A tabby kitten, temporarily named Dash until his new owners pick a permanent name, has been retrieved from under the dashboard of Otago Daily Times driver Alister Rawson's truck.
Mr Rawson stopped at Ranfurly to drop off bread at a Four Square store and accidentally left his door open.
When he returned, three curious kittens bolted out the door and ran in different directions. He believes they belonged to a stray cat that lived in the area behind the store.
The fourth kitten, Dash, could not escape in time and squeezed under the truck's dashboard.
Despite attempts to coax the kitten out, it was not until Mr Rawson returned to Dunedin - about 130km away- and pulled his dashboard apart that it was able to be extricated.
''I got a screwdriver out and undid the front part of the dash, and there he was sitting on top of one of the fans, happy as Larry.
''I chucked him in the pocket of my high-vis vest because he was a bit shy, and brought him home and showed the kids.''
Initially, Mr Rawson said he intended to take Dash back, but there was no way his children would allow that to happen.
Dash was given the all clear from a vet after a checkup and it seems the curious kitten has now found a new home.
''Being a stray, I thought it wouldn't matter if I don't take him back. My kids have fallen in love with him, of course.
''He's a great addition to the family. He's very energetic - he's all over the show.''
Dash is not the first stray Mr Rawson has brought home.
About four years ago, he picked up another kitten when its mother was run over by a car.
''As I hit Milton, I saw a cat had been run over and there were kittens sitting beside it in the middle of the road.
''This one kitten would not leave its dead mother, so I ended up stopping and picking it up and bringing it home.
''Honestly, I don't like to pick up every waif and stray. I've promised my wife it [Dash] is the last one.''
