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For this cat, it’s eight lives and counting after surviving fire

After surviving a fire in Glendale on Monday, the black cat rests in an intensive care oxygen chamber at TLC Pet Medical Center in South Pasadena.
(Raul Roa/Staff photographer)
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The cat that now apparently has eight lives after it was pulled from a burning apartment in Glendale and revived by firefighters was recuperating in an oxygen chamber Tuesday as animal control officials waited to hear from her owners.

The black cat was slated to be weaned off the oxygen therapy at veterinary clinic in South Pasadena, where she was called “a pretty lucky kitty.”

“This cat really I think just used up one of its nine lives. It’s very fortunate,” said Valerie Tesauro, a veterinarian at TLC Pet Medical Centers.

Glendale firefighters revived the cat after pulling it from a blaze that was reported just after 10:17 a.m. Monday at the Fort Dearborn Home complex in the 400 block of West Doran Street.

Firefighters were able to revive the unresponsive cat after they administered oxygen atop a nearby car as crews continued to fight the blaze.

The fire, which originated in a second-story apartment, jumped to the unit above, but firefighters were able to prevent it from spreading elsewhere. Residents in the two affected apartments were displaced, Glendale Battalion Chief Vincent Rifino said.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation.

On Tuesday, Tesauro said the cat is on its way back to a full recovery. Her whiskers and ears weren’t singed by the flames, common ailments for cats caught in fires.

She also has no flesh burns or blisters.

So far, the only medical treatment the cat has undergone is oxygen therapy since Monday night. The chamber boosts the amount of oxygen the animal inhales, increasing oxygen levels that could be hampered by damaged airways.

The Pasadena Humane Society — which provides animal control services for Glendale — is the temporary guardian of the cat, whose name is unknown, as the owners have yet to come pick it up from the shelter.

Humane Society spokesman Ricky Whitman said fire officials don’t know from which apartment the cat came from, so they haven’t been able to contact the owners.

If the owners don’t come forward, the cat could be assessed for adoption, Whitman added.

The cat seems well cared for and well fed, Tesauro said, adding that it may be middle-aged, or about six years old.

“We didn’t have to do very much at all,” Tesauro said. “The cat was in pretty good shape.”

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Follow Brittany Levine on Google+ and on Twitter: @brittanylevine

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