2 Cats, 1 Bear And A 'Tearful' Rescue From The Caldor Fire

SAN DIEGO, CA — When San Diego Humane Society Officer Joy Ollinger went to inspect a particular house in South Lake Tahoe, the French doors in the back were open and the kitchen looked like the aftermath of a wild party.

Its owners were out of state and barred from coming back because the Caldor Fire is threatening their house.

A mass precautionary evacuation has emptied parts of South Lake Tahoe of people and allowed black bears to roam the streets picking through trash, said Ollinger, who the Humane Society sent to the fire zone on Aug. 26 to do animal welfare checks on empty homes.

One bear had crashed into the house, eaten its way through the kitchen and left paw scratches on the closed bedroom door. Inside the bedroom the officer found Pixie, a calico cat, and Bentley, a black-and-white cat, which escaped the intruder because of the closed door.

Ollinger lured the calico by putting food in a cage and grabbed the other cat by draping it in a blanket. She took both cats to the rescue center at the Douglas County fairgrounds in Gardnerville, Nevada. The pet owners, a couple in Washington state visiting their daughter, were notified.

“The owners were in tears,” Ollinger said. “They came back and were so grateful.”

This story was one of the more memorable Caldor Fire moments for Ollinger and fellow animal law enforcement Officer Sandra Anderson.

The pair is answering a statewide call for help with animal services at the fire and are due to work around the scene until Saturday. Two other officers from the same Humane Society arrived later.

The four officers have helped with more than 50 pet rescues, normally at houses in evacuation zones where roads are blocked and their owners cannot return from trips outside the fire zone in El Dorado County.

Ollinger and her colleagues have found 24 parakeets, four rabbits, three dogs, two chinchillas, and a 45-year-old turtle along with lively fish tanks. “We’ve had a lot of exotics, which is kind of surprising,” she said.

The Caldor Fire, which started Aug. 14 near the town of Omo Ranch, has burned 210,259 acres and destroyed 811 structures, according to Cal Fire. As of Thursday, the fire was 25 percent contained.

The officers are working away from flames — Ollinger said she never saw any on the day of the cat rescue — but have had spots of trouble entering people’s windows to check their pets.

The house where the two cats were rescued has not been burned, Ollinger said.