Rachelle Gidney knows that getting stuck on the Hood Canal Bridge is part of living on the Olympic Peninsula.

So when her family had to wait for several ships to pass through July 25, it seemed nothing was out of the ordinary. 

As the owner of three cats, however, she immediately recognized urgent animal calls coming from somewhere below the bridge. 

At first Gidney couldn’t see the source of the meowing, but when a tiny black head appeared, she knew she needed to take action. 

“You could tell it was a cry for help,” she said, “he was so hoarse.” 

She Googled how to find the Hood Canal Phone Line, and placed her unusual call: There was kitten in a perilous situation, clinging onto the bridge for life. Could they help? And if they could, could she then provide safe harbor for the tiny animal?

The bridge opened, so Gidney and her family continued on, arriving at church as a Washington Department of Transportation crew met to assess the rescue. 

The black kitten, who would shortly become “Ritz,” was 25 feet below the bridge, clinging to an air vent. 

According to a WSDOT blog post, the panicked cat jumped another 20 feet before it was pulled to safety. 

“He has a will to live, I’ll tell you what,” Gidney said, noting that when she took him to the vet he’d suffered “a bloody nose and a fat lip.” 

His claws were also worn to nubs. Amazingly, though, that was the extent of Ritz’ injuries. 

“He’s the most beautiful black cat I’ve seen,” Gidney said Monday. 

“He’s starting to get on our laps now,” she added.

Given his rather rough start to life (both a WSDOT crew member and Gidney believe Ritz was thrown from the bridge), it’s taken a little while for Ritz to relax. 

Whenever a loud vehicle drives by his Port Ludlow home, he runs. Settling in with three other cats was an adjustment, too; they’re all brothers, older than Ritz, and don’t share a lot in common other than a few more cracker names: “Triskey” (for Triscuit) and “Cheezit.” (Sibling “Koda” is apparently in a class of his own.)

“The cats rule the house,” Gidney said, and Ritz in particular “wants to know everything.” 

He’s fascinated by running water — or was until he stuck his head underneath the faucet and got wet. He snags hanging dishtowels in an effort to climb on the countertop. 

Gidney has to keep tissues away from him, too. For some reason Ritz loves to chew on them. 

Although there is a lot of love directed at this little survivor, Ritz seems to have singled out Gidney’s 27-year-old daughter Bridgette as a favorite. 

Next week, Gidney plans on delivering cookies and giving an in-person thank-you to the team that rescued Ritz. 

In fact, all of her cats are rescues. 

“God gives us these cats in the most unique situations,” she said.