‘Catch Of The Day’: A Cat-Fish Tale Of High Seas Rescue

Written by: Kelli Brinegar
For more than five years, Kelli Brinegar has been using her ability to write and her passion for research to tell the tale of what cats are thinking and why. She has provided care to more than 30 cats in her lifetime.Read more
| Published on August 6, 2020

The Gulf of Mexico is home to emerald green waters filled with beautiful marine life. It’s a playground for anglers and sometimes its salty depths yield strange catches. One example?

A ginger tabby kitten!

Like any other day, Steve Crews, owner and captain of the Still Flyin Charters, motored his boat and passengers from its Orange Beach, AL, moorings and through the Perdido Pass for some fishing fun. But just clear of the Pass, in the open gulf waters, they made an unusual catch.

An orange kitten floundered in the water, stranded, meowing for help and quickly tiring.


Still Flyin Charters/Facebook

Still Flyin posted about the kitten on Facebook, sharing, “He was struggling to stay up.”

Fishermen to the Rescue

The crew and passengers leapt into action and caught the little cat-fish with a net. Once aboard, the scared kitten was happy to have paws on the boat’s solid deck. The cat-loving anglers dried the mermeow and offered much in the way of reassurances and snuggles. Hopefully, the tired tabby was offered a tasty treat of fish for his troubles!

The captain’s theories about how the kitten wound up in the Gulf of Mexico? “Poor little guy was sucked out by the tide.”

One can’t help but wonder if the kitten was trying to enjoy a fresh seafood supper when the tide turned for the poor boy. Whatever the reason the tabby kitten wound up in the Gulf of Mexico, he was Still Flyin’s “catch of the day.”


Still Flyin Charters/Facebook

Crew and passengers alike agreed, “Can’t say you see that everyday.”

Fresh Caught and Forever Home

By the time the kitten made it back to dry land, one of Still Flyin’s deckhands had already found a home for him. There, he could safely keep his paws dry forever!


Still Flyin Charters/Facebook

And when it came to giving the kitten a name, charter staff thought Shark Bait might be a good choice for the little cat-fish. Because the kitten survived his high seas adventure, family suggested Lucky. Commenters on Facebook also supplied some ideas:

  • Gilligan
  • Jack Sparrow
  • Captain
  • Scully
  • Sea Breeze
  • Davy Jones
  • Fish Bait
  • Orange Roughy
  • Nemo
  • Sailor
  • Catfish
  • Fish
  • Shark Bite
  • Catalina

All great choices for a cat with a salty sea tale to tell!


Still Flyin Charters/Facebook

Cat lovers from all over the world sent their thanks to Still Flyin Charters. The cat lovers at iHeartCats.com thank you too. Your new kitten is quite a catch!

H/T: www.people.com
Feature Image: Still Flyin Charters/Facebook