Surprise rescue for firefighters after dog gets stuck up tree during cat chase

It's a classic ‘tail’ of a dog chasing a cat. The dog, in this case, was a German Shepherd who was in hot pursuit of a small black cat.

The black cat wasn't taking any chances and shot up a tree trunk to escape its pursuer. But to everyone's surprise, the German Shepherd wasn't ready to admit defeat. Hot on the cat's tail, the canine shot up the tree after it.

You've got to be kitten!

But almost immediately the poor dog realised the flaw in its plan. The unlucky pup found himself stuck in the tree alongside his feline foe.

The dog's owner could only look on, terrified that the huge dog would fall.

When firefighters received the emergency call their first thought was that it was a prank. Rescuing cats stuck in trees is not unheard of but a huge German Shepherd? But when firefighters arrived they soon saw that they weren't just going to be rescuing a trapped cat but a dog too.

Determined pup

Despite his predicament, the dog was still determined to get his paws on the cat. As the firefighters got the ladder ready, the determined dog looked as if he was moving closer to the rather fed up feline.

As they look into each other's eyes, the rivals seem to be daring each other as to who would make the first move.

Nice work

The Lathrop-Manteca Fire District posted pictures of the dramatic rescue on its Facebook page.

"Glad to hear that all turned out well for this pooch, and we are all pretty sure he'll think twice about chasing cats up the next tree ... nice work Engine 35!" Said the post.

But while the district posted updates on the dog, disgruntled cat lovers hit back demanding news on the feline.

"While we don't typically update or respond to comments," the post said, "after seeing so much interest for the cat's well-being we felt we had a responsibility to share the news."

Fortunately, it seems that the cat is also fine and doing well after its rescue.