Cat Won’t Leave Firefighter’s Side After He Sᴀᴠᴇᴅ Her

Ryan Coleman gained an unexpected new bestie while ꜰɪɢʜᴛɪɴɢ the raging fires that overtook Paradise, California in November after the firefighter ʀᴇsᴄᴜᴇᴅ a cat from the blazing ɪɴꜰᴇʀɴᴏ.

Deemed the ᴅᴇᴀᴅʟɪᴇsᴛ fire to ever occur in the sunny state’s history, and the 6th most ꜰᴀᴛᴀʟ in the entire U.S., the Paradise fire laid waste to 86 ᴠɪᴄᴛɪᴍs plus another 3 people unaccounted for and ᴅᴇsᴛʀᴏʏᴇᴅ over 14,000 homes.

Whilst everyone affected is dealing with the grave consequences of the natural disaster, a newfound friendship between a firefighter and a ʀᴇsᴄᴜᴇᴅ cat unlike any other brings a smidge of happiness and compassion amongst it all.

Ryan Coleman, Engine Captain at Fairview Valley Fire Department,  working to ʙᴀᴛᴛʟᴇ the devastating wildfire when he found the kitten among the debris of homes incinerated by flames in the town of Paradise.

With so many homes ʟᴏsᴛ to the raging fires, thousands of pets, livestock, and wildlife were ᴀʙᴀɴᴅᴏɴᴇᴅ, ʟᴏsᴛ, or worse. So, when this gray fluff-ball came tromping out to Coleman, the sight was definitely a welcome one.

The firefighter was quick to pull out his phone and snap an adorable picture of the cat who seemed eager to greet him. Coleman was probably the first person this poor cat had seen since the terrifying fire began, and it’s amazing to see him unsigned by the heat of the blaze like so many other poor critters.

Deciding that Coleman was her human, the cat rode around on his shoulders and affectionately rubbed her face on his stubble. “Kitty ʀᴇsᴄᴜᴇ. She just chilled on my neck and shoulders as I’d walk around,” he captioned the post of images and a video. He added he was ‘excited’ to be helping and said: “I’m ready to get started doing what we do.”

One of the commenters on Coleman’s post asked the firefighter if he planned on keeping the cat. “I wish. I’m still out here,” he responded in the post’s comments. While the relationship between these two isn’t (yet) permanent, this kitty is sure to find a loving, available owner soon now that it has been ʀᴇsᴄᴜᴇd.