Firefighters ‘left cat to starve up tree for days’ before tree surgeons saved it

A cat owner whose “normally indoor” cat managed to get stuck up a giant tree was told by both the Fire Brigade and the RSPCA that they couldn’t help.

But after the “distressed” moggy had been stranded for three days, an appeal on Facebook came to the attention of a firm of friendly tree surgeons who solved the problem in a jiffy.

Sabrina the cat was up a tree that was "bigger than a three-storey house” in Hull city centre but when her worried owner called the local fire brigade for help, she says, they told her the job was "too complicated".

A Humberside Fire and Rescue spokesperson later told Hull Live that they had been unable to use their aerial platform or ladder due to the tree's location.

The worried owner said: "My cat got out. She’s normally an indoor cat. I went out and found her high up in the tree so I rang fire engines and they said I'd have to ring RSPCA before they could help but when I rang no one answered me.

"I waited until the next morning and rang up and they said I'd have to leave her for 24 hours to which I explained it had already been two days.

"They said they couldn’t do anything until the next day so I’ll just have to leave her but she was in distress. They rang me back on the third day and some lady came out.

According to Sabrina's owner, the woman from the RSPCA was due at 10am the following day, but turned up three hour late and immediately told her to call the fire brigade.

This time, three fire engines responded to the call, but a firefighter said that they were unable to help because the job was "too complicated."

Beginning to get concerned for the welfare of her cat, and after having no luck with the RSPCA or Fire Brigade, the owner took to Facebook to plead for help.

"I wrote a Facebook status saying my cat was stuck and if anyone could help me which got over 150 comments from lovely people offering suggestions to help me out.

"Not Just Pet Rescue in Hull offered to pay a tree surgeon if I could get one because they are like £150. Everyone was lovely. I finally got in touch with one – Access Tree Care – who came out had a look.

"All four lads were lovely and so funny. They got their ladders and harnesses and had her down within 10 minutes. They also did it for free."

The owner said the entire street then came together to celebrate the rescue.

"My street came out to watch because everyone heard her meowing for days as she was scared – when they got her down everyone outside was clapping. There really is some lovely people out there."

A spokesperson for the fire service said: "We were unable to site the aerial platform due to the location of the tree and we were also unable to use our bigger 13.5m ladder due to the position of the tree. We left the incident with the RSPCA."

The Daily Star has reached out to the RSPCA for comment.

Source: Read Full Article

Previous post What the US and 4 Other Countries Are Spending on a Vaccine Rollout
Next post Leah McSweeney didn’t want ‘RHONY’ fans to know she had alcohol issues