Fla. Fire Station Rescues, Adopts Kitten

July 09--Lake County Fire Rescue just got a new furry addition to the crew: a kitten named Pickles.

The kitten was one of two that were rescued by firefighters recently after they got trapped underground in Leesburg.

Residents Ron and Dot Gilbert were had just gotten back to their Ocklawaha Drive home when they heard little cries coming from their fenced-in garden. They uprooted a hedge and flowers and saw a small kitten caught near their fence post underground.

After freeing the kitten, they thought they had solved the problem, until they heard more crying from the hole and saw a kitten trapped even farther down, completely out of reach.

The couple called Lake County firefighters for help.

Firefighters dismantled the fence and were able to reach the stranded kitten.

"I can't say enough about how impressed we were by Lt. Coulthart and [Valerie] Ligi. They were professional, courteous and compassionate and determined to effect a rescue," the couple said in a letter to the firefighters. "Had it not been for them, the kitten would surely have been doomed to an agonizing demise."

The couple said they adopted the first kitten saved from the fence post, and firefighter Valerie Ligi adopted the second.

"I thought it was a girl, but after I took him to the vet for a checkup, the vet confirmed that it was actually a little boy that was just about 4 weeks old and weighed 10 ounces," Ligi said. "I named him Pickles."

"This particular 911 call turned out to be a very happy ending for all of us."

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