Squirrels in Hinduism

Squirrels are considered sacred in India and are not to be harmed. They are even fed by many Hindu families. This is mainly because of their association with Lord Rama.

An interesting legend explains the stripes on the back of most of the squirrels. During the construction of the Adi Sethu (bridge) at Rameswaram by Lord Rama and the Vanara Sena , a little squirrel also contributed in its own little way. It rolled in the beach sand and then ran to the end of the Sethu to shake off the sand from its back (chanting Lord Rama's name all along).

Lord Rama, pleased by the creature's dedication, caressed the squirrel's back and ever since, the Indian squirrel carried white stripes on its back, which are believed to be the mark of Lord Rama's fingers.^[6] Lord Rama and the squirrel is mentioned in one of the hymns of the Alvars.

Do the Hindus have a squirrel God similar to Ganesh the elephant or Hanuman the monkey?

Last year sometime, I was standing on my patio smoking at night. The screen door is off track due to settling I guess. Suddenly my cat rounded the corner with something ahead of it. The cat went about 3/4 of the way up the screen door, pulling it loose. I caught the screen door with one hand, then noticed a square thing in the upper corner of the screen door. I picked up the cat and put him inside, and I turned on the outside light. That square thing was a flying squirrel, which then jumped to the patio floor and bounded off.