Tree trimmer climbs 50 feet to rescue stranded cat

March 17 (UPI) -- A professional tree trimmer was summoned to a Michigan park and climbed a nearly 50-foot tree to rescue a stranded cat.

Robin Walenga, an animal advocate and rescuer in Grand Rapids, said a member of the public reported a cat was stranded nearly 50 feet off the ground in the high branches of a tree in Richmond Park.

Walenga called Erick Baker of Tip Top Tree Care LLC, who has helped her with tree rescues in the past.

Baker used a rope mechanism to scale the tree and reach the stranded cat.

"We use mechanical extenders," Baker told WXMI-TV. "I use one that's attached to my right foot, then I use a knee extender that's spring-loaded, and those are friction devices, so they will move one direction on the rope.

"So as I step up and then put pressure down, it locks on the rope and allows me to walk up the rope like I would go up a ladder."

Baker said the rescue took about 30 minutes.

"I had a full conversation with the cat. We went back and forth a little while," he said.

Walenga posted photos and video from the rescue to Facebook.

"A huge thank-you to Erick Baker with Tip Top Tree Care LLC for his amazing climbing skills and for saving this cat," Walenga wrote.

Walenga said the cat has been placed in a foster home while rescuers try to determine whether it was a stray or an escaped pet.