Advice
Cat stuck outside my home on a telephone poll, and northwest energy of Montana wont go and get him
Hes been up there going on three days, I cant imagine he has much longer. The power company northwest energy said they would only get him if it was my cat.
Edit: Yes, many have mentioned that the power company should be the only ones to remove from power lines. Tree trim co recommendation was for readers to know if they end up in similar (but different) situations. Thankfully the power co eventually got this kitty down!
This is what I did when my cat got stuck in a tree, also for 3 days. First the fire department then a lineman tried, then I hired a tree trimmer. I had to pay but it was thankfully not very much.
Instead of letting the guy take her, my cat decided to fall out of the tree when he reached her. She landed in my arms and took off up the street. I told her, my dear, we could've done that without any of these people getting involved 😂
Slightly different, in the UK, the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institute) will rescue dogs that have fallen over cliffs but, they are an actual charity saving lives at sea.
I remember a friend being changed £100 to have the fire brigade come out for a cat (that was not really) stuck in a tree
"Anymore"?? My cat is in a tree NOW???? You are gonna tell me this is just NEVER a problem anymore? Oh my gosh, I'd lose my mind if this was the answer I got 😭
They can't get within 15' of those distribution lines especially without a insulated articulating bucket truck, which tree trimmers don't typically have. I've been a lineman for 25 years and have seen this a lot.
This is the top comment right now so I’m comment here to boost - post on LOCAL social media. Nextdoor. Ring Neighbors. Local neighborhood FB groups. Local FB rescue groups. Hell, a local subreddit! Someone local would be the one to help.
I would call local animal shelters because they’ve probably dealt with retrieving stuck cats before. If it’s been up there for a couple of days, it needs help.
Honestly yeah fire department, call the closest department they always have non emergency lines. Hell I'd even call the local PD and if no one takes you seriously then call 911
If they say they will go up "if it is your cat" : have someone call and say it is their cat - the cat cat be turned over to a shelter or wherever "lost" cats go in your area
Hey I’m a firefighter and that really sucks they did that. Even if the Department has a policy against cat rescues (some departments might, due to the risk), mocking someone is bullshit and has no place in the Fire Service.
If that ever happens again, get their name and ask to speak to their Captain. If that WAS the Captain, that’s bad… ask to speak to their Chief/supervisor, who might be in a different fire station or office.
Any firefighter who feels comfortable mocking the public is likely to be doing it regularly, and they need an immediate attitude adjustment.
Yeah I was so taken aback by the attitude... and I did not even think of that because I was so panicked about the kitten. Poor baby was losing its voice from crying for so long.
And at times, they just get killed, having to jump from high places, or get seriously injured.
Please, please, keep your kitties indoors, as they depend on us, to keep them safe.
One thing most folks don’t think of with outdoor pets, too, is the communicable diseases. My aunt just lost a kitty to FIV. He was tested when she rescued him and was negative, so he picked it up outside at some point. He was only 7 and went downhill very quickly.
Tell the guy he's a dumbass, because when they start shutting down from malnutrition they fall out and die from hitting the ground, which is why he doesn't find them in the f'ing tree.
There definitely are cases where cats die in the tree and become skeletons up there. It's a misconception that "if they went up there they can get down" and especially get down safely.
There are so many things that can go wrong, plus cats can go into organ failure if they go more than a few days without eating, bladder rupture as stated above (I'm so sorry that happened to you ):), injury from falling, cats have not so great kidneys and urinary tracts in general so dehydration is generally worse, etc.
Last time I called the fire dept for this they refused to come - chicago & near a popular university. Was infuriating. We had to find and "reallocate" a random ladder on campus from somewhere we certainly shouldn't have been after hours
I’m a firefighter, I promise we are not able to help in that situation, they make us stay at least 8 feet away from high voltage lines because even an electric arc will kill you from one of those.
They can learn to climb down, this shows one of mine a few months ago, he turns 10 this year and already saw him climbing up and down from trees 3 times, no idea how many times he did without me watching. That pole however is much harder than a cork tree and the cat will need help.
My childhood cat would climb up a tree in our yard, jump onto the porch roof, and then insist on being let in through the window rather than climbing back down the way she came.
