Interesting "Rescued Cat" Story

Found this on the Philadelphia Daily News site.

Art
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
*** Cops save kitten stranded beneath bridge ***

Officers from the police marine unit found the kitten clinging to the top of a
solitary wooden piling in the Delaware River, beneath the Ben Franklin Bridge.

How it got there, nobody knows. Lt. Andrew Napoli speculated that someone may
have tossed the 6-month-old black and gray kitten into the water, and as the
cat floated by the piling, the animal "grabbed" hold of it. The piling, which
is part of a concrete and steel barrier with wooden posts and which protects
the bridge from boats, barges or debris, sits by itself out in the water,
Napoli said. "It's not attached to anything else.

"There was no way for the cat to get to land."

Napoli heard meowing as he and another marine unit officer, Paul Costello,
answered a call of a stranded animal from police radio about 2:40 p.m.
yesterday.

The plight of the cat apparently had been reported by some workers on a pier
next to the bridge, Napoli said.

He and Costello piloted their police boat up to the piling, and were trying to
figure out how to rescue the kitten without dropping it into the water when
the cat solved the problem for them.

"It jumped onto the roof of the boat, about 10 feet," Napoli said.

"I just reached up and got him and just brought him into the wheelhouse. He
meowed all the way. He was happy," but also very thin. "It looked like it
hadn't eaten in a while."

When they got the kitten, who they now believe is probably a female, to their
base at the Coast Guard headquarters at Delaware and Washington avenues, the
feline proved them right.

Marine unit officers keep cans of cat food to feed strays that inhabit the
base.

As soon as one of them pulled a can of cat food from the top of his locker,
"This cat went nuts," Napoli said. "We have a feeling it had been fed before."

Their next problem was to avoid sending the cat to the Philadelphia Animal
Care and Control Association, the city shelter, where they feared it might be
euthanized because of overcrowding.

The cat tale had a happy ending. "One of the Coast Guard people knows somebody
who is going to take it," Napoli said.

Art
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On Thu, 20 Apr 2006 17:27:43 +0000, Arthur Shapiro wrote:

Found this on the Philadelphia Daily News site.

Art
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
*** Cops save kitten stranded beneath bridge ***

Officers from the police marine unit found the kitten clinging to the top of a
solitary wooden piling in the Delaware River, beneath the Ben Franklin Bridge.

How it got there, nobody knows. Lt. Andrew Napoli speculated that someone may
have tossed the 6-month-old black and gray kitten into the water, and as the
cat floated by the piling, the animal "grabbed" hold of it. The piling, which
is part of a concrete and steel barrier with wooden posts and which protects
the bridge from boats, barges or debris, sits by itself out in the water,
Napoli said. "It's not attached to anything else.

"There was no way for the cat to get to land."

Napoli heard meowing as he and another marine unit officer, Paul Costello,
answered a call of a stranded animal from police radio about 2:40 p.m.
yesterday.

The plight of the cat apparently had been reported by some workers on a pier
next to the bridge, Napoli said.

He and Costello piloted their police boat up to the piling, and were trying to
figure out how to rescue the kitten without dropping it into the water when
the cat solved the problem for them.

"It jumped onto the roof of the boat, about 10 feet," Napoli said.

"I just reached up and got him and just brought him into the wheelhouse. He
meowed all the way. He was happy," but also very thin. "It looked like it
hadn't eaten in a while."

When they got the kitten, who they now believe is probably a female, to their
base at the Coast Guard headquarters at Delaware and Washington avenues, the
feline proved them right.

Marine unit officers keep cans of cat food to feed strays that inhabit the
base.

As soon as one of them pulled a can of cat food from the top of his locker,
"This cat went nuts," Napoli said. "We have a feeling it had been fed before."

Their next problem was to avoid sending the cat to the Philadelphia Animal
Care and Control Association, the city shelter, where they feared it might be
euthanized because of overcrowding.

The cat tale had a happy ending. "One of the Coast Guard people knows somebody
who is going to take it," Napoli said.

Art
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As always, you come up with great stories. Purrs for the kitten and the
rescuers. Tell us about any cats you have now, please. Your stories are
always heartwarming. Best wishes. MLB

"mlbriggs" wrote in message
news

As always, you come up with great stories. Purrs for the kitten and the
rescuers. Tell us about any cats you have now, please. Your stories are
always heartwarming. Best wishes. MLB


What she said!

