Cornwall Fire & Rescue Service Newsdesk

at 12/01/2006 13:00

A kitten, which got stuck up a chimney just hours after arriving at its new home, has been rescued by the RSPCA and Cornwall County Fire Brigade and, in particular, one firefighter’s ability to impersonate a dog – poorly.

Five months old orphaned kitten Smirnoff was adopted on Saturday 7 January by Jo Barker and Kayleigh Robinson, and taken to their home in the Caldwell Road area of Penzance, Cornwall.

But by the following morning the anxious young orphan was nowhere to be found and a trail of fallen soot led the friends to realise that she had become stuck in the house’s chimney overnight.

An initial RSPCA and fire brigade attempt to rescue Smirnoff on Monday 9 January was unsuccessful so food was left at the bottom of the opening in an attempt to bring her down voluntarily.

However, after five days had passed and the kitten was still up the chimney, the situation became critical. The RSPCA and fire brigade returned to the house on Thursday 12 January determined to free the animal unharmed, using whatever means necessary.

RSPCA animal collection officer Felicity Cross, who attended the rescue with acting chief inspector Rob Skinner, said: “She could be seen from the top, about 8' down on a ledge, so the fire brigade decided to take the cowl down to make it easier – but they still could not reach her.”

Even with the cowl removed, Smirnoff seemed reluctant to budge. But when the firefighter started making dogs noises at the top of the chimney she came three quarters of the way down by herself. Inspector Skinner was then able to reach her and pull her out to safely.

Owner Jo Barker said: “Apparently the noises he was making were supposed to be a dog but we think he sounded more like a monkey! Anyway it seems the bad impression worked and she started to come down.”

Acting chief inspector Skinner said: “Firefighter Charlie Jamieson’s noises might seem rather an unconventional way to free a kitten from a chimney but the main thing is that the tactic worked and she was totally unharmed.

“After five days without food and water, getting her out was paramount and we are incredibly grateful for the help of Green Watch in this rescue – which was a real team effort.”
Jo said: “I would like a big thanks to go to the RSPCA and the fire brigade who did an absolutely brilliant job. We really cannot thank them enough and plan to make a donation to both as soon as we can.”

Smirnoff was not physically harmed by her ordeal and is slowly starting to settle into her new home.

Jo added: “It is just such a relief that she is ok – and we have blocked off the bottom of the chimney to make sure this can’t happen again.