Sasha the cat found herself up a tree — literally — and the saga of her owner’s search and Sasha’s rescue has made the feline a celebrity among pet owners in Pike County and McComb.
Stories of cats getting stuck in trees are common. But Sasha’s ordeal borders on legend.
She climbed a 70-foot-plus tall tree in her owner Celeste Converse’s yard on March 4 and stayed there — despite bribes of food and toys. Sasha braved the elements until March 7, when the men of Price Tree Service and Debris Removal used a bucket truck to get her down.
Sasha’s break for the great outdoors began early on March 4 when Converse was going to work.
“I opened the door, and she managed to slip out behind me,” Converse said.
Attempts to coax Sasha, who is an inside cat, back into the house before Converse had to leave for work, were unsuccessful, and Converse left for work.
When Converse returned home, Sasha was nowhere to be found.
“I shook food, I shook her favorite toys, but she never responded,” she said. “I went on Facebook, asking my friends for solutions to find her.”
Friday evening, Converse said, a friend visiting her house borrowed a flashlight and went out into her yard.
“He said he had heard my cat,” she said. “He shined the light into the tree and there she was, about 60 feet up near a limb.”
Converse said she put food around the tree and Sasha’s toys on the roof, hoping to coax her down.
Nothing worked.
Sasha stayed in the tree Friday night, on Saturday through the thunderstorms that hit the county, all day Sunday and into Monday evening, when neighbor Steve Byrd heard Sasha’s mournful cries.
“I looked into the tree and could see this cat about 70 feet up,” Byrd said.
Byrd called the McComb Fire Department, but firemen were unable to maneuver their ladder truck close enough to get near Sasha.
When that effort failed, Byrd and his sister Kiki, a member of Pike Animal League and Shelter, began looking for other ways to help Sasha.
That other way was Price’s company.
“That’s the first time I ever had a call to rescue a cat,” Price said.
When Price and his team arrived, he attempted to climb the tree, getting to within four inches of Sasha, who retreated to a limb that was too small to support Price.
He went down and managed to get his bucket truck in position for the rescue.
Price and Jason Wallace got in the bucket and ascended to Sasha’s location, where Wallace managed to pluck her from her perch. Price and Wallace then brought Sasha down for her reunion with Converse.
“She pawed at Jason and pawed a bit on the way down, but once we were on the ground, she stopped,” Price said.
In the days since her ordeal, Sasha has recovered and is doing well, Converse said.
And her time as a celebrity continues.
Converse said shortly after Sasha’s ordeal, she took the cat to the vet.
“We were inside, and someone said, ‘That’s that cat from Facebook,’ ” she said.
