Published: June 05, 2009 09:14 pm      

RESCUE: Kitten found in car’s wheel well after 40-mile trip

RANSOMVILLE — It was just a little peep — almost too quiet to be heard — but Kellyanne Davis knew something was up.

Davis had driven from the Alpaca Paradise in Ransomville on Monday evening, taking the 40-mile trip to her home in Amherst. The next morning, as she drove to work at MJ Peterson Commercial Real Estate in Amherst, she kept hearing a tiny noise underneath the front of her car.

Later, as she drove to a nearby pizzeria to pick up lunch for her co-workers, she heard the noise again and realized it sounded a bit like a cat’s meow.

“It was almost like there was something in the tire,” she said. “Something just told me (to look).”

When she arrived at work, Davis told her co-workers about the noise and said she was going to check under the car. At first, they were dubious, but agreed to help her investigate “after they got done laughing,” she said.

“I said, ‘No, I really think there’s a cat in the car,’ ” Davis said. “As we approached the car, we heard the ‘meow.’ ”

After looking under the hood, the “rescue team” — including Davis’ co-workers Gunner Tronolone, David Harris, Janice Curatolo and Dorothy Stahlnecker — jacked the car up and realized the sound was coming from the right front wheel well.

Inside, they found the source: A tiny black and white kitten had crawled up into the wheel well back at the farm and had been there ever since.

The kitten, who now bears the appropriate name Miracle, had somehow survived while riding in the wheel well of the 2002 Buick LeSabre for nearly a day, all the way from Alpaca Paradise to Amherst.

Miracle was hungry and thirsty, but uninjured, Davis said.

“She has a little singe on her fur, but it didn’t go down to the skin,” she said.

Davis said Miracle is about 6 weeks old. She was one of several cats who live outside at Alpaca Paradise.

“We feed them, make sure they’re safe,” she said. “We don’t have to worry about mice.”

Miracle’s small stature may have helped her survive during the journey.

“She’s teeny tiny,” Davis said. “She fits in the palm of your hand.”

Now, Miracle is doing well. She had her first bath Thursday and has spent her time sleeping, eating and playing with Davis’ two dogs, a bull mastiff and a huskie mix, both of whom are many times her size.

After seeing how the animals get along, Davis has decided to keep Miracle.

“It all depended on the dogs, and they’re wonderful with her,” she said. “They wanted to play with her.”

Another potential obstacle was Davis’ allergy to cats, but she said she’ll learn to handle it.

“She’s worth the Benadryl,” Davis said, laughing. “We’ll figure it out.”

Contact reporter April Amadon at 439-9222, ext. 6251.