Sylvester, Cheech and Squeaks

I have fallen far behind in reporting my rescues, and I want to get back on track starting with these three rescues from early-to-middle November. The first one is Sylvester, a sweet black and white boy who, at 13 years old, is unusually old for a tree rescue. He was stuck in a dense Cedar tree next to his house in Pride, Louisiana for three nights, and, despite his reputation for not liking strangers, he was very happy to see me. I am especially grateful for his patience with me as I took so much time weaving myself around all the many small limbs to reach him and preparing to secure him in the cat bag. He and his family are all very happy now that he is back down on the ground and safely inside his home again.

The next rescue was for Cheech, a three-year-old black kitty, who was stuck in a tree for one night in Duson. In my rush to get him down before sunset, I failed to think about turning on the camera and got no pictures or video of him. While access to his tree was less than convenient, his rescue went well because of his cooperative nature, and he was safely home just before sunset.

 

The third rescue was for Squeaks, a pitiful one-year-old kitty who was stuck high in a tree next to her house in Denham Springs for seven long days. It is painful for me to remember this rescue, because, while she deserved a swift, gentle rescue, she got a long trauma instead. She was almost 50 feet high and out on a limb just out of my reach. We made friends, and I could just barely touch her, but I was not close enough to grab her. I offered her some food, and she was happy to have it, but I could not get her to come any closer to me. When I put the food in the back of the carrier and held that in front of her, then she became frightened and walked out to the extreme end of the limb. There she slipped off the limb but managed to hold on with her front paws. I felt helpless. She was beyond my reach, and if I were to try to go out there closer to her, my movement would shake the limb and cause her to fall. I was relieved when she managed to regain her composure and pull herself back up on top of the limb. After all that excitement, I could not gain her trust again and get her to come any closer to me.

I had to resort to using the rescue pole to get her, and that went well until just before I was ready to place her into the net I had ready and waiting. That is when I noticed she was slipping out of the noose. She slipped out before I could get her safely into the net, and she fell all the way to the ground while glancing off a few limbs along the way. She immediately ran to the back yard and came inside the house just a few minutes later. She was fine, but I sure felt sick. I continue to be amazed at the cat's ability so often to handle such hard falls with no apparent injury. Her family assured me that she is fine, but I continue to re-live the rescue in my mind and try so hard to make it end better.