What Not to Do When Your Cat Gets Stuck

A 51-year-old woman sprained her ankle trying to retrieve her kitten from a steep slope behind her Silverado Canyon home Monday and needed to be rescued herself by firefighters aboard a helicopter.

The woman scrambled up a ridge about 8 a.m. to help get a newly adopted kitten down from behind her home in the 14900 block of Kitterman Drive, according to Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Steve Concialdi.

The woman, whose name was not immediately released, got to the top of the ridge. But when she started to try to get down, without the cat, she slid about 50 feet, twisting her ankle and suffered bumps, bruises and cuts, Concialdi said.

A firefighter rappelled down to her from a helicopter, the captain said. With ropes, the firefighter and woman were pulled onto the aircraft, which flew them to safety, Concialdi said.

The woman declined to be taken to a hospital, so firefighters drove her home.

“The kitty made its way back down by itself,” Concialdi said. “That’s why we say if a cat gets stuck in a tree or a roof, just put some food down on the ground and when the cat is hungry, it will come back down.”

City News Service; Image: www.flickr.com