11-Year-Old Boy Rescues a Cat Stuck in a Tree Too High for the Fire Brigade

Cats getting stuck in trees has become one of the tropes that people often see on news outlets. Those felines get excited with their little adventures — climbing high trees, making it difficult to get down again even for an agile and flexible creature like a cat. They are usually rescued by concerned citizens or with the help of a fire brigade. However, in Auckland, a cat climbed up a tree that was too high even for the fire brigade. For this reason, Esca stayed in the tree at Tahuna Torea reserve for four days.

According to Carmen Brown, Esca’s pet parent, she initially called the St. Heliers fire brigade. Unfortunately, the team doesn’t have an available ladder long enough to reach the 15-meter tree. The only ladder in the unit’s possession was just 10.5 meters. They advised Carmen to just wait for Esca to come down voluntarily. Carmen was willing to try anything and even talked to an arborist. However, some things need to be processed by the Auckland Council. They need to ask for a permit first before the arborist can scale a tree in a reserve.

After consulting with different agencies, Carmen went and informed the local community through a Facebook page. She asked them to look out for Esca in case the cat was able to climb down. Thankfully, the news reached the family of a young hero from their community. Andrea and her son Daniel Penman decided to help Carmen with her problem. Apparently, Daniel was a talented tree climber. Andrea even called him part monkey due to his incredible climbing skills.

Daniel’s mother trusts him, even though some people were worried for the child’s safety. The 11-year-old boy amazingly climbed up the tree and successfully saved Esca with the help of cat biscuits. He carried the cat by placing it inside a drawstring backpack for a safe landing. The intelligent young boy applied his knowledge of creating knots to create a harness of rope for himself.

“I was horrified when I saw how high Daniel climbed up the tree. I told my husband to take whatever cash we had in our wallets to give him, and it turned out to be $40,” Carmen said. Thanks to Daniel, Esca was safely brought to the ground without any harm. Esca is now home with Carmen and his cat siblings — already well fed and provided with water.

Heroes come in different shapes, different sizes, different ages; sometimes, he’s an 11-year-old boy with excellent climbing skills. Daniel’s efforts are well-appreciated and won’t be forgotten by the community.