‘Cat Man Do’ to the rescue!

Georgia arborist retrieves stranded family pet from way up a Vinemont tree

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Joy for a job well done! Left to right are Brian Reed, Jennifer Reed with Tiger, arborist Normer Adams and Kylie Fitzgerald. Is Tiger thinking, “Whoa, I was up there?” or is he planning his next adventure? (W.C. Mann for The Cullman Tribune)

VINEMONT, Ala. – On Friday afternoon, a long ordeal came to a joyful conclusion when Tiger the cat was rescued from the top of a tall, tall pine near Vinemont, two weeks to the day from his climb up the tree. Exploring the environs of the country home to which his family recently moved, Tiger found himself up a tree that lacked a down elevator. There, the treetop tabby endured multiple storms that provided his drinking water; owners Brian and Jennifer Reed speculated that he may have visited birds’ nests for food.

Then along came Cat Man Do, aka Normer Adams, a 70-year-old (You would never guess his age by watching him climb!) arborist who took up tree climbing seven years ago after retiring from his career as an advocate for at-risk children and director of the Georgia Association of Homes and Services for Children. 

Wife Pamela Adams shared, “When he retired, he joined a tree-climbing club and learned to climb and do knots. Once he did all that, you know, once you’ve been in a tree, what are you going to do once you’re in there? He enjoys it; it’s fun, it’s a hobby and he helps people.”

Once he gained the skill set and gear collection needed, Adams started Cat Man Do Rescue, offering his services to fetch cats and drones from trees. He does the work free of charge, though he encourages those who want to pay to make a donation to one of his favorite charities like https://bloomouryouth.org, https://christiancity.org or http://graceforall.us.

Tiger was Adams’ 479th cat rescue.

Cat rescuers and rescue groups are not that uncommon. Cats are adept at climbing up, but they like to see where they are going, and their claws and paws are not geared toward descending trees headfirst. For that reason, they often have a tough time getting down when they climb higher up than they can jump down. Most times, a cat left alone will figure out a way down, but every so often, a kitty like Tiger just finds himself stuck and in need of help.

As he watched Adams prepare to climb, cat day Brian Reed remarked, “There’s a special place in Heaven for people like him.”

After Tiger made it back to the ground floor, Reed shared, “I can’t say enough about Cat Man Do. He’s awesome! Nobody else come to help us, and he came to the rescue. I really appreciate it.

To Adams, he said, “You’re a godsend.”

Tiger was a lot skinnier than when he went up the tree, but his best human friend Kylie Fitzgerald, daughter of the Reeds, took him for a Pedialyte treat. He will visit the veterinarian for a checkup, and the Reeds said he will now be an indoor cat, at least for a while.

Find out more about Cat Man Do at www.facebook.com/catmandorescue.

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As Adams nears the top, Tiger (among the leaves near the top) enjoys the view one more time. (W.C. Mann for The Cullman Tribune)
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W.C. Mann

craig@cullmantribune.com