks and you have to be real careful with the squirrels’ living conditions.”

Gail Jarskey, vice chairperson on the Friends of Wildlife Board of Directors, said potential rehabilitators can treat animals by taking a basic workshop, a species-specific class and be approved by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Wakeman said working individually with the squirrels is rewarding, although she spends relatively little time with the squirrels before they are released.

“From a young age they show a lot of love in them, and you see the different personalities coming through,” she said.