Yeah for the Marine patrol I would love to shake their hands and tell them
thank you for the ones that can't say it for them selves but I think the
kitten said it for them "He meowed all the way. He was happy "

Blessed be the small miracles

Prayers for the lost ones but not forgotten

Arthur Shapiro wrote:

*** Cops save kitten stranded beneath bridge ***

Officers from the police marine unit found the kitten clinging to
the top of a solitary wooden piling in the Delaware River, beneath
the Ben Franklin Bridge...

What a great bunch of officers! Kudos to them. Poor little thing.

And the nastiest of nasty litterbox-that-hasn't-been-cleaned-in-weeks
offerings to whomever threw that kitten overboard. (If that's what
happened.)

Joyce

In article , mlbriggs wrote:

As always, you come up with great stories. Purrs for the kitten and the
rescuers. Tell us about any cats you have now, please.

Nothing really new to report. Poor old Phunny Face, now 19 1/4, is going
downhill fast with the enlarged heart, significant heart murmur, thyroid
difficulties, and kidney problems. He's down from 14 pounds to 6, but appears
to be in absolutely no pain or distress. We've started subQ fluids the last
few weeks, and yesterday they recommended upping the frequency to at least
twice a week.

But I didn't expect him to last through 2005, so things are better than they
could be.

The other four are doing quite well; nothing "storyable" has happened of late.

Art
Temporary usercode - to be deleted when spam starts. Use MyBrainHurts at this ISP to reach me

On Fri, 21 Apr 2006 03:59:36 +0000, Arthur Shapiro wrote:

In article , mlbriggs wrote:

As always, you come up with great stories. Purrs for the kitten and the
rescuers. Tell us about any cats you have now, please.

Nothing really new to report. Poor old Phunny Face, now 19 1/4, is going
downhill fast with the enlarged heart, significant heart murmur, thyroid
difficulties, and kidney problems. He's down from 14 pounds to 6, but appears
to be in absolutely no pain or distress. We've started subQ fluids the last
few weeks, and yesterday they recommended upping the frequency to at least
twice a week.

But I didn't expect him to last through 2005, so things are better than they
could be.

The other four are doing quite well; nothing "storyable" has happened of late.

Art
Temporary usercode - to be deleted when spam starts. Use MyBrainHurts at this ISP to reach me



IMHO old age is the pits! Why can't things age without falling apart?
Purrs for Phunny's comfort and peace. MLB

Arthur Shapiro wrote:

Found this on the Philadelphia Daily News site.

Art
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
*** Cops save kitten stranded beneath bridge ***

Officers from the police marine unit found the kitten clinging to the top of a
solitary wooden piling in the Delaware River, beneath the Ben Franklin Bridge.

How it got there, nobody knows. Lt. Andrew Napoli speculated that someone may
have tossed the 6-month-old black and gray kitten into the water, and as the
cat floated by the piling, the animal "grabbed" hold of it. The piling, which
is part of a concrete and steel barrier with wooden posts and which protects
the bridge from boats, barges or debris, sits by itself out in the water,
Napoli said. "It's not attached to anything else.

"There was no way for the cat to get to land."
snip
Their next problem was to avoid sending the cat to the Philadelphia Animal
Care and Control Association, the city shelter, where they feared it might be
euthanized because of overcrowding.

The cat tale had a happy ending. "One of the Coast Guard people knows somebody
who is going to take it," Napoli said.

Art
Temporary usercode - to be deleted when spam starts. Use MyBrainHurts at this ISP to reach me



I'm so glad the story has a happy ending! Thanks!
Best wishes,
Polonca and Soncek

Arthur Shapiro wrote:

In article , mlbriggs wrote:


As always, you come up with great stories. Purrs for the kitten and the
rescuers. Tell us about any cats you have now, please.


Nothing really new to report. Poor old Phunny Face, now 19 1/4, is going
downhill fast with the enlarged heart, significant heart murmur, thyroid
difficulties, and kidney problems. He's down from 14 pounds to 6, but appears
to be in absolutely no pain or distress. We've started subQ fluids the last
few weeks, and yesterday they recommended upping the frequency to at least
twice a week.

But I didn't expect him to last through 2005, so things are better than they
could be.

The other four are doing quite well; nothing "storyable" has happened of late.

Art
Temporary usercode - to be deleted when spam starts. Use MyBrainHurts at this ISP to reach me


Lots and lots of purrs and best wishes for Phunny Face to remain
comfortable and with you for a while yet,
Polonca and Soncek