Most of our days are spent pruning, felling and clearing trees across Maidstone and the surrounding villages. Every now and then, though, we get a call that has nothing to do with the tree itself. At the end of September, that call was about Momo, a cat who had been stuck 50ft up a sycamore at Maidstone’s Army barracks for around three days.
The rescue was covered by KentOnline, and here is the story from our side.
A Missing Cat, Found Up a Tree
Momo had gone missing on 13 September. He was spotted by a neighbour five days later, then vanished again. Eventually, a neighbour heard him meowing from a sycamore at the barracks, where he had been stuck for around 72 hours.
Connor first heard about Momo after people began contacting him on social media. As he told KentOnline: “I think I had a call, a couple of messages, a few DMs and people tagging me in a post. As soon as I saw ‘cat rescue’, I was like, ‘Ah, that’s another one.'”
Why the Fire Service Couldn’t Reach Him
By the time we were called, a lot had already been tried. A cherry picker at the barracks could not reach high enough. Kent Fire and Rescue Service attended on Saturday 26 September and used reach and rescue poles, but Momo climbed higher. Because of where the tree stood, a height vehicle could not be used. Firefighters and the technical rescue unit returned the next day, but after assessing the tree they raised concerns about its structural stability, and no further action could be taken. The owner was advised to contact a professional tree surgeon.
That is where we came in.
The Climb
Connor estimated Momo was between 50ft and 55ft above the ground. It took around 15 minutes to climb the tree and another 20 minutes to carry out the rescue itself.
Sycamore is not an easy tree to climb in a situation like this. “Sycamore is really, really snappy,” Connor explained. “Every single time we went a little bit higher, it got more and more sketchy because these branches could break at any point.”
When he reached Momo, the cat was shaken, nervous and clamped to the tree, and understandably not keen on the “weird man with all this jangly metal stuff on him”. Connor climbed out onto thinner branches, bent another branch round to give Momo more support, and cleared some smaller branches to get closer. With just enough reach, he scruffed Momo, the way a mother cat would, and secured him in a rescue bag.
“After the sketchy bit, it went quite smoothly,” he said.
Back Home Safe
Momo’s owner was waiting on the ground when Connor brought him down. He had lost some weight while he was missing, but he is now safely back home. “Momo is well,” Connor told KentOnline. “He’s eating, drinking, and I think he’s very happy to be home.”
“I’m the Cat Man Now”
Momo was far from Connor’s first rescue. He believes his first was around 2016 or 2017, and he has now lost count. Over the years he has also been called to retrieve drones and remote-controlled planes from trees. One of his rescue videos went viral, and as he put it: “So, yeah, I’m the cat man now.”
Planning Is Everything
A rescue like this shows the same skills we use on every job. As Connor said in the article, climbing a tree is not simply starting at the bottom and working your way up. You have to plan your route and spot features that could be dangerous, such as deadwood, cavities, or unions that might not be structurally sound.
“The industry is fraught with danger,” he said, “but I think that can be mitigated by careful planning, being qualified, knowing what you’re doing and having a good team around you as well.”
Our team is NPTC and City & Guilds qualified and works to British Standard BS 3998. We also hold Level 3 Emergency First Aid at Work + Forestry certificates, so we are prepared if anything goes wrong at height.
Do We Rescue Cats?
Yes. As Connor told KentOnline, “Cat rescue is a service that I provide.”
If a pet, drone or anything else is stuck in a tree in Maidstone, Detling, Bearsted, Hollingbourne, Stockbury, Bredgar or Grove Green, get in touch and we will let you know if we can help.
Follow Our Work
To see more of our tree work and rescues, search for Maidstone Tree Surgeons on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. You can also browse our previous work, or watch us remove a 90-foot lime tree.
Read the full article on KentOnline.
Contact Us Today
Whether it is a cat up a tree, a storm-damaged branch or a full tree removal, Maidstone Tree Surgeons is here to help.
📧 Email: office@maidstonetreesurgeons.co.uk
☎ Office: 01622 925926
📱 WhatsApp: 07375 455138
