Video footage courtesy of Jeffrey Hastings/Frame of Mind Photo
MANCHESTER, NH – Firemen are sometimes called on to rescue cats, usually from trees.
But when 13 kittens were discovered, hungry and abandoned, on a small island in the Merrimack River, it was Manchester Fire Department to the rescue. Using boats and humane traps they methodically rounded up the cat family over the course of several days and transported them to safety, according to Jessica Patterson, a volunteer with the Manchester Animal Shelter.
The rescue effort was launched after a construction worker noticed the hungry felines, most of them kittens, on the island.
“They are all really nice friendly cats,” said Patterson.
In honor of their humble beginnings, each of rescued kitties was given an island name, Patterson said. Trinidad and Tobago are already spoken for. Figi and Lucia are at Petco and ready for adoption. The rest of the cats will remain at the shelter until they can be spayed or neutered, and then adopted.
When all the popular island names were taken, one of the kittens was named Gilligan.
Patterson said the youngest of the kittens are only about three weeks old.
“There was a homeless camp on there and then the homeless people could not get back on the island, so animal control and the fire department were alerted that there were cats stranded out there, and the rescue effort was made,” she said.
There are more than 70 cats currently awaiting new homes at the shelter. You can learn more here about the Manchester Animal Shelter.
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