Here's what we know: the cat has been stranded long enough to become dehydrated, especially after yesterday's 80-degree heat. The fire department responded, did their thing, and the cat responded by climbing even further up. A masterclass in government efficiency meeting feline stubbornness.

Look, we're not here to dunk on firefighters. They have actual emergencies to deal with, and cat-in-tree calls are a genuine act of community goodwill. But this little saga is a nice microcosm of a familiar pattern: a well-meaning institutional response that doesn't quite fit the problem at hand.

As one Bay Area resident pointed out, the real move might be calling an arborist — someone with actual tree-climbing equipment. "This happened in my neighborhood years ago and the Fire Dept was not able to help either," the resident recalled. "An arborist was the only one who in the end was able to get the cat down from the tree." Sometimes the right tool for the job isn't a ladder truck.

Another local offered a low-budget alternative: "Someone take a can of cat food over there and open it next to the tree and see if it entices the cat down. I'm actually not even joking." Honestly? This might be the most fiscally responsible rescue plan we've heard all week.

And then there's the fatalist perspective from someone with a friend in the fire department, who claims they "regularly get these calls and every time the cat eventually comes down on its own." Which is either deeply reassuring or deeply unhelpful depending on how long you've been staring up at a dehydrated cat in 80-degree weather.

We hope the cat comes down safely. But if you're the owner, maybe skip the 911 call and try Yelp for a local arborist. It'll probably be cheaper for the city — and the cat might actually cooperate.