Scarlett, the cat that saved kittens from 1996 Brooklyn fire, dies

NY Daily News ^ | October 24th 2008 | LARRY McSHANE

[Daffynition]

Scarlett the cat, a calico hero who drew worldwide acclaim after rescuing her five kittens from a 1996 Brooklyn fire, has passed away.

The aging cat - believed to be at least 13 years old - succumbed to multiple illnesses, leaving behind the sad Brooklyn family that adopted her after the blaze.

"She was the most precious and loving cat, and in our household, it was all about Scarlett," said her owner, Karen Weller.

Scarlett's ascension to stardom began in an abandoned Brooklyn garage, where she was tending her litter of five when a fire broke out in March 1996.

Firefighters spotted Scarlett, despite burns to her eyes, ears and face, toting each kitten out of the building to safety. Once outside, Scarlett nudged each baby with her nose to make sure she found all five.

The hero cat was taken to the North Shore Animal League with her offspring - and their story soon attracted attention from around the globe.

Calls about the fearless feline's health came in from Japan, the Netherlands and South Africa, while other admirers sent Mother's Day cards to Scarlett.

She became the main character of a book, "Scarlett Saves Her Family," and received mentions from Oprah Winfrey and CNN.

In her new Brooklyn home, Scarlett was top cat. Four of her five kittens survived the blaze and they were adopted in pairs.

Scarlett died on Oct. 11, after battling kidney failure, a heart murmur and lymphoma, Animal League officials said.

[Daffynition]

Awwwwww .... that’s nicer than ceiling cat. Thank you.

[Daffynition]

...and in our hearts. ;-D

[pbmaltzman]

What a brave cat. The article says that she was blinded in the fire... I wonder if she ever regained her sight?

[happinesswithoutpeace]

Her spirit lives on : )

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/dog-hailed-as-a-hero-after-saving-kittens-from-fire-974538.html

[beckysueb]

My sister had some feral cats in her barn. They were really wild and would run away if a human came anywhere near the garage. One day she saw one of the cats in the garage doorway and she was meowing frantically and staring right at my sister. She said the cat didn’t run as usual and seemed to be trying to get her attention. She went in the barn to see what the problem was. They had a loft in there with a lot of stuff stored and there was some old tires among the junk. Anyway the cat had some kittens up there and they had went inside one of the tires and couldn’t get out and the mama couldn’t get them out so she conquered her fear of humans and went looking for help. My sister got the babies out and took the tires down so they couldn’t get trapped again. She said the mama cat was just purring while she was getting the kittens out. But anyway after that the cat went back to being wild again. But I thought that was a very selfless act of love for her kittens for that mama cat to conquer her fear in order to save her babies.

[beckysueb]

I said garage, but it was more of a large equipment barn.

[Daffynition]

Actually, I don’t know. I want to look up her book at the book store and maybe it’ll say there.

FWIW in the later pix of her, she seems bright-eyed.

[Daffynition]

WOW! What a close call for those critters and the family.

[HungarianGypsy]

So sweet. I had thought my cat was a great mom because she would sing lullabies and talk to her kittens.

[LiberConservative]

I remember Scarlett! WTH?! So sad.

Makes me appreciate the two I have right now even more.

[LiberConservative]

... Though many will disagree with me, I believe animals will make it to heaven too.

No disagreement from me. I believe that our truly loving God will have all of our beloved pets waiting for us in heaven. He created them!

[Daffynition]

If anything pets/animals help us to live in the Now ... I think that is one of their greatest gifts to us. Hug your buddies for me too!

[Shadowstrike]

God grant Scarlett the Cat her reward.

[Nowhere Man]

I read an account of someone that saw heaven and he said that there are animals there. I don’t know how true his account is, but I’d like to believe that there are animals there. I know heaven will be wonderful, but it will be even better with my babies there with me.

Heard that on George Noory/Art Bell. I know there are animals in Heaven, I think God would want us to be happy and them as well. If my pets that are gone were not there for me, it would be a real bummer.

[Nowhere Man]

Dang! Now you got me crying over that.

Yeah, I was in tears as I was posting it. On another forum, one where a lot of us who like to fix old radios, TV's and such, I know a guy who lost two cats within a couple of weeks I have to comfort. The computer I was using died and I'm back to my old 1998 model, which I'm using now. As to losing two at once, last year, I lost two cats in a six week period. I know what it is like. I lost five total in three years, four of them were elderly, but one passed away at the age of five from kidney failure. It's sad, but I can understand kidney failure in older cats, but at the age of five? His name was Greystone, one of three kittens born to a mother cat we took in, we still have his brother and sister as well. Last year, we got a new kitten, Rascal, and he fits in the family, well that's all I have left now is the family and Rascal, so well, I wonder if he is Greystone comeback because he had a short life or if Greystone speaks through Rascal. When my aunt died in 1995, we took her black cat Muffin, a Burmese, in and we had her until 2004. She had kidney failure too, but we kept her alive for 2 and a half years with it. We often thought my aunt spoke through Muffin.

[Nowhere Man]

My sister had some feral cats in her barn. They were really wild and would run away if a human came anywhere near the garage. One day she saw one of the cats in the garage doorway and she was meowing frantically and staring right at my sister. She said the cat didn’t run as usual and seemed to be trying to get her attention. She went in the barn to see what the problem was. They had a loft in there with a lot of stuff stored and there was some old tires among the junk. Anyway the cat had some kittens up there and they had went inside one of the tires and couldn’t get out and the mama couldn’t get them out so she conquered her fear of humans and went looking for help. My sister got the babies out and took the tires down so they couldn’t get trapped again. She said the mama cat was just purring while she was getting the kittens out. But anyway after that the cat went back to being wild again. But I thought that was a very selfless act of love for her kittens for that mama cat to conquer her fear in order to save her babies.

I have four cats now, three of which are related. Spunky is them other, and G.W. "Dubya" (male) and Whitey (female) are her kittens. She had a third but he passed on in 2006, his name was Greystone. I saw Spunky and her three kittens in my headlights as I pulled up to the garage. We kept them outside for a while and after a few days, they were gone. I went looking for them, I was crying and a day and a half later, I found them next door. We were going to take them in. I told Spunky, "I'm going to take your kittens into my basement and then I'll comeback for you." She believed me, I took the kittens, dropped them off inside and got her and took her in. She trusted me and I am very grateful. Spunky and G.W. are grey and white cats, with a grey hood on their heads and Spunky has a dark spot on her nose. Whitey looks like a fat Siamese or a Snowshoe. Well, we just have four cats, the family and Rascal, who fits in well.

[Sunshine Sister]

Thanks for your post. I’m crying for the second time today. What a beautiful story!

[Sunshine Sister]

Hummmmmmmmmm. My mostly silent and usually haughty kitty just ran up to me and demanded to be picked up. I wonder if she was wanting to send a tribute to Scarlett. Interesting.

[LakeLady]

Bless you, Miss Scarlett. She was an angel on earth and will continue on in that role in heaven.

[Daffynition]

Thank you for your kind comments. This thread should be a tribute to Scarlett and the inexplicable bonds that we have with our wonderful critters.