Cat Rescue Guy

The cry that ten-month-old Phoenix made from up in the tree was so distressed that I thought she was losing her footing and feared falling, but, no, she was on a comfortable limb freely moving about. She was simply tired of being stuck in the tree in her neighbor's yard in Slidell, and she wanted everyone to know about it and do something about it. Now! She was only 30 feet high, but she was in a spot that was awkward for me to reach. Once I was close enough to reach out to her, she sniffed my hand and eventually let me pet her, but she didn't trust me enough to come any closer to me. From the way she looked at the carrier as I pulled it up, I got the sense that she was not comfortable with it, so I did not even attempt to give her a chance to step inside it lest I scare her farther away. The awkward position I was in made it impossible to make a lap for her, so I prepared the cat bag on my arm, inched close enough to pet her better, grabbed her by the scruff and pulled the bag...

This is Finch, a two-year-old, black kitty in Saucier, Mississippi, who got spooked up a tree and couldn't figure out how to come back down. He was stuck there for one night, and Isabella, the sweet, nine-year-old daughter of the family, has a special bond with Finch and was very worried about him. Finch was only 25 feet high, and he was sweet enough to make his rescue fairly easy. He wasn't afraid of me when I approached him, and he sniffed my hand and let me pet him. Isabella told me that he comes running to her when he hears her open a can of cat food, so I decided to use that to my advantage. Finch loves to eat, so I opened a can of food and placed it in the back end of the carrier. Finch stepped inside the carrier, and I closed the door and brought him down. I gave him to Isabella whose bright, beaming smile was just what I love to see and all I needed to make the long drive so worth it.

Thanks to all the kitties who did not get stuck in a tree for the past couple weeks, I have enjoyed a break from the rescues. But ReyRey got me back in the saddle again, and I enjoyed rescuing this sweet two-year-old boy in Denham Springs, Louisiana. He was stuck 25 feet high in a slim tree for two nights, and his mom, Lacey, had been very worried about him. ReyRey made the rescue easy for me. He welcomed me, sniffed my hand, let me pet him, and then he stepped onto my lap where I pulled the cat bag up around him. He is safe at home now with a new appreciation for the luxuries of indoor life.

One of the questions about cat rescue that I am most frequently asked is, "What is the highest you have had to climb to rescue a cat?" I now have a new answer to that question. Thanks to Luna, the answer to that question now is 100 feet. Rescues above 100 feet are fairly common in the Pacific Northwest where they have many super-tall conifers, but down here in south Louisiana, most of my rescues are between 20 and 40 feet. We have some very tall Pines here, but one-year-old Luna is the first of my rescue kitties actually to climb one and go all the way to the top. Luna's owner, Mary, was not pleased, and I could hear the distress and frustration in her voice when she called that evening. Mary actually told me on the phone that her cat was 100 feet high in the tree, but I just brushed that off because it is rare that anyone estimates even close to the actual height. She was right on the money. Except for the extra exercise I got, the rescue was pretty easy. Luna waited for...

You can't see her in this picture because of the foliage, but, even if the foliage were not there, it would still be difficult to see her, because her tortie colors blend with the tree so well. But the red circle marks the spot where I found a sweet, little angel. This eight-month-old, long-hair beauty with the un-angelic name of Scrounge was stuck in this tree in Baker, Louisiana for four nights, and she was so ready for rescue and so trusting of me that this was my quickest rescue ever. She came to me as soon as I appeared at her branch, and she needed no introductions or sniff of my hand.  I rushed to spread the cat bag over my lap, and then all I had to do was pick up this docile tiny ball of fluff, place her on my lap, spend a few seconds visiting with her, and then pull the bag up around her. She was trusting, gentle, and relaxed the whole time. She is now safe and comfortable in her loving home, and I am still glowing from the joy of meeting her and rescuing her.  The t...