vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

We don't have any old growth forests near me, but there are a few small patches of second growth forest. The closest one has lots of nice big oaks (about 150 years old) with very little undergrowth and very few lower limbs. I love climbing a little above the first few limbs and sitting there "invisible" to the people and other critters below me. A black climbing line helps. There are several trails through the woods, and they are pretty popular. It's a fun way to people watch on a nice day, or a fun way to critter watch if I'm the only one in the woods on a "less than nice weather" day.
 
Where do you find cats that are stuck in trees though? I've never actually seen one in a tree.

Call your local tree care companies and let them know

SPCA and animal sanctuaries are a good place to leave a business card / poster

Fire departments and local animal control outlets will also happily refer you

Lastly ... Start up a Facebook page or join Cat in a Tree Rescue ran by Dan KrausScreenshot_20191214-124024.webp
 
I started a while back. After I'd done some local rescues through friend connections I realized it was a needed service. I had my info placed on Dan Kraus' national cat rescue directory. From there I've had many calls, one through Dan's site was for a neighbor of mine a few houses away! I've had many rescues from Dan's site in my town and nearby towns. Eventually I got on local town's police/fire/animal control officer radar. Now the dispatchers refer calls directly to me, I didn't have to ask them. Word gets around. Now animal rehabbers know about me so I get calls for things that are not cats. I've got a parrot, raccoon and great horned owl and more than a few drones in my rescue history.

I'm an overflow rescue resource for the Animal Rescue League of Boston, they've been invaluable, have lent me traps etc., brainstormed rescues etc. Their rescue team leader has seen many dead cats in trees, my number 1 backup when people (often) say "I've never seen a dead cat in a tree, it'll come down on its own". Some cats do come down on their own, many cats won't. I've rescued some who were near the end of their life "tether" when I got to them.

A big part of this "managing" the person who requests the rescue. Sometimes people will call a half hour after the cat goes up, I do a lot of phone "counseling" to help them calm down.

Posted this a couple years ago, parrot rescue, two day process including heavy downpours, lightning while I was up in a white pine chasing the bird on the first day. Then a home on fire with full on emergency response next to the parrot owner's place just before I was about to climb on the second day and make the final grab ;-) Dealing with an intoxicated young man with a length of pipe in hi hand, something to do with a neighbor dispute related to the fire, what a day! You never know what's going to happen next when you go out on a rescue.

I didn't have a helmet cam on but this captures the feel of it all. For some dumb reason I wasn't wearing a helmet, I was in a mood the second day, not much sleep, parrot owner had relocated the bird and called me 4:30 AM:


-AJ
 
I started climbing recreationally to get over my fear of heights. I found it fun but after the initial challenge, there was no more challenge that was worth the risk. Then I discovered cat rescues. I rescue kitties in tree, drones also, just for the fun and challenge. Cats makes me do things that I would not ordinarily do, like extreme limb walking, climbing to the tip tops of trees and branches, and high lining. I have attempted more than 250 cat rescues and been 100% successful.
Sorry to say, I would rethink this whole cat rescue or atleast add or supply the info regarding cats and the environment
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/moral-cost-of-cats-180960505/
 
Sorry to say, I would rethink this whole cat rescue or atleast add or supply the info regarding cats and the environment
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/moral-cost-of-cats-180960505/

I’m a birder and naturalist, i’m aware of all that and more. Most outdoor and feral cats know how to back down a tree (the only way a cat can safely get down), it’s the pampered all indoor cats who escape who mostly get in trouble in trees. They are not the ones problematic for wildlife.
-AJ
 
Loved being, i understand but the potential for a cat to beget more cats, is there, is it not?
Propogating to the evil in a natural world. "Oh its OK" says the next neighbour my cat likes to go out to. It is poor argument.
No different then a prized Buckthorn in some ones yard and the eventual loss of a valuable ecosystem.
 
Loved being, i understand but the potential for a cat to beget more cats, is there, is it not?
Propogating to the evil in a natural world. "Oh its OK" says the next neighbour my cat likes to go out to. It is poor argument.
No different then a prized Buckthorn in some ones yard and the eventual loss of a valuable ecosystem.

Yep, built in problem, like many that humans have created to screw up the planet. Cat rescue has nothing to do with whether cats reproduce or not. Cat rescue is about helping people get their pet back, it's more about taking care of people than cats. If you don't like people owning cats then go argue with them ;-)
-AJ
 
You missed my point.
We have a responsibility to share the information.
No arguement, wrong is wrong

Of course you understand you do face an argument when you try to convince an outdoor cat owner that their beloved pussycat is a rapacious recreational killer.

Everything is clear cut then it isn't. Like my father-in-law's elderly diabetic cat that became mine when he died. The old cat was partially crippled from being stepped on. Was not capable of killing things. He started out as an abandoned/feral urban mill cat, likely consumed many mice and rats in his prime. Spent his last years sniffing the daisys, breathing clear forest air and being my good buddy. Many people have these kinds of relationships with their pets. They wouldn't be calling me if they didn't. I keep that in mind when I'm doing cat rescues.

Climbers who don't like cats don't rescue them and don't have to ever get involved.

Mr. Ba chilling in his retirement years...

26317600883_b6b334af8a_b.jpg


-AJ
 
Last edited:
Of course you understand you do face an argument when you try to convince an outdoor cat owner that their beloved pussycat is a rapacious recreational killer. . .
Similar denial is there with dog owners too. I used to work on Mac computers and made house calls here in this rural county. For dogs, it was just like being a postman. I don't know how many countless times I heard, 'Oh, I don't know what got into him; he has NEVER bitten anyone. He is SO sweet.'. Worst I was ever attacked was a sodding chihuahua, the piranha of the dog World. Went around my ankle like a can opener with its little razor sharp teeth; I needed seven stitches.
 

New threads New posts

Kask Stihl NORTHEASTERN Arborists Wesspur TreeStuff.com Teufelberger Westminster X-Rigging Teufelberger
Back
Top Bottom