Cats and canals don’t mix. That’s something Amsterdam has learned the hard way—especially in the past six months, when at least 19 cats have drowned in the city’s waterways, according to Dierenambulance Amsterdam. Six of them were pulled from the central canal zone alone.
The city is famous for its winding canals, which are beautiful and seriously impractical if you’re a small animal that panicked and slipped. Narrow ledges and steep brick walls leave little room for escape. So, in a move that sounds both whimsical and necessary, Amsterdam is now installing dozens of tiny wooden staircases along the canal edges.
Judith Krom of the Party proposed the initiative for the Animals, who pointed out that an unused €100,000 (around $116,000) in the city’s biodiversity fund could be reallocated to build wildlife escape routes.
“A simple measure can prevent enormous animal suffering,” Krom told The Independent. On July 10, the Amsterdam City Council agreed.
Amsterdam Is Installing Tiny Staircases to Keep Cats From Drowning in Canals
The staircases will be placed in high-risk locations later this year, once Dierenambulance helps identify the spots where cats (and presumably other animals) are most likely to fall. It’s one of those rare instances where a government intervention makes perfect sense.
Maggie Ruitenberg of Katten Kenniscentrum (the city’s feline info hub) explained that even though cats can swim, their waterlogged fur drags them down fast. “A ladder can save their life,” she told Euro News, “As long as there are enough of them.”
Amsterdam isn’t the only place thinking like this. The nearby city of Amersfoort has already committed to installing around 300 “cat traps” (not as sinister as it sounds) along its canals to help animals climb out safely.
The human drowning rate in Amsterdam is no joke either—142 people died in its canals between 2014 and 2024, many of them drunk tourists who couldn’t get out in time. Some newer canal renovations include ledges for humans to grab onto. Now, cats are getting a version of their own.
So while it might seem a little surreal—tiny ladders for cats—it’s also a practical fix to a long-standing problem. A simple bit of carpentry that could mean fewer soaked, shivering pets and more happy endings. In a city built on water, that feels overdue.
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