Playful kitten is a talented escape artist, shelter video shows. Now he has a home
A playful kitten was mysteriously getting loose — then a shelter worker grabbed a camera.
It turns out, Firecracker is a talented escape artist. Video from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) Florida shows the cat inside a cage as he extends his paw to unlock the enclosure. He then can be seen jumping onto the floor of the shelter.
“Firecracker here is so ready to go to his special forever home that he keeps escaping his holding area,” the Lakeland-based animal organization wrote July 19 on Facebook.
Now, the “clever kitty” has a home of his own. A family saw his post on social media and decided to adopt him, operations director Lani Kurtz told McClatchy News in a phone interview.
Firecracker’s online fame also got him noticed at the shelter. So when he got a new owner, workers started cheering and grew “excited that he found his forever home,” spokesperson Randa Richter said in the interview.
Firecracker got a second chance after he and three of his siblings were found as strays. When they came to the SPCA, they were underweight and only a few weeks old.
After spending time in foster care, the siblings went up for adoption. Firecracker made a name for himself as he waited in the shelter.
“We found him multiple times today roaming our floors after DEFINITELY closing his door and latching it,” the shelter wrote in its Facebook post. “Finally one of our staff managed to film the escape.”
In addition to showing off his Houdini-like antics, Firecracker became known for his friendliness.
“He’s your typical kitten,” Richter said. “He’s super playful, lovable, loves other kitty cats. We’re happy to hear that he found his forever home so he can grow up with a family and get lots of love.”
Lakeland is a roughly 35-mile drive east from Tampa.
This story was originally published July 23, 2024 at 1:00 PM with the headline "Playful kitten is a talented escape artist, shelter video shows. Now he has a home."
