March 29 (UPI) — Firefighters in Britain responded to a home where an 8-week-old kitten became trapped inside a bathroom wall only six hours after being brought to the house. The Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said in a Facebook post that the Red Watch crew from Wallsend Community Fire Station responded to Danielle Douglas’ home when the kitten became trapped inside the bathroom wall.
Douglas told firefighters the kitten, named Tubs, had only been at her home for six hours before vanishing.
“One minute I was watching him curled up asleep on the floor, the next moment he’d disappeared in to thin air,” Douglas told firefighters.
“I had an idea to search the internet for mammy cat purring noises that I could play around the flat. This worked as the kitten responded to the cat calling sounds,” she said. “The resulting meowing was coming from behind the bathroom wall. I was beside myself with worry as I thought that the kitten would be petrified as he was just getting used to his new surroundings.”
Firefighters removed some tiles and bath paneling from the wall and were able to locate the kitten behind some plasterboard. Firefighter Paul Simpson, a “self-confessed cat lover,” was able to get a hold of the feline and handed him over to his owner.
“The firefighters were amazing. I felt instantly reassured as they talked me through the rescue plan,” Douglas said. “They were really gentle with Tubs and made sure that we were both OK before they left. They even did a safe and well check on my smoke alarms on their way out!”
