ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Operation Cat Drop

Okay kiddo, have you ever seen a cat stuck in a tree or on a roof? It happens sometimes, and it can be really scary for the cat! Operation Cat Drop happened a long time ago, in the 1950s.

There was a place called Borneo, a very big island with lots of trees and animals. Some people were working there, and they noticed that the cats were having a hard time. They were getting sick from eating rats that had poison on them. This was a big problem, because the cats were important for keeping the rats from taking over the island!

So some very nice people decided to help the cats. They asked some other people to help them, and they made a special plan. They put the cats into boxes, and loaded the boxes onto a big airplane. The airplane flew over Borneo and dropped the boxes from the sky – but don't worry, the cats had parachutes!

The cats landed safely on the ground, and they were happy to be there. There were people waiting to take care of them and make sure they were healthy. After a while, the cats were able to run around and catch rats without getting sick. It was like a fairy tale, with a happy ending for everyone!

So that's Operation Cat Drop, in a very simple way. It was a way to help some little cats that were in trouble, using an airplane and some parachutes. Sometimes people do amazing things to help animals, and this was definitely one of them.