Cat rescued

MISSOULA, Montana -- There has been a happy ending on what started as a case of animal cruelty.

Passers-by spotted the calico house cat Tuesday morning while crossing a footbridge by Montana’s icy Clark Fork River. They called for help, and Missoula firefighters responded. Firefighters lowered a boat onto the ice, and retrieved the soaking-wet cat.

Someone had put the animal in a cage, along with a rock weighing about 16 pounds, and tossed it over the bridge. But instead of landing in the water, the caged cat landed on the ice and bounced several times, coming to a stop in an icy puddle of slush.