"CoCo" - A Six Day Predicament

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It was mid-morning, when I noticed a text on the Kat Fone. It was from Crystle. Her kitty, "Coco", had been stuck for 6 days, could I help? Crystle had contacted me about a month previously about Coco being stuck in a tree (only 15 feet), but he fell out of the tree the day before the scheduled rescue. This time Coco was in a much worse situation. I called Crystle back, and arranged to meet her husband Marc at the house.

I arrived before Marc, and wandered out back to the forested area where Crystle said Coco was stuck. It was easy to spot him as he was meowing quite loudly. He was about 40 feet up a sweet gum and I saw a good tie-in point at 50 feet. Coco was out about six feet on the limb, which I hoped meant that he would not climb any higher. Marc arrived, and he helped me carry gear out to the tree. While establishing a climbing line, Coco spooked and climbed a couple of limbs up to 45 feet. He was now next to the trunk, and I worried that he might climb even higher. I put on my gear and started climbing. As I neared him, I sweet talked to Coco and offered him food. This seemed to calm him down a bit. I then climbed until I was even with him, and Coco did not budge. I offered my hand and Coco allowed me to scritch him a bit. I then scruffed him and put him in the Kat Bag. Coco did not enjoy this, but he was safe. I handed bag + Coco off to Marc on the ground, who took him inside for food and water. While I was packing up, Marc came back and reported that Coco seemed fine and was busy drinking and eating. I was happy that everything worked out and I hope that Coco stays out of trees in the future.