Sweet little Teddy Bear can look forward to a good life thanks to the good Samaritans who heard his cries and called for help, and to those who rescued and are caring for him.
Lakeland, Florida resident Brenda Rodriguez and her neighbor said they heard desperate meows coming from a deep drainpipe near their homes one day last week. Inside, they found a cream and white longhair kitten. Scared and alone, the one-month-old kitten peered up. Unsure of how to safely get to him, Brenda called the Lakeland Fire Department.
Lieutenant Daniel Faviere, Stuart Curk, Mark Olivenbaum and Kawailani “Kui” Kuikahi arrived to pull the frightened kitten to safety.
Rodriguez brought the cat to SPCA Florida where he received a medical exam and the name Teddy Bear. Dr. Kim Domokos, Veterinarian at SPCA Florida, said “He was very emaciated and also dehydrated as well so he just needed some good love and care and a little bit of nutrients.” Now that Teddy Bear is coming along well, interacting, and playing, Dr. Domokos says, “The best part is he is starting to show a little more spunk.”
The kitten will remain in SPCA Florida’s foster program until he weighs two pounds, when he will be available for adoption and posted on SPCA Florida’s website and social media sites.
Assistant Fire Chief Rick Hartzog said of the rescue, “One of our guiding principles here at the Lakeland Fire Department is compassion. That doesn’t stop with human beings.” The fire truck arrived on the scene less than 10 minutes after receiving the call.
On Wednesday, December 19 at 2 p.m. SPCA Florida will present each of the firefighters with a Certificate of Compassion at Lakeland Fire Department Station 1, 701 East Main Street in recognition of their role in carrying out SPCA Florida’s mission of keeping animals healthy and creating humane communities.
Here’s Teddy Bear in a short video uploaded to Facebook by the Florida SPCA on Friday.
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