If every cat has nine lives, then the furry little survivor nicknamed "Starvin' Marvin" has definitely used up at least one of them.
The antsy, underweight cat was rescued Thursday from beneath the eaves of the Knight Road Gospel Chapel in East Vancouver, where it's believed to have been trapped for at least a month.
Church trustee Raymond Cooper said the next door neighbour had been complaining about a meowing sound for weeks, but when he went to investigate, he couldn't hear a peep.
"I came out and looked and there's no noise, nothing. But I noticed that there's two crows up on the chimney," Cooper said. "And I thought it was one of the crows, just imitating a cat. Paid no attention."
But the neighbour complaints persisted, and eventually it became clear there was a distressed feline stuck, inexplicably, in the narrow space between the exterior wall and the overhanging roof.
One end of the space, which runs almost the entire length of the building, was completely closed off and the other was blocked by wire, so it's unclear how the cat got inside.
"I know every inch of the building and there isn't room enough for anything to get in," Cooper said.
Another mystery is how the cat managed to survive. Cooper believes there would have been no food in the space, though there might have been some dripping water.
"I think it was surviving off moisture from the roof, but nothing to eat – nothing at all," he said.
Once the cat was finally discovered, a rescue operation was launched that took several hours and involved members of the church, staff from the BC SPCA and firefighters.
Like the church members, the SPCA said it's baffled by the circumstances of the cat's survival, but is pleased to see the animal appears to be in generally good health, despite being underweight.
"He has very sore front feet, and we're assuming it's from him clawing and trying to exit the building," Vancouver branch manager Jodi Dunlop said.
"If it had been summertime, with the heat, he probably would not have survived."
Staff dubbed the cat "Starvin' Marvin," but the SPCA believes the animal has another name, possibly given to him by a worried family. That's because Marvin is neutered and personable, despite everything he’s been through.
"He's a lovely boy," Dunlop said. "It's a Christmas miracle."
Marvin is described as an approximately four-year-old shorthair-mix with Lynx point hair. Anyone who recognizes him can contact the BC SPCA.
With a report from CTV Vancouver's St. John Alexander
