One afternoon, a family was going about their business when they heard a peculiar noise outside their bedroom window. They investigated the commotion and discovered that a stray cat had chosen the family’s rain gutter as the ideal location for her kittens to be born.
While they waited for aid, the family was able to grab two of the kittens and bring them inside to keep them warm. Both the RSPCA and the local fire department arrived to offer aid and soon got to work devising a strategy.
“The mother cat had opted to give birth to her five kittens in the property’s guttering, and with heavy weather on the way, we knew we had to get to them quickly,” said Adam Bailey, an RSPCA inspector, in a news statement. “With the help of fire and rescue, I was able to climb onto the roof… and use a reach and rescue pole to gently but steadily restrain the mother, and then pick up each kitten and bring them to safety.”
Storm, the cat, was clearly perplexed, but she didn’t put up much of a fight since she appeared to understand that everyone was only trying to bring her and her babies to safety. The entire family was rescued without difficulty from the gutter, and the family was relieved that Storm and her kittens would not be stranded out in the storm.
Storm and her babies have been placed in the RSPCA’s care. Rain, Thunder, Misty, Foggy, and Hail are the kittens’ names. Storm was microchipped, but the information was outdated, and the RSPCA was unable to contact her family. If no one claims her, she and her kittens will be available for adoption once they’re a bit older.
A rain gutter may not have been the most convenient place for Storm to have her kittens — but luckily, the family noticed her just in time.
