For Immediate Release:
May 13, 2021
Contact:
Megan Wiltsie 202-483-7382
Norfolk, Va. – A new PETA video released today shows the rescue of a little black cat named Wendy, who was returned to solid ground after spending four days clinging to life on a tree branch high above the ground. Unlike squirrels, who can rotate their ankles to descend, cats cannot come down backward or forward.
A concerned neighbor heard Wendy’s cries, but local authorities wouldn’t help—so she called PETA’s emergency hotline, and the group rushed an expert tree climber to the scene. He ascended the trunk and managed to save her at last, even though she was so terrified that she started to climb even higher up the tree and then switched to a different branch that required a separate climb.
Once she had recovered from her ordeal, PETA found a loving family to adopt her.
“One call from a concerned neighbor made all the difference for this little cat,” says PETA Vice President Colleen O’Brien. “PETA hopes her dramatic rescue will inspire people to keep an eye out and always come to the aid of animals in need—whether by taking action themselves or by calling in a professional.”
PETA notes that cats who are allowed to roam outdoors can easily become stranded in trees or attacked by predators or cruel people—and they can become the predators themselves by killing songbirds and other small animals. “Outdoor cats” are also at risk of ingesting poisons and pesticides, contracting diseases from other animals, getting lost or hit by cars, and much more, which is why PETA urges guardians to keep cats indoors with a “catio” and give them lots of playtime and affection.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
