A Long Island cat rescuer known as “Catman” helped bring a missing pet home after a harrowing ordeal inside the walls of an old family home.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For one Franklin Square family, John DeBacker’s patience and persistence turned a seemingly impossible situation into a lifesaving rescue.<\/p>\n
Here’s what to know<\/p>\n
By the time Lola was found, the Franklin Square cat had been the focus of an approximately two-week rescue effort. As ABC News reported<\/a>, the ordeal began when her family, while moving out of an upstairs apartment, saw her slip beneath a floorboard and disappear into the house’s walls.<\/p>\n Their first approach was to wait for Lola to come back out. DeBacker set out food, cameras, and a trap, but although she emerged at night, she kept avoiding capture.<\/p>\n The rescue became more urgent when Lola stopped appearing. DeBacker determined that she had fallen behind a first-floor wall, where she was likely stuck upside-down, eating insulation and getting weaker.<\/p>\n A contractor then joined the effort as the team opened the wall and used a scope to pinpoint Lola’s location. Once they found her, they traded an electric saw for a quieter drill so she would not bolt deeper into the space.<\/p>\n “After two weeks we did not want to lose the cat again,” DeBacker said.<\/p>\n More background<\/p>\n Cats often seek out tight hiding places when frightened, and in older homes, those spaces can become life-threatening.<\/p>\n DeBacker, a Long Island rescuer with more than 15 years of experience working with cats, wore his trademark “Catman” T-shirt during the operation. Video from the rescue shows him reaching through the narrow opening, taking hold of Lola’s hind legs, and easing her out backward.<\/p>\n Afterward, Lola was taken to an emergency veterinarian, where DeBacker said insulation was found in her body. She has since returned to her family, but she is still struggling with a poor appetite as veterinarians try to determine what may be wrong.<\/p>\n What can be done?<\/p>\n Moves, renovations, and other chaotic changes at home can create risks for cats.<\/p>\n Keeping cats in a closed room or a secure carrier during stressful moments can help prevent them from slipping into dangerous spaces.<\/p>\n An animal may not be able to find its own way out. DeBacker’s team relied on cameras, traps, construction help, and a step-by-step approach rather than rushing in and risking a worse outcome.<\/p>\n When a pet is trapped in a wall, crawl space, or ceiling, professional assistance can make a major difference. Animal rescuers, contractors, and veterinarians can work together to improve the odds of a safe rescue while limiting further harm.<\/p>\n “It’s pretty miraculous that the cat survived there five days with no food or water,” DeBacker said. “And when you’re upside-down, all the blood is rushing to your head.”<\/p>\n Where can I learn more?<\/p>\n Lola’s story demonstrates how quickly cats can end up in dangerous places.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2022 In Greenville, North Carolina, teens chasing a wiffle ball<\/a> found a missing emotional-support cat in a storm drain.<\/p>\n \u2022 In Colorado Springs, firefighters rescued a woman and cat after a 50-foot climb<\/a> into a tree.<\/p>\n \u2022 In Galleywood, England, an indoor cat survived a 15-mile trip<\/a> under a car before reuniting with family.<\/p>\n Get TCD’s free newsletters<\/a> for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Long Island cat rescuer known as “Catman” helped bring a missing pet home after a harrowing ordeal…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":359702,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[133809,133810,28010,133808,9,11,10],"class_list":["post-359701","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york","tag-catman","tag-debacker","tag-franklin-square","tag-john-debacker","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-headlines","tag-new-york-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/359701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=359701"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/359701\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/359702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=359701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=359701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=359701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}