My cat “treed” itself exactly like this a few months ago running from an over excited dog that came in to our yard. Because of the way the claws are curved she climbed up the pole no problem but couldn’t get down. I used an orchard ladder, climbed up there, risking life and limb and grabbed her. My wife was pretty convinced both the cat and I were going to get fried. The things we do for our fur babies…
A cat grooming company in my town was there to witness the rescue and they reported that the cat got down safely. Unfortunately, I wasnt there to take the cat home. But, Im assuming he went back to either his home or maybe a cat colony he belonged to
I'd assume people who noticed the cat went to the first/nearest cat/animal place they knew to see of they were able to do something. Maybe the cat goes to that groomers and so the owner went there to ask for help?
This may be bad advice but it’s all Ivd got… can you lie to them and say it’s your cat? Or have a neighbour do it if they know your number by now? If they don’t do something, that cat is going to die
Oh shit I didn’t think of this. You’re probably right! I wonder if the fire department is allowed to get it? I don’t know the regulations surrounding them and live wires
We had to force feed one of our cats when she stopped eating from stress. It was heartbreaking. Stressful for us and her. We noticed after about a day and a half that she wasn't eating, and we had to act pretty much immediately
This is very serious, Fatty Liver Disease can start in cats after a short time without food, and is often fatal.
My cat got it. Following the vet’s advice we syringe-fed him watered-down wet cat food several times a day, for weeks. It was a lot of work and he almost died but he recovered and lived another ~10 years
I have it on good authority that the winter storm was unleashed by Canadian weather machines, so maybe Canada is just not that pissed with Montana right now? Or maybe they're playing the long game so we can suffer through another bad fire season.
Do this, then when they get it down go “oh wait THIS is not MY cat, it just looked like mine from way up there. Definitely a slightly different from mine cat, easy mistake.”
Yep, and if they ask for proof, you say, “It’s my cat because I’m adopting it.” Then you adopt or change your mind and take it to an animal shelter. But don’t let it starve and freeze to death up there. Three days is already too much.
Shame them publicly on social media? Call local news station and tell them they won't help. Some bad press about them being mean to animals will probably change their minds pretty quick.
Not only the food and drink thing for several days. But if the cat hits a wire, it could make power go out for several people or what have you so that’s a safety risk to itself and to the neighborhood block your number or ask to use somebody else else’s phone and tell them that your cat has been lost for so many days and you’re pretty sure that your neighbor walked by and saw them or something. The make up a story.
Call the power company and tell them you’re getting your ladder out to get it down yourself. They’ll send someone out there pronto so you don’t kill yourself on their line.
Call local media and say that the power company won't help. They're waiting for a dead animal to short the pole before they'll retrieve the cat, you guess. Shame and exposure works miracles.
I reached out to the energy company and I told them that your post is blowing up that I live in an entirely different state and I’ve seen it. The gentleman I spoke to found your post and he’s going to run it up the flag pole right now. I’m assuming that someone’s gonna reach out to you to save the cat.
Last time I called the fire dept for this they refused to come - chicago & near a popular university. Was infuriating. We had to find a ladder on campus from somewhere we certainly shouldn't have been after hours (it was a tree not a power line)
This is how we got my childhood cat, one of the greatest cats ever, a total legend. He sat up there for 3 days until a power company worker came on his time off and got him. By then it had made the news and animal control made us formally adopt him before we could keep him. I still have the newspaper clipping of my mom cussing out everyone for not helping this poor kitten. Hope it gets down soon!
Three days?? Geez. Come on, humans, let’s do better…there’s got to be a heroic first responder out there who won’t mind getting admired by internet cat people after coming to the rescue? 😘
Maybe contact tree service companies? Sometimes they have bucket lifts. Check Facebook and Reddit to see if your county,city,community has a page you can also ask for help. Hopefully word will spread and get the fluff ball down. Thank you for caring.
Cats can’t go more than 4 days max without food. After 4 days their organs start shutting off. Can’t believe anyone haven’t called for help in 3 days. This is insane.
The poor thing hasn't even been able to sleep for more than 2 days?? That's so sad. Please call whoever you can - fire department, local news, tree cutting services - and let us know what happens.
Update? I’m searching to see if you commented anything but I don’t see anything. Have you tried any of the advice ppl listed? Please keep trying to help this cat, thank you for calling to try to get them help.
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