Frida

Frida is a super-friendly kitty. She is so friendly that her owner, Nick, was often afraid that strangers would take her home with them. Sounds like the ideal kind of kitty to rescue. This rescue is going to be easy.

Wrong!

Just like Beerus who I had rescued just minutes earlier, Frida went out to the end of a limb on a Pine tree in her yard in Abita Springs and would not budge. Unlike Beerus, nothing I did reassured her or convinced her to come toward me even a little bit. I don't know why this friendly girl got so scared, but nothing I did eased her fear.

From the ground, I could see her silhouette at the end of the limb, but, once I was in the tree, I could not see her at all because the foliage blocked my view. Even when I went out the skinny limb as far as I dared, I could see only her pointed ears, and she was still far out of my reach. I decided to go back down to the ground so she would feel less threatened and, hopefully, walk back up the limb to the trunk.

I waited a good while, but Frida did not budge. I could not use the rescue pole, because I could not see her well enough to slip the noose around her, especially without snaring unwanted parts of the tree as well. I discussed the options with Nick to see how he wanted to proceed, and, in the end, we decided to cut the limb and force her to fall while Nick and Misty held a blanket beneath her to catch her. I cut the limb very slowly so that the limb would slowly droop, but, as often happens with Pine, the limb suddenly snapped free. Frida fell straight for the blanket that Nick and Misty were holding taut, and she landed perfectly in the center and then ran off to hide. The risky maneuver worked perfectly, Frida was down and unharmed, and Nick and Misty were elated. Frida hid until well after I left and then returned to the safety and comforts of her loving home.

Unfortunately, I got no close pictures of Frida because I simply could not see her, and then I forgot to turn my camera on for her final fall into the blanket.