"Angel" A Kitty Who Climbed To Heaven

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It was evening and I noticed a couple of voice messages on the Kat Fone. They were from Wiliam. His neighbor's kitty had been stuck for 7 days in a tree behind his house in Oxford MS, could I help? I called back and arranged to be there the next day. I also contacted Natascha of 9 Lives Cat Rescue Oxford to ask if she could also help. Natascha immediately agreed and said she would be there at 8:00 am the next morning to check out the situation. There was some uncertainty as to when I would be able to arrive, so knowing the situation ahead of time would be good.

The next morning, I received some texts and photos from Natascha outlining the problem. "Angel" was about 50 feet up a sweet gum. Natascha had installed a trap and food at about 20 feet just in case the kitty decided to come down. I was able to break away from my schedule and arranged to be there at noon; Natascha said she would also be there for assistance. After arrival, I introduced myself to William who showed me the tree and kitty. While I was hauling gear to the tree, Natascha arrived. We had never met in person, just via Facebook, so finally being able to shake her hand for all of the good work that 9 Lives does was a nice experience.

With my Bigshot throwbag launcher, I tried hitting a limb just below the kitty but missed twice, and settled for a limb at 40 feet. I soon had a rope installed and started up. When I reached my tie-in point, I attempted sweet talking to Angel but she was not in the mood. Angel immediately climbed another 15 feet and then went out on a limb. Sigh. So that is how it was going to be -- I had been hoping for an easy rescue. Using my lanyards, I climbed another 20 feet (agonizingly slowly I might add) and eventually reached the same height as Angel. About this time, Angel's owner arrived and started calling to Angel. Every time she was called, Angel would give a plaintive little cry but would not move from her spot, which was 10 feet out on a limb. I decided to try the same 'wet-catfood-on-a-stick' trick that had worked so well in a recent rescue. When the cup-of-food reached her, Angle's nose twitched a couple of times and then she went for the food. Angel eagerly followed the food as I withdrew it -- this gal was hungry! She finally reached the trunk and began chowing down on the yummy wet cat food. Her tail was fizzed from navigating the limb but she accepted my scritches. I stroked her a couple of times, and then nabbed her with the Kat bag. That was a relief to both of us; it had been a hard climb. Once on the ground, I handed her off to Natascha who went with the owner to give Angel some food and water. Natascha also arranged for Angel to be spayed within a couple of days through her 9 Lives Vet contacts. I sincerely hope that Angel does not have to climb any more trees in the near future.