'Cus it just ain't no thing

Before it was just a squirrel. Now it's a squirrel, leaping giantly from branch to branch, tumbling through trees because he is on a mission, because he has purpose, because he is a pursuer.

But it's still just a squirrel, right? Just a thing; A Thing. So where does this transition from 'it' to 'he' occur? But even after successful personification, he still acts completely mechanical. Am I right? Surely we, as humans, as larger-brained entities, must be slightly--if only that--more than machines.

We are the ultimately personified.