Lucki
It was nearing sunset time when Jackie called me to see if I could rescue her cat, Lucki, who was stuck in a tree in her backyard in Abita Springs, Louisiana. Often, people will type a message to me to ask for a rescue, but it is so much better when they call, not only because the exchange of information goes much faster, but also because I can gather much more information about the situation from the caller's voice. I could hear how worried and concerned Jackie was about her cat, and it was easy to hear that this carried more emotional weight than usual. Jackie was very responsive and answered all my questions without hesitation, but when I gave her my usual speech about the risks involved and the remote possibility that her cat could get hurt, I heard a heavy hesitation in her response. While most people readily understand and accept the risks, Jackie was very reluctant to consider that possibility. She understood that reality, but her somber hesitation gave me the impression that the thought of Lucki getting hurt was not something she could bear to consider.
When I arrived the next morning after Lucki's second night in the tree, I met Jackie, and she led me to the backyard and the tall, skinny Oak tree where Lucki was still perched at the top about 40 feet high. While I studied the situation to determine how best to reach Lucki, I asked Jackie several questions about him, and during the conversation, I incidentally learned that Jackie regularly spends time as a patient in the hospital, a fact that she brushed off as normal. I also noticed that she was attached to some kind of medical equipment which she carried with her in a backpack. Whatever her medical condition, it seemed so wrong and incongruent for such a young, healthy-looking woman, and while I had trouble comprehending the unfairness of her situation, Jackie seemed to have accepted it long ago and moved on into a new normal.
Jackie had been checking on Lucki at regular intervals all during the night, so she didn't get much sleep, and she had spent countless hours trying to coax Lucki down during the day. Her commitment to helping him and her bond with him were very clear. This bond began two and a half years ago when she was driving and noticed someone in a pickup truck in front of her toss a plastic bag out the window. She noticed that the bag moved even after it landed on the ground, so she stopped to investigate as the truck sped away. Inside the bag were four kittens. Three of the kittens were dead, and the fourth one was barely alive but had a paralyzed back end. Jackie was not a cat person, but she took the surviving kitten home and cared for him over the weekend and planned to take him to a veterinarian on Monday. The kitten had no control over his bladder and bowel, but Jackie kept him clean and gave him everything he needed. On Monday, the veterinarian suggested euthanasia, but Jackie refused to consider that. She had poured her heart into caring for this kitten over the weekend, and she was not ready to give up. She thought this kitten had a chance, and she was determined to give him that chance. She took him home, cared for him thoroughly, gave him physical therapy for his legs, and in a few weeks, he was walking on his own. After a few more weeks, he was running through the house. He had suffered some kind of permanent damage that caused his eyes to be constantly dilated, but other than that, he developed into a normal kitten. With her optimistic mindset, Jackie named him Lucki, and these two beings have shared a strong and deep bond for two and a half years.
After learning all this and hearing the emotion in Jackie's voice as she told me the story, I knew this was a high-stakes case, and there was nothing that was going to stop me from rescuing Lucki no matter how much trouble was required. Lucki was at the top junction of the skinny stem of his Oak tree, but there was a slightly larger and taller Tallow tree close to it. I chose to climb the Tallow instead so that I could get level with Lucki and also to prevent my climbing movements from shaking his tree and making him more nervous. I wanted to be as careful as possible with him, so I also chose to climb the tree in a slow, methodical way instead of shooting my line high up in the tree close to him which would likely frighten him.
Despite all the care I put into my approach to Lucki, he was still afraid of me once I got close to him. He wanted to move away from me, but his options there in the top of the tree were very limited, and he was unable to move from his uncomfortable spot. I reassured him as best I could, but he didn't relax until I reached out and gave him some gentle pets. At that point he began to feel safe, and he relaxed even more as I spent a few minutes with him to earn his trust. Even though he is a frequent lap-sitter at home, I had trouble getting him to step on my lap where I had prepared the cat bag. It took the allure of a squeeze-tube treat and some persistence to get him to step fully on my lap, and once he did so, I secured him inside the bag.
Once we reached the ground, Jackie came over to hold Lucki in the bag while I detached it from my harness. She held him close and pressed her face against him and then carried him back to the house while talking sweetly to him. After releasing him inside, she came back out to return the bag to me and thank me. She thanked me repeatedly, but I could sense that she felt that simply saying "thank you" several times was inadequate for expressing the immense gratitude and relief that she felt. That's okay, Jackie. I understand, and I know what this rescue means to you without your having to say it. That is why I do this, and just knowing that your deep bond is restored is all the thanks I want. My reward and joy is knowing that Lucki will be sleeping on or beside you again tonight as he always does because he knows that is the safest and most loving place in the world to be. Trusting me with his welfare was the highest honor and the most meaningful gift that you could have given me.
