Rural Carrier Matt Tripp was delivering mail in Morganfield, KY, recently when he came upon a cat with her head stuck in a tin can.
Tripp was unable to safely remove the can, so he called animal control and stayed with the cat until officers arrived.
She was taken to a shelter, where the can was safely removed.
Shelter employees determined that her head had been stuck in the can for almost 24 hours. She was treated for dehydration.
The cat, whose name is Jasper, was reunited with her owners.
“I suspect the cat would not have lived had Matt not called for help,” said Postmaster Kimberly Wolfe.
Employees featured in “Heroes” receive letters of commendation through the Postmaster General Heroes’ Program. The nomination form is available on Blue.