Five-hour rescue saves cat missing for 4 years

A five-hour rescue ended in a reunion between a cat who had been missing for four years and his shocked owners.

The RSPCA was called to Madeira Road in Portsmouth on Sunday after homeowner Catherine Edwards found Alfie, 10, wedged down the side of her house.

He was safely released thanks to the RSPCA, fire service and local vets only to discover he had been missing since 2022.

He's recovering well back at home enjoying chin rubs and purring loudly.

RSPCA Animal Rescue Officer (ARO) Sarah Whatton arrived to find the cat completely wedged in a tiny gap: "It was stuck about 1.5m (4.9ft) in so I couldn't reach him.

"I tried to tape my grasper to my extending reach-and-rescue pole and finally got hold of him but there was no give at all; he was completely wedged in.

"I was really concerned about causing him serious injury if I tried to pull him out."

Whatton believes he had fallen from a first floor roof and got stuck in a tight 10cm (4in) gap between two brick conservatories.

Whatton called colleagues for help and also called in a team from Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service to assist.

But after about five hours of trying to save Alfie, he remained stuck.

The fire teams had to leave but the RSPCA officers refused to give up, so the team sought advice and a local vet came to sedate the cat.

Once the sedation took effect the team had one minute to free him before there was serious risk of breathing difficulties.

"It took all three of us to pull him out and by some absolute miracle he came out unharmed," said ARO Morgan Ellison.

"What was even more surprising, was that when we scanned him for a microchip we learned he'd been reported missing back in 2022!"

Alfie's owner Mandy Davis was shocked when she received the call from the RSPCA officers to say he had been found.

She said: "Alfie went missing in July 2022; it was the week after we moved house.

"We weren't letting him out but he managed to squeeze through a tiny gap in a window that had been left slightly ajar and that was it, he was gone.

"I couldn't quite believe it when the RSPCA called to tell me they had him, and he'd been found just two roads away from our house!

"I honestly didn't think I'd ever see him again."

Alfie went to the vets for a check-up and had some mats of fur removed but has been given a clean bill of health.

Whatton said: "I spoke to Alfie's owners the next day to learn that he is settling back in at home very well and has been enjoying chin rubs and purring loudly.

"It was such a crazy rescue but it had such a lovely ending - and it just shows how important it is to have your pets microchipped."