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Kitten gets stuck in a Tesla, doesn’t want to leave its warm new home

The frightened kitten did not want to leave the Model S.

 

Selena Larson

Tech

Posted on Jun 6, 2015   Updated on May 28, 2021, 3:55 pm CDT

Tesla vehicles aren’t just high-end electric cars. Their motor compartments also make great places for tiny kittens to call home.

Tesla Model S owner John Griswell of Austin, Texas, discovered a kitten in his vehicle after hearing soft mews coming from his garage. The kitten had climbed up in the space next to the vehicle’s motor and stayed there for several days, somehow surviving while the motor was running.

But while the little kitten survived next to the spinning motor, Griswell couldn’t get it out of his car, even after leaving a can of tuna out for the little fluff ball. So he took his Model S to the Tesla Service Center,where mechanics unscrewed the underbelly of the Tesla so Griswell could pull the kitten to safety.

It looks like the tiny animal didn’t want to leave the snug comfort of its hideaway—even though at any moment it could turn into a death trap—because it started howling as it was removed from the car.

Griswell estimates he drove about 50 miles before realizing the kitten was even there. 

Animals winding up in automobiles is quite common, although they are more frequently found in the winter months when critters are trying to curl up next to something warm.

Rats and other small animals—including, of course, kittens—can do some serious damage to your car if they’re not found immediately. Shredded wires and hoards of trash can pile up if the rodent or other animal is keen to maintain its warm, if dangerous, home. 

Hopefully this kitten will understand how lucky it was to escape the Tesla once it lives somewhere other than right next to a whirring death machine. Griswell told Green Car Reports that he’s training the kitten and has found it a home.

Photo via lachlanrogers/Flickr (CC BY SA 2.0)

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*First Published: Jun 6, 2015, 1:06 pm CDT