Me-OW! Cat falls 19 stories and survives

todaysthv ^ | Mar 23, 2012

[JoeProBono]

BOSTON, MA (CNN/WBZ) -- Me-OW! They say cats have nine lives, but a Boston cat may have had ten more. The feline fell 19 stories out of a city high-rise and survived.

If sugar seems a little skittish. It's because she's a bit bruised, which is incredibly lucky when you consider what she's been through. This is the spot where rescuers found her after she fell from her owner's window on the 19th floor. Brittany Kirk says, "I look out my window all the time and I think, 'wow, this is really high.'"

Such a warm day, she cracked the window just a little, but rescuers estimate it's about 150 to 200 foot drop to the ground.

Brian O'Conner says, "Pretty open access right to Storrow Drive as well, as if the cat needed any more peril on this day."

But what really has folks here at the Animal Rescue League amazed. No broken bones, no cuts, just minor bruising on the lungs. And get this, Dr. Hugh Davis says studies show cats have a better chance of surviving falls if they're from higher than nine stories.

Dr. Davis says, "The cats were able to relax and orient themselves so they're actually sort of in a flying squirrel position with the legs spread out, slowed their descent down."

You know that old nine lives cliché? Dr. Davis says, "I think that she probably used 1 or 2, or maybe 8."

For a cat running short on lives, she sure was fast running and hiding from the camera.

[Young Werther]

She borrowed my parachute and avoided a CATastrophe!

And NO OW!

[vetvetdoug]

Angel Memorial Hospital (Veterinary) in NYC has kept data on cats that have fallen from high rise apartments. The raw data of cats that have taken the high dive was over 1000 and that was back in the early 1980’s. Cats don't start breaking bones until the third or fourth floor and rarely survive 9 floor dives. Rarely were cats injured from the second floor. There was a very in depth study performed and published in the JAVMA.

[TheOldLady]

Not only is tossing a cat off a balcony cruel to the cat, it could be very harmful to people trying to relax nearly naked in a pool.

MNDude, you're lucky (and I'm sorry) you didn't get the snot beaten out of you, or had to pay damages to someone scarred for life from that poor cat's scratching them.

Why you admitted such behavior on a public forum is far beyond my understanding. You should be ashamed of that, not bragging about it.

[Slings and Arrows]

Cute as well as lucky.

[Slings and Arrows]

Obvious Troll is obvious.

[JoeProBono]

[JoeProBono]

Fireman saves cat

[Slings and Arrows]

Fireman saves cat

...cat not entirely pleased with the situation.

[TheOldLady]

Cool! Except that my Rocket is a Maine Coon and not a Scottish Fold, kitteh looks a lot like him.

And I do treat him like royalty, LOL!  

[JoeProBono]

WANT SERIOUSLY I DO

[who knows what evil?]

Yep...I have four that think that is EXACTLY how they should be treated...

[Future Snake Eater]

I'll add to the silly cat stuff.

Below is a text messaging session. The victim here is an idiot who posted his phone number on Facebook asking ANYONE to call him because he was bored. Hilarity ensues.

[TheOldLady]

You couldn’t make a better choice. They’re gentle giants.

My Rocket is a runt, only 18 pounds in his heyday, but he has always been a sweetheart. Even veterinary assistants love him. He has never intentionally bitten or scratched anyone.

[JoeProBono]