SACRAMENTO, CA (Meadowview) – A cat was rescued Tuesday afternoon in South Sacramento after it got stuck in the undercarriage of a Mini Cooper.
Firefighters from the Sacramento Fire Department responded around 2:55 Tuesday afternoon to the stuck feline. When crews arrived, they found the cat had wedged itself in the undercarriage of a blue Mini Cooper.
Firefighters then asked for an Animal Control unit to be dispatched to assist. Once the Animal Control unit arrived, he surveyed the situation to determine the best way to rescue the cat. Water ended up being sprayed on the cat to coax it out from the undercarriage. After the cat was rescued, staff from the pet hospital took it inside to be evaluated.
The owner of the Mini Cooper talked to PSN and said the cat had urinated in the cardboard box it was being held in causing the bottom of the box to become unstable. When the driver lifted the box out of the car, the unstable bottom broke and the cat fell out and ran under the car. After some attempts to retrieve the cat, it jumped up into the undercarriage and got stuck. The owner of the Mini Cooper says the cat was stuck for about 40 minutes total.
The cat’s temperature was 105 when she was brought in after the rescue, with a normal being 100 to 102.5. The cat was originally brought in because she was walking odd, and after X-rays were conducted, it was discovered she sustained multiple bullet wounds. Lisa LaChioma, Veterinarian at the pet hospital showed PSN on the X-rays where three bullets were found in the cat. One of the cat’s legs sustained serious injury from the bullet strike, shattering bones and still had a bullet inside the leg. The cat’s leg would have to be amputated, LaChioma said.
A veterinarian told PSN in these situations of a cat getting stuck in the undercarriage or engine block of a vehicle, to call emergency responders and/or professionals who know what they’re doing and to not drive anywhere. As it starts to cool down, cats tend to find stay inside vehicle engine blocks because it’s warm. If you start up your car and you hear a rumbling, don’t ignore it and try to see if you can find the cat and scare it out. Otherwise, call someone to help get the cat out.
