Animal Planet is now warning its viewers about “Monster Week” coming soon to TV screens, but nothing will prepare viewers for the appeal of another of its shows, debuting Saturday, May 30 with a double-feature.

It’s “Treetop Cat Rescue,” a 10-episode series of 30-minute shows featuring the guys from Canopy Cat Rescue, Shaun Sears of North Bend and Tom Otto of Olympia. The two brothers-in-law have rescued cats together for years in the Seattle area, and decided last fall to try broadening their reach through reality-show TV.

“A lot of people just love what we do,” said Shaun.

Now, when the show airs, viewers all over the world will get to share in the experience that dedicated followers of the Canopy Cat website have already been enjoying. Climb along with Shaun and Tom as they ascend towering trees and face the business end of distressed kitties. Flinch as stranded cats hiss and swipe at their rescuers and climb even higher. Hold your breath as they descend, Fluffy in arms, to the safety of solid earth. Blink away the threatening tears as worried families are reunited with their beloved pets.

Don’t worry, you’re not the only one affected.

“Oh, don’t pretend you don’t like the hugs!” Tom teased to Shaun in a preview video promoting the show.

Both of them like the hugs and they get a lot. Last year, the two rescued 249 cats, many of which had been stuck in trees for days. Cats are excellent at climbing up, they say, but because of poor vision and the orientation of their claws, they often won’t, or can’t, climb down.

Tom, an arborist for the city of Olympia, and Shaun, a semi-retired mountain guide, are experienced climbers and animal lovers, who decided to use their skills to help cats and their people. They answer calls at all hours and work for donations. They’re basically a non-profit, working toward gaining federal non-profit status for Canopy Cat, so donations can be tax-deductible.

“It’d be great to have some outside funding,” said Shaun. “Our goal is for Tom to be able to quit that job.”

That’s where the TV crew came in. Shaun said they had been considering how to increase their exposure, and “We always thought in the back of our minds that we could do a show.”

Then a relative working for a Los Angeles production company suggested filming a series and pitching it to one of their favorite channels, Animal Planet.

The people at the network said “Of course, this is a great show, this is what we’re all about,” said Shaun, “and they ordered the series.”

So for two weeks last December and another six in March and April, Shaun and Tom added a lot of work, and a little weirdness — “They filmed me roasting a chicken one day, to put that into perspective,” said Shaun — to their schedules.

“It used to be that the longest part of any rescue was driving there,” sighed Shaun. With the film crew, though, they had to mobilize a lot more people for each call. At the site, the guys had to do a lot more climbing, too. The first trip up the tree was to set up and anchor their own safety gear, and the second was to determine where to put a cameraman and set up their gear. The third was the actual rescue, and the last trips were for cleanup,  to regather their ropes and harnesses.

Sometimes it was hard to situate a cameraman, but the cats generally didn’t seem to mind. If a cat was really distressed, though, the camera didn’t even come up.

“The cats came first,” said Shaun.

In eight weeks of shooting, the production company documented 32 cat rescues, but, Shaun said, “They weren’t able to film all of them.” Canopy Cat couldn’t share the rescues filmed by the crew, but with all of the other rescues made in the same timeframe, their Web fans still had a good supply of videos to enjoy.

“Treetop Cat Rescue” premieres at 9 p.m. Saturday, May 30 on Animal Planet. Shaun said they are hoping to have a premiere party for the show in North Bend.

For more information, visit www.canopycatrescue.com, or find them on Facebook.

Tom Otto, left, and Shaun Sears are the team behind Canopy Cat Rescue and the stars of the new Animal Planet show, ‘Treetop Cat Rescue’ premiering May 30.