The panting feline was being attacked by crows in the heatwave
The RSPCA and firefighters rescued a cat who was stuck precariously on the roof of a property in Thornaby.
Cotton landed in trouble after climbing out of a skylight window at her home in Thornaby Road in the North Yorkshire town in the early hours of June 14. The white cat wandered across neighbouring terrace roof tops and, after her owner tried unsuccessfully to lure her back in by placing treats near to the window, the RSPCA was contacted.
The distressed feline was panting in the soaring heat and cowering in the shade of a chimney stack, while her owner said she was also having to dodge the unwanted attention of crows flying around the roof space.
RSPCA inspector Christine Nisbet, who attended the incident later that morning, enlisted the support of Cleveland Fire Brigade to help the cat.
An aerial platform was deployed by fire officers so they could get near to the chimney stack, but it was only when Cotton moved down to a lower-level roof that one of the firefighters was able to grab hold of her from the top of a ladder, place her in a bag and bring her down to safety.
Inspector Nisbet said: “Cotton was too frightened to come down, despite lots of coaxing from her owners, and it was boiling hot which is why we were so concerned for her. She was trying to take some shade next to the chimney and was panting, and being a white cat she would have been prone to having her ears burnt by the sun. At first the firefighters couldn’t reach her with their ladders, so they had to request specialist equipment. They got quite close to her, but there was a gap and she shot down the other side of the roof.
“Ladders were put up at the back of the property and thankfully she was brought down. We can’t thank the fire officers enough for their help. Their help is invaluable in rescuing cats stuck at these sorts of heights, given the specialist equipment and expertise they have. It’s a great reminder of what we can achieve together for animal welfare.”
Cotton emerged unscathed from her ordeal and was reunited with her grateful owner.
The RSPCA works closely with the emergency services and is incredibly grateful for any help it receives. The charity can request the help of the fire and rescue service and some crews use animal rescues for training, but emergencies involving people always take priority.
The RSPCA’s new Kindness Index reveals that while we are a nation of animal lovers – animal welfare is threatened by a behaviour gap between people’s desire to be kind to animals and the impact of their everyday choices. The RSPCA wants to re-energise the nation’s love and activism for animals – and has launched a new ‘Kindness Quiz’ to help people understand what more they can do to create a country, and world, that is kinder to animals of all shapes and sizes. Members of the public can take the RSPCA’s Animal Kindness Quiz online.
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