Cat rescued after two days stuck up tree

A firefighter tries to reach the cat, while owner Briar-Rose Paton looks on, below. Photo / Geroge Novak

Firefighters were called in to rescue a cat that had been stuck up a tree for two days.

When they tried to reach it the moggy "freaked out" and jumped to another tree before falling to the ground and running off.

Distraught owner Briar-Rose Paton was so desperate to get her moggy Toby back she called the fire brigade.

Ms Paton said her 4-year-old cat had been missing for two days before discovering it was trapped up a neighbour's tree.

"I feel so bad he's been up there all last night [Saturday] and I could hear him meowing and I couldn't do anything about it. There was no way I could reach him as the tree branches were too brittle. I couldn't sleep all night worrying. I'm was so upset, I love him so much," she told the Bay of Plenty Times yesterday.

Five Tauranga volunteer firefighters yesterday arrived with an extension ladder. But Tauranga station officer Brendan Jeffs and his colleagues were bewildered when they saw how high up the cat was - about 10m and the cat kept climbing when approached.

Firefighter Karl McLean-Harvey had the task of climbing up a massive extension ladder to rescue Toby.

"I almost had him. As I touched him Toby freaked out and jumped to another tree."

Toby ran off, and disappeared for several hours.

A relieved Ms Paton said late last night that Toby had finally come home.