Neither strong wind nor high flames bothered Nin the cat during a dozen years patrolling the US Northeast's highest peak as mascot of the Mount Washington Observatory in New Hampshire.
It is retirement that bums him out.
The regal ex-stray with a bright white coat and black splotches was carried off the mountain last Wednesday for the last time and will live with some park rangers in the valley below because of old age and a recent infection claiming the last of his teeth.
PHOTO: AP
"He's 17 or 18 years old, so he's getting up there. We wanted to do the most humane thing for him," said Scot Henley, executive director of the nonprofit weather observatory.
Nin is moving in with Diane Holmes and Mike Pelchat, rangers at Mount Washington State Park, after years of petting and pampering from visitors and researchers alike.
Nin was never fazed by the gusty wind and bad weather. He trotted down the peak with the rest of the crew during a fire in February 2003, going straight back to work when the time came. He was a welcome pal to legions of meteorologists and scientists passing through during weekly stints taking weather measurements in hurricane-force wind and heavy fog.
The observatory is not expected to be feline-free for long. The Conway Area Humane Society is evaluating successors to take over by the end of January, Henley said. They are looking for a new cat who is friendly, not spooked by bad weather and has the wits to know when to come in out of a storm. (AP)
無論強風或烈火都無法阻擋貓咪「寧恩」十二年來在美國東北部最高峰巡邏,寧恩是新罕布夏州華盛頓山的氣象觀測站的吉祥貓。
退休讓牠心情沮喪。
這隻相貌堂堂、亮白毛髮中帶著黑色斑點的貓咪曾是一隻流浪貓,因為年紀太大,加上之前受到感染失去最後一顆牙齒,上週三牠最後一次巡山後被帶下山,牠將和一些國家公園管理員同住在山下的山谷。
「牠約十七、八歲,年紀很大了,我們希望以最人道的方式對待牠,」非營利氣象觀測站的站長史考特.亨利說。
這幾年來寧恩受到山上遊客和研究人員的寵愛與照顧,現在牠要搬去和華盛頓山州立公園的管理員黛安.荷馬士和麥克.派雀特同住。
寧恩從來不懼怕強風和惡劣天氣,在二OO三年二月的一場火災中,牠隨同其他工作人員從山頂跑下山,但仍準時回到工作崗位。在眾多每週須上山測量颶風級風力和濃霧等氣象資料的氣象學者和科學家眼中,牠是一個受歡迎的好夥伴。
亨利說,氣象觀測站不會讓貓咪的出缺太久,康威動物保護協會正在評選遞補的貓咪,一月底前將做出決定。他們希望找到一隻友善、不畏懼壞天氣,且在暴風雨來襲時,能機伶地知道何時該躲進屋內的貓咪。(美聯社/翻譯:袁星塵)
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