Eight lives left: New Westminster cat left unscathed after surviving fall from 17th floor

A New Westminster man says he was overjoyed to see his cat alive again after what he thought was a certain death fall from the 17th floor balcony.

Joel Isfeld says his eight-month-old Savannah cat named Cleo managed to slip out onto his patio Sunday night, making a beeline for the railing and jumping right off.

“It was like, all of a sudden she was gone,” Isfeld told Global News. “I was in shock for a moment. I looked over and said, did that really happen?”

Isfeld says Cleo is a very excitable and high energy kitten, so he was not overly surprised that she was bold enough to do it.

“But I was in utter shock and disbelief,” he says.

Isfeld ran downstairs and was prepared for the worst, but did not find any trace of Cleo.

So he started searching the area for what he thought would be the remains of his cat.

He says he spent the next day looking for her and she was nowhere to be found.

Twenty-four hours later, he received a phone call.

Turns out his neighbour, one floor up, has found Cleo on the adjoining building’s garden roof.

“When I got the call, I was overjoyed,” says Isfeld. “I met up with the resident who found her and gave him a big hug.”

Cleo did not sustain any injuries, other than a small cut on her mouth. But her balcony excursions may be over for now.