Cat freed from Edmonton sinkhole, other feline believed to have escaped

A homeowner who has been on watch since discovering two cats trapped in a sinkhole on her property says at least one is free after 12 days.

Rebecca Hung of Edmonton says a grey cat was enticed into a cage with treats Tuesday morning, pulled to the surface and taken to the city's Animal Care and Control Centre.

She says the male cat is microchipped and she hopes it can be returned to its owner.

Hung, who has been lowering cameras into the hole to keep an eye on the animals, says there is no sign of the other cat.

She says she believes the black-and-white feline was able to make it out on its own.

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Hung discovered the sinkhole beside the foundation of her house in mid-April when she returned from a vacation that lasted several weeks.

When she looked in, she saw a pair of cat eyes looking back up at her. She later realized there were two cats trapped inside.

Firefighters were unable to rescue the felines, but created a ladder of wooden beams and placed a long board wrapped with a blanket so the cats could eventually climb out.

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Hung said she stopped trying to trap the cats with food about three days ago, but decided to try it again Monday night after getting new treats from an animal welfare organization.

"We got it, the grey one," Hung said Tuesday. "It was really surprising because we thought that that cat may have been sick, or that it had babies, because it was hiding all the time."

Hung said she has not seen any sign of the other cat, "which is good for us, but sad for him because we would have been nice to get him some help."