Curiosity didn't kill the cat on Alder

Curiosity didn't kill Hershey the cat when he climbed up an electrical pole on Alder Drive Monday afternoon.

Aru Vashisht, Hershey's owner, said a former co-worker called her to tell her that one-and-a-half-year-old cat had made his way up onto an electrical pole, and she immediately went over to the scene.

"He was dangling between the wires and I was scared he was going to get shocked," said Vashisht. "It was raining, so it was scary because we were thinking if he panicked, he could end up getting electrocuted."

Vashisht said the Inuvik Fire Department, an ambulance and bylaw officers attended the scene of the incident, while many neighbours watched the "show" unfold.

Firefighter Angel Simon said Inuvik resident Sue Keats noticed the cat was up on the pole for approximately an hour and a half.

Keats was worried about the cat because it was raining and the ravens were harassing him, and contacted the fire department for assistance.

"We would have never known he was up there if Sue had never cared enough to reach out," said Simon.

According to fire chief Cynthia Hammond, Simon and platoon chief Jonathon Michel took the lead in the rescue operations.

Hammond said firefighters spent time planning the safest method and crafting capture devices to remove the cat from the telephone pole.

After a few attempts, the cat was secured in a rescue bag and transported to the ground where he was reunited with Vashisht.

Hershey was immediately ready to go exploring again, but Vashisht said the cat is going to be staying inside for a few days.

"I can't even believe this happened … I'm still in shock, it feels like it was a movie," she said.

She said Hershey often goes outside, but he's never climbed an electrical pole before.

"He usually just goes out, socializes, and comes back home. He's never climbed a pole or anything before. I think he got scared by something, because he usually just goes out into the yard and visits the neighbours," said Vashisht. "He's always enjoyed going outside, but he's never done this kind of thing before. He's a very curious cat."

Vashisht recently moved to Alder Drive from Semmler Place, and her neighbours on Semmler were used to Hershey hanging around outside.

A picture of Hershey up on the electrical pole was also posted on the Inuvik Rant and Rave Facebook page.

"I saw the picture on Facebook and that people were commenting and saying that they wanted to adopt him," she said. "If I hadn't seen the picture on Facebook, he probably would have been adopted by the time I found out about it, so thank God for Facebook."

She said she is considering getting a leash for Hershey in order to keep him in the yard.

"He's just a curious cute cat and I love him," she said. "I'm glad he's home safe now."