Canadian conductor rescues freezing cat from under train

EDMONTON, Alberta, Dec. 13 (UPI) — A conductor in Canada formed an instant bond with an abandoned cat after finding it freezing underneath a train.

Train conductor Brad Slater and engineer William Munsey found the stowaway feline hiding underneath the engine deck of a train during a routine safety check in freezing temperatures, according to CTV.

He estimated the feline may have been hiding in the train traveling from Winnipeg to Edmonton for about 12 hours.

“It’s just meant to be, it’s a miracle,” Slater said.

One of the trains engines was frozen solid and the cat’s frantic meows ultimately alerted the two train employees to its whereabouts.

“All I heard was the angriest, saddest cat cry,” Slater told the CBC. “So I’m shining my light and there I see this little cat underneath the second engine above the wheels on a platform, frozen in snow and ice.”

Munsey suspected the cat wouldn’t survive, but Slater offered to take him in if he did and lovingly named him “Q199” after the train he was found under.

“Within five hours it was curled up on his lap…he was pushing his face against Brad’s arm.” Munsey said. “It was almost as if it knew how close it had been to dying and knew exactly which human had saved it.”

Slater took the lucky feline to a veterinarian who determined he is an older cat, has no microchip and is in good condition despite some frostbite that may cost him an ear.

“He’s got a few cuts on his paws and frostbite on his ear,” Slater said.

Slater has currently taken the cat he calls “Q” for short in with his other three cats, but believes he’s a house cat and he hopes to reunite him with his owners somehow.

“It’ll be hard, I want visitation rights. But it’s the right thing to do, there’s someone out there who’s missing this cat,” he said.