A KITTEN from Campbeltown had a lucky escape after being found more than 100 miles away hiding under the bonnet of a car in Helensburgh.

Workers at Helensburgh Toyota got more than they bargained for with one trade-in vehicle when the three-month-old ginger fur-ball leapt out of the engine compartment of a Toyota Yaris which had been brought in for a service on Monday morning.

Stunned staff at the John Street garage then spent three hours searching for the cat in the workshop before discovering it stowed away in another motor.

Used car manager Gavin Wilson nicknamed the kitten Gasket and took it to a local vet to be checked over, before taking it home in Helensburgh on Monday evening, much to the delight of his daughters Claire, 10 and Laura, eight.

READ MORE: Helensburgh cat George found 14 miles from home after going missing

Gavin, who already has two cats and a dog, told the Advertiser: “The car came in to get a service and when we opened the bonnet this little furry thing jumped out.

“We shut all the doors in the garage to make sure it couldn’t get out. We had another eight or 10 cars in the workshop at the same time and lots of dangerous parts lying about and we were beginning to give up trying to find it after three hours of searching.

“But we looked at the CCTV to see where it went and we found it eventually.

“Gasket is very healthy, happy and kind-natured and my daughters just love him.”

Gavin took to social media to try to reunite little Gasket with his owners and in less than 24 hours the Facebook post had been viewed more than 130,000 times.

READ MORE: Helensburgh cat George is 'feline' the love on Facebook

It seems the kitten, which was not micro-chipped, went missing around two weeks ago in Campbeltown, more than 100 miles away from Helensburgh by car, and was last seen being attacked by magpies on New Year’s Day in Dunoon.

The kitten’s owners were traced but decided Gasket would have a better quality of life at his new home.

Former owner Kevin McMillan, who lives in Rathlin View near Campeltown and also has two young daughters, said: “It could’ve gone to Dunoon, or it could’ve gone straight to Helensburgh. We might pop down and see it and the little girls are happy to give it a home.

“The weans are not so happy but it should have a good life. The outcome was the best for the animal.”

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