SAFE: Rose Boulton with Sam, the domestic shorthair cat who was stuck up a tree for 3 days.
A KITTEN rescued by firefighters after spending three days in a Victoria Park tree is safe and sound at the Ballarat RSPCA.
"Fireman Sam", as it has been nicknamed, will spend the next eight days in quarantine waiting for its owners to pick it up.
However, if it is not claimed, the six-month-old black and white moggy will be looking for a new home.
See photos of Fireman Sam's rescue here
RSPCA acting supervisor Rose Boulton said Sam had survived its ordeal without too much trauma.
"It's a happy little thing," she said.
"It's nice and clean and has a fat little belly.
"It's nice and calm but it's certainly used up one of its nine lives."
Sam was rescued by Ballarat City Fire Brigade officers after being stuck 10 metres up a tree in Victoria Park.
The kitten was first noticed by a group of walkers on Monday, but it resisted all efforts to get it down.
Ms Boulton said the RSPCA was about to start offering a $35 microchipping service.
"Hopefully if we get more cats and dogs being microchipped, we'll have less that come in and we can identify them," she said.
RSPCA inspector Charyn Symes said most cats were able to get down from trees but firefighters were usually called in if they were still stuck after a few days.
She said the usual procedure for cats stuck up trees was to clear the area of other animals and put food and water at the base of the tree.
"But in most cases, if they can get up, they can get back down," Ms Symes said.
