Posted on 05/06/2026 8:56:56 PM PDT by Red Badger
Sometimes what seems like a good idea at the time doesn't quite work out the way you pictured it.
For example, when a firefighter in Spencerport, New York, was called in by a frantic owner to rescue a cat from a tree and all the usual methods like ladders drove the cat higher in the tree, he thought, "Wow, that's really high. There's got to be a better way."
So, he got some people to stand under the tree with a blanket, and then cranked up the water cannon on top of the fire truck to spray the feline out.
And it worked, sort of.
pic.twitter.com/PyTaU2KRkn— Davy Jones (@itsNTBmedia) May 6, 2026
On the video, you can see the utter disappointment on the rescuers' faces as the cat goes flying out of the tree — in the wrong direction.
The cat did not survive, and that's why the firefighter now faces charges for torturing and injuring an animal under section 353 of New York State Agriculture and Markets law. It did not die on impact, as you can see from the video.
News10NBC reports,
‘The issue was, is that there comes a time sometimes that we've done all we can. What is another option? Instead of trying to force an issue,' said Reno DiDomenico, Vice President for Humane Law Enforcement.
‘And that's one of the biggest things in this. It has to be an unjustifiable act. And that's why he was charged because of the unjustification. In other words, he didn't have to spray it with a hose. You have to use common sense and figure out the best way to help something without causing a potential injury,' DiDomenico continued.
The investigators asked for a misdemeanor charge since it's clear the firefighter was trying to help.
He'll likely face a fine, but he also lost his job with the fire department.
Maybe he should have used a laser pointer to get the cat down?
The shelters all around here are almost always at full capacity with dogs. Our location (near an intersection) seems to draw strays, and not once have we been able to get a shelter to take one in. Instead, I put up signs at message boards @ grocery and other stores that provide such, and eventually we get a call or text.
In years past we’d get stray cats and kittens, and occasionally a cat and often a kitten would be friendly or coax able into trusting us. Twice we’ve adopted from a shelter, once from a (now deceased) friend of my Mom’s, and, there are often “free kittens” roadside signs.
Our current male cat had been hanging around but was very feral / skittish. After months he became a little more approachable, and come to a bowl of food, but still not let anyone touch him. Then one day he showed up with a severe head wound - flesh stripped away in about a 1-1/2” square area, right down to the bone, and then that got infected. I figured it was shoot him or take him to the vet — he looked horrible! He was weak enough we could catch him in my big fishing net when he showed up for food. Wifey and daughter-san outvoted me, and we took him to the vet - daughter agreeing to pay what she could out of her birthday money. Mind you she already had a young (adopted from a shelter) cat.
Long story short, he became probably the most lovable, affectionate cat we’ve had, often to the point of annoying demands for attention. And oddly, despite his at least year long period as a stray, he has NO interest in catching mice, etc., at all. Daughter-san’s female cat, on the other hand, is quite the hunter, occasionally bringing a squirrel she’s killed, as well as mice and voles and moles, to our back porch. There’s nothing like stumbling out the back door, bleary eyed, at about this time of the morning, and stepping on some dismembered small critter...
I agree with others here: Every cat has a distinct personality. Some, VERY distinct, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse...
Is that worse than cat juggling?
Related...
What I want to know...
Was the cat killer there alone?
And, if not, why did none of his fellow firefighters stop him...
When I was in elementary school my German Shepherd chased a groundhog up a tree in front of our house.
The dog kept barking and wouldn’t shut up, so I took my bow and shot the groundhog.
Problem was, the arrow went through the groundhog killing it and stuck in the tree. It stuck there for a few weeks as the groundhog decayed.
My mother was not happy.
Yeah, sometimes doing nothing is the best option.
I worked for years pruning and removing trees.
I never found any cat skeletons.
They come down on their own eventually.
its barely 7 am here on the East Coast and youre a really really annoying stupid person who shouldn't be posting. Not one period should come out of your keyboard.
Because im not saying you're stupid.. but Ill bet $1000 your crayon box doesnt have a single whole crayon in it, because they've all been taste tested by you! 1/2 are probably missing..
jusy curious, what is your favorite flavor crayon?
Jerk. That’s the mindset of serial killers in training. At least you’re not afraid to display your faults to God and everybody, which makes you easily identifiable as someone to be avoided.
(And one is NOT like another.)
Was it a bad uncle or neighbor who did something terrible to you when you were little that made you the way you are?
Cat owners should call a tree cutting company with a bucket. Why are expensive rescues being done by firefighters? It wasn’t a fire. It was a cat.
I got home one evening about 10 pm. My wife was frantic that our cat was on the roof of a large 2 story home. I got a ladder, and carried a ladder up to the roof, and got the cat down. It can be done without calling the fire department.
Lions and tigers often hang out on tree limbs. No one panics.
Why is it that when a cat is up a tree, owners freak out? What better place is there to catch a squirrel or bird if not in their environment?
I only had one cat climb up a tree. It’s the only cat I’ve had who didn’t climb up curtains as a kitten. I felt very stupid with the ladder leaning on the tree and trying to coax the cat down. Eventually the cat jumped down. Ignored me for the rest of the day.
“It’s a CAT! Go to the shelter and get a new one. They give them away for free. One’s like another. That’s why they are cats.”
Have you ever been on psychiatric medications?
If it wasn’t for cats, firefighters wouldn’t have anything to do. You can only polish the red truck so much.
Many years ago, a neighbor was all upset that her cat was up a tree (only about 8 or 9 feet above the ground). She wanted me to climb up and get the cat, but there was a garden hose just a few feet away. The cat came right down.
I don’t think I’d have used a water cannon, though.
Ever seen a cat skeleton up in a tree ? Neither have I . They’ll come down sooner or later .
Reminds me of that old recording called something like “How the Dog Died”.
“But everything’s fine, just fine”.
Did their company logo include a skull and crossed axes with out-of-control flames blazing in the background? Never understood that. A Marine infantry platoon, sure — but a fire department?
I just grabbed a match and a garden hose ... easy peasy!
LEAVE THE CAT ALONE.
PUT FOOD/WATER AT BASE OF TREE
CAT WILL EVENTUALLY COME DOWN ON IT’S OWN
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