Rescued cat safe to rethink its life choices postpost
A DUNEDIN moggie marooned atop a lamp post was rescued by an animalloving firefighter yesterday.
Maryhill resident Amy Kempin phoned 111 after her father saw the cat stranded up the pole near Forfar St, in Clyde Hill, about noon.
The black and white cat was visibly distressed, meowing anxiously as it peered down in search of an escape route.
‘‘It was very upset . . . I thought it was just chilling up there but it definitely wasn’t,’’ Ms Kempin said at the scene.
‘‘It’s got a nice view though.’’
A crew from Roslyn Fire Station arrived shortly after noon.
Senior firefighter Sonia Evers scaled a ladder, picked up the worried cat with one hand and carried it back to safety.
Another crew member was senior firefighter Aaron Col lins, on his first day of station officer training.
He reckoned his colleague’s experience as an operational Land Search and Rescue dog handler helped make the rescue a success.
‘‘She’s very good with animals, so that helps.’’
Mr Collins said he had been deployed to help several stuck cats in his career, but they were usually up trees, not poles.
Noone on scene knew the cat’s owner, but it was wearing a collar, and appeared wellfed and in good health.