Indiana Firefighters Rescue Boy Stuck in a Tree Trying to Rescue a Cat Stuck in the Same Tree

It's a story as old as time itself. Cat climbs tree. Cat can't figure out how to get down and gets stuck in said tree. Owner calls the Fire Department. Fire Fighter climbs a ladder, rescues the cat, and saves the day. Somewhere down the line, the cat climbs the tree again, because it's dumb and didn't learn from its previous mistake, and the story repeats itself. This version of the story starts the same way and ends with the Fire Department saving the day, but features a unique twist.

Indiana Boy Attempts to Save a Cat From a Tree, Gets Stuck Himself

17-year-old Owen was at Holliday Park in Indianapolis on Monday when he noticed a cat sitting on the branch of a tree about 35 feet off the ground (pictured, above). Concerned for the cat's well-being, Owen decided to put his hero hat on and spring into action. His plan was to climb the tree himself and return the cat safely to the ground where he would be showered with praise by onlookers (Ok, I may be embellishing the "showered with praise" part). A noble thought and one that shows Owen has a big heart and good intentions. Things apparently were going well at first, then his plan hit a bit of a snag.

After making his way out on the long limb the cat was sitting on, one of two things happened. 1) Owen either began to have second thoughts about his rescue mission. 2) He felt like the part of the limb where the cat sat wouldn't be able to support his weight. Both of those possibilities are pure speculation on my part. The point is, Owen decided to abandon the rescue mission for some reason. The problem was, he found himself in a position where he couldn't get down, and instead of being the rescuer was now the one needing to be rescued.

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Indianapolis Fire Department Arrives on the Scene

It's unclear if Owen himself called the Fire Department, or if someone on the ground did after watching the situation unfold, but 10 of the Indianapolis Fire Department's finest (it must have been a slow day) arrived on the scene with ladders, ropes, and harness in hand ready to save the day.

The Department documented the successful rescue attempt on Twitter complete with photos.

https://twitter.com/IFD_NEWS/status/1500302885581635584

https://twitter.com/IFD_NEWS/status/1500304517413457920

They also shot a video of the rescue mission.

https://youtu.be/VuRnnK0UbYI

What About the Cat?

As the Department noted in their second tweet, the cat seemed unfazed by all the drama and made no effort to get itself down, which is a very on-brand thing for a cat to do, because they're jerks. While it's unclear whether or not firefighters attempted to get the cat after successfully getting Owen to safety, the Associated Press reports the cat's owner ended up hiring a private company to get the cat.

Props to Owen for trying even though it didn't end like I imagine he pictured it would. My guess is, if he ever finds another cat stuck in a tree, he'll leave the rescue attempt up to the professionals.

[Indianapolis Fire Department on Twitter / Associated Press]