It’s hard to know if Ivy, the four-year-old tortoiseshell rescue cat from Sheffield, UK, should be considered unlucky for falling from the window of her fifth-floor apartment, or very lucky for surviving. Either way, she has surely used up at least one of her nine lives.
During one of Britain’s rare heatwaves, Ivy’s owner, Emily, opened the door to her fifth-floor balcony to let some air into her home, thinking that the barrier – not to mention the height – would deter her curious feline from exploring too far. Unfortunately, she was mistaken. When Emily realized that Ivy was missing, her frantic search led her to the downstairs courtyard, where the cat was curled up in a garden bed.
Too upset and shocked to drive, Emily enlisted the help of a friend to take her to her vets at Vets for Pets Sheffield Drakehouse, where she was immediately given pain relief and assessed. Every day in veterinary practice can be unpredictable and full of surprises, but the staff had never dealt with a patient that had fallen from such a great height, so imagine their surprise when X-rays revealed that Ivy had a dislocated jaw and no other injuries.
With the dislocation wired closed, Ivy had to be syringe-fed through a tube until her injury was stable enough for her to feed herself. Fortunately, Emily was able to take on this task, meaning that Ivy was back in her home after a few short days. Having made a full recovery, she is back to her normal self, and Emily has installed cat-proof netting around her balcony in anticipation of another heat wave.
Although Ivy’s misadventure had a happy ending, the outcome could easily have been far more tragic. Her story serves as a timely reminder for pet parents to ensure the safety and security of their homes before opening the doors wide in summer. You can check out some handy tips on how to cat-proof a balcony HERE.
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All images courtesy of Pets at Home, 2025
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2 Responses
I remember when my Maine Coon kitten of only 4 months old made his bid for freedom. the only window open was the upstairs bathroom, and it was only open an inch at most. I was busy changing my duvet cover and sheets etc. I went back downstairs to put the dirty laundry in the washer, I called to Ben, but he didn't come running, which was unusual, he had been "helping" me with the bed, and I thought he must have fallen asleep as he often did. I just happened to glance out of my kitchen window and couldn't believe my eyes, there was Ben, chasing a butterfly in the garden. He had somehow managed to get through the tiny gap in the bathroom window, and had jumped down. I had a large plastic table under that window, and I think it must have given him a softer landing than the concrete under it would have done. I was horrified and rang the vet to make an emergency appointment, he was seen within 15 minutes of my call. He had no injuries at all, the vet was amazed. Thankfully it was the last time he did such a thing, He is 18 years old now, and really struggles with arthritis in his hips and legs, I do wonder whether his leap to freedom is finally taking it's toll.
Anne Liversidge, thank you for sharing Ben's incredible story. He's a very fortunate boy to have escaped injury! Arthritis is prevalent in older cats; studies indicate that most felines over the age of 10 exhibit signs of the condition on X-rays.