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Behind every great rodent

A Deltona woman spends her days training Twiggy, a waterskiing squirrel that is her baby.

By A ssociated Press SARA KIESLER
Published November 6, 2006

DELTONA - Inside any celebrity's home, you would expect to find gourmet foods, a cushy bed, privacy and plenty of exercise equipment.

For Twiggy the waterskiing squirrel, it's no different.

Though it sounds like a child's cartoon, the waterskiing squirrel is Lou Ann Best's life - and her bread and butter.

Owner, trainer and squirrel mom, Best looks around the gorgeous lakeview room in the home she bought last year. Here, the veteran star Twiggy and her understudy Twiglet sleep on brightly colored cushions. To the right of their cages sit bowls of sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, pecans and pistachios.

Like the classic tale of rags to riches, the first Twiggy fell from his nest and into the lives of Best and husband, Chuck, after Hurricane David hit Central Florida in 1979.

The couple, then living in Sanford, took in the Florida gray squirrel. As a joke, Chuck Best, who owned a skating rink with his wife, trained Twiggy to spread his little toe claws on a set of squirrel-sized skis and follow behind a remote-controlled boat.

Local newspapers propelled the squirrel to instant fame, and Twiggy has since earned a steady income in Dunkin' Donuts commercials, boat shows, bank openings and glossy magazine covers.

[Last modified November 6, 2006, 15:00:50]