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Squirrel Foils Attempted Theft

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

Imagine a home security system that costs acorns. Teenager broke into a home in Meridian, Idaho, this week. And when he tried to break into a gun safe in the house, he got scratched by Joey, a pet squirrel. Joey's holed up in the home of Adam Pearl of Meridian since he was found in a flower garden about six months ago. He hasn't been trained as a security squirrel but reportedly, trained himself to use a litter box. He eats nuts, greens and spinach. A lot of us could stand to be on the same diet as Joey.

Adam Pearl said he'd planned to release Joey into his backyard this spring. But after Joey foiled a burglar, he says, I'm kind of torn. He told KIVI in Boise, nobody can believe it because who can say they have a squirrel that guards their house?

(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "SECRET SQUIRREL ")

UNIDENTIFIED SINGER: What an agent. What a squirrel. He's got the country in a whirl. What's his name? Secret Squirrel. He's got tricks up his sleeve most bad guys won't believe - a bullet proof coat, a cannon hat, machine gun cane with a rat tat tat tat. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

Scott Simon is one of America's most admired writers and broadcasters. He is the host of Weekend Edition Saturday and is one of the hosts of NPR's morning news podcast Up First. He has reported from all fifty states, five continents, and ten wars, from El Salvador to Sarajevo to Afghanistan and Iraq. His books have chronicled character and characters, in war and peace, sports and art, tragedy and comedy.