Man who found void kitten hiding in car engine after two days of mysterious meows while driving, gives fur baby a warm home after a slow and patience testing rescue, cat dad says: ‘I knew I couldn’t leave it there so I tried to lure it with more treats’

Author image for Laurent Shinar
Laurent Shinar • Writer and Editor
Jun 16, 2026 12:45 PM EDT

Sometimes your car just starts meowing at you. At first you might think your engine is feeling a little rough, maybe the cold mornings have taken their toll. But if you are this story's rescuer, you might actually have a cat in your engine…

Reddit's r/CatDistributionSystem subreddit is full of interesting ways in which kittens and cats met their hoomans. For some it was a meet cute outside a local restaurant dumpster, for others they were plucked from bags and boxes, and in the case of this curious kitten, it was found terrified in the engine of a car. A unique albeit warm place to be hiding in and one that it certainly did not plan on making its home. But that is the way things often go in these cat stories, there is little forward planning.

Thankfully, this kitten was not going to sit and take their predicament. Instead opting to meow its little heart out until it was able to catch the attention of the hoomans who would come to save it. So the moral of the story is, if you hear meowing coming from your engine, you are not just that cat obsessed and sleep deprived, you might actually have a feline fur baby waiting for you to pluck them from the engine and into your home. 
 

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to start your Caturday with the funniest felines on the internet!

Add as a preferred
source on Google
Advertisement
  • 01
    "Spent 2 hours outside with it and built a lot of trust that now it lets me pet and hold it! It let me carry it inside.
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 02
    I was driving yesterday and barely left my house when I thought I heard a meow but thought I was trippin. I
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 03
    stopped the car to check if my cat had somehow made its way into my car or the bag I packed... Then,
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 04
    I thought it was just the background of my Facetime audio. I sat there for 15 mins and even drove back
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 05
    home to see if my cat was home, which he obviously was. I did not hear or see anything so I drove 10 miles
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 06
    Cheezburger Image 10638901504
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 07
    and went on about my day. I parked my car overnight and this morning I was heading home. Right when I pulled
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 08
    out of the lot, I heard constant meowing and pulled over right away to check my hood. NOTHING. And
    via Ill-Examination9272

  • Wow, at this point we would be going insane. How is it that you can go for days on end, spending significant time in your car only to still not be able to find the source of the meowing. But we must not forget that cats are masters at hiding. They can squeeze themselves into places that you would find unimaginable and at the same time be so quiet that you would think the wind is playing tricks on your ears. Which makes it all the more curious as to how and why this cat is still in hiding while revealing itself through voice. Surely it would have come out by now if it wanted help and attention?
     

  • 09
    no more meowing but I couldn't keep driving, I knew there had to be something inside because of yesterday's
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 10
    Cheezburger Image 10638902016
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 11
    meow I heard. I called my friend back down to check my hood and when he did, he said nope, nothing. He
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 12
    thought I was crazy lol and was about to head back inside until I started meowing and it meowed
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 13
    back at me Office lady and maintenance guy helped us lure it out with treats but once it ran out, it hid
    via Ill-Examination9272

  • That has got to be the single greatest line in cat rescue history. First off this just goes to show how mad this hooman must have gotten after spending days wondering where this mysterious meowing had been coming from. That out of desperation he would eek out one final meow in hopes of proving himself to be sane and reasonable. The fact that it worked is legendary and certainly a story that all those who bore witness to will not furget any time soon. Now they just need to get their hands on this kitten and make sure that it is ok and has survived the several car trips with little to no damage.
     

  • 14
    9.
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 15
    behind a fence. I knew I couldn't leave it there so I tried to lure it with more treats until it crawled up
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 16
    another guy's car. We opened his hood and got a box to corner him and was able to capture him without
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 17
    getting clawed. What a day. We took it to the vet in hopes to get it checked out or vaccinated as I keep it at
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 18
    home but they said no appointments until next week. Took it to animal shelter and was turned down, so I put
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 19
    Cheezburger Image 10638901760
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 20
    it outside in my backyard for now with a house and water and food, hoping the mom would find it. I
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 21
    checked on it 3 times in the past 6 hours and it's still in the same spot. (Not ideal for it to be inside
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 22
    right now because I have an indoor cat and a dog) But if it's still there by tonight, I must
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 23
    take care of it and take it in. What should I name it?
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 24
    III-Examination9272 OP I'm trying to bring it in now but it won't let me. Trying to build trust with it now and switched the box out for a carrier but it does not want to come with me. New photo this morning
    via Ill-Examination9272
  • 25
    III-Examination9272 OP Update: Spent 2 hours outside with it and built a lot of trust that now it lets me pet and hold it! It let me carry it inside. I have 2 pet gates separating my cat and dog from it for now in the living room corner. As long as it doesn't climb too high, it's better than leaving it outside.
    via Ill-Examination9272

Want More? Follow Us and Add Us as a Preferred Source on Google.

Tags

man found mysterious patience kitten reddit story driving cat story fur baby cat dad slow meow car engine hiding home void warm rescue
Scroll Down For The Next Article