A cat took trips all over Wellington on Thursday, stuck inside the engine bay of an Uber driver's car.
By Sammy Carter of RNZ
Owner Renee Wadsworth said her cat Norton's tracking collar saw him travel all the way from Hataitai to Johnsonville – which was about a 30-minute drive.
She said Norton, a 6-year-old Burmese cat, had a love for anything warm and cosy, and he was also "a bit dumb".
Wadsworth noticed Norton was too far from home on Thursday, and raced to his nearest location to find him.
In Mount Victoria, Wadworth said she frantically looked for her cat and called his name.
She couldn't see him anywhere, until, she heard meowing from a car bonnet.
"I was honestly relieved because I thought that I was going to either find just his collar... Or I thought I was going to find his body."
After explaining the situation to the Uber driver who she said looked very confused, they opened up the bonnet to find Norton deep inside the car.
"He was pretty shook up. And actually, so was the Uber driver."
Wadsworth called a local mechanic, who managed to squeeze the cat out via the front tyre.
"It looked like he was literally being birthed."
By Friday, she said Norton was perfectly fine, cuddled up on her lap.
Brendan Foot service adviser Mel Barrett said she got a call on Thursday afternoon about "a bonnet meowing" and rushed up to Mount Victoria.
"I've got nearly 10 years of experience in the industry and it's the first time I've had to get a cat out of an engine bay."
She explained the cat was sitting behind the front left fog light, away from any moving parts, with a plastic panel separating him from the radiating heat.
"He was quite well tucked away and safe."
Barrett said she removed the wheel guard on the tyre, turned the wheels, and managed to reach out and save Norton.
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