Is that an octopus? Beaufort family makes one very adorable river rescue

A Beaufort County family was enjoying a relaxing day on the water Sunday when they spotted what they believed to be an octopus scaling up the bottom of the McTeer Bridge between Beaufort and Lady’s Island.

When they brought the boat closer to the base of the bridge, Robert Gecy and his family realized it wasn’t a sea creature, but in fact, a tiny orange kitten.

The kitten, which is believed to be about 6 weeks old, was clinging to the oyster pilings at the base of the bridge.

“We were in disbelief,” Gecy of Beaufort said.

The family tried to get the boat right up to the oyster piling where the kitten had taken refuge, but the tide kept pushing it away.

Eventually, they were able to get the boat close enough to the kitten and scoop him up onto the boat, he said.

The kitten, scared and shaking, had a few cuts on his underbelly and seemed to be dehydrated, Gecy said.

The family took him home and gave him a wash, as well as food and water.

“He seems to be doing great now,” Gecy said.

Due to the location where they found the kitten, the family believes he either was thrown or had fallen off the bridge. “It was very odd circumstances as to where we found him,” Gecy said.

Gecy’s wife, Dee, posted the video of the rescue on her Facebook page Sunday night. The video was viewed more than 16,000 times, received more than 300 likes and was shared about 150 times. Many commenters asked if they could adopt the kitten themselves.

In spite the interest, the Gecy family plans to keep the kitten, which they have named McTeer.

“We did anything any other person who would have seen the kitten would have done,” Robert Gecy said.

The family took the kitten to the Port Royal Veterinary Hospital on Monday afternoon, where the veterinarian confirmed the kitten was in good health.

“He is in remarkably good shape, considering everything,” said veterinarian Marikay Campbell.

Campbell said for precautionary measures, she was going to take blood samples and an X-ray of the kitten to confirm he was also healthy internally.

“One concern is his sodium levels and if he had ingested or inhaled saltwater,” Campbell said. “Sometimes it can have an effect even if he didn’t drown.”

Following the exams, the family plans to take the kitten to get spayed and neutered and vaccinated through a program at the Beaufort County Animal Shelter.

“It’s a happy ending, and hopefully he won’t have to use any more of his nine lives,” Robert Gecy said.

This story was originally published July 3, 2017 at 3:07 PM with the headline "Is that an octopus? Beaufort family makes one very adorable river rescue."