An Oakville paddle boarder braved fast-moving water to save the life of a tiny squirrel in the Ottawa River.
A video posted to YouTube on Monday shows paddle boarder Thomas Paterson, 22, who was on his board in a fast-flowing section of the river when he noticed a red squirrel stranded on a rock.
He swam over and tried to goad the squirrel into hopping onto his board, but the spooked animal jumped into the water and was carried away by the current.
Paterson, who captured the entire rescue on a head-mounted Go Pro camera, plucked the squirrel from the current and placed it gently on his board, then swam to the river bank to allow the squirrel to scamper off to safety.
