Aussie cops take wee kitten into custody for hitchhiking

A wee black kitten who was rescued from the engine of a Sydney AU highway patrol car has received a clean bill of health from the vet and is back in police custody.

Estimated to be about four weeks old, the kitten survived two hours trapped in the engine compartment of Senior Constable Tex Tannous’ patrol car.

The saga began when she dashed across the road in front of Sen Const Tannous’ car in the Cartwright neighborhood of Sydney, Australia. He braked hard, then pulled over, trying to locate the cat.

“I pulled over … I couldn’t locate it. I was walking around, I could hear it, but I couldn’t find the little sucker,” he told reporters as he cradled Cartwright in his arms yesterday.

Tannous said that at first he assumed that the cat had run to safety. But a couple of hours later he heard the meowing again.

He said he immediately made sure the engine was turned off.

“The car was getting hot sitting there … we didn’t want fried cat in the engine,” he said.

He said he was ridiculed by his fellow officers when he first told them a kitten was trapped in his car. They assumed he was playing a practical joke.

“I said “I’ve got a bit of a problem, there’s a cat in my engine. They looked at me funny. I don’t think they believed me,” he said.

After a hearty laugh, Sergeant Adrian Grech took a look beneath the vehicle.

“We saw the fur poking out of a little drain hole,” Sgt Grech said.

“We poked it and it meowed.”

They took the cruiser to a nearby mechanic, where the front bumper was removed and the terrified kitten was revealed.

“She was really frightened and didn’t want to come out,” he said. Despite her epic adventure, she was uninjured. Tannous took her to a vet where she spent the weekend.

Police are now attempting to locate the owner of the kitten.

[Via Cat’s Meow reader Margaret. SOURCE: news.ninemsn.com.au PHOTOS: 1) news.com.au 2) smh.com.au]