Stowaway Kitten Survives Journey Across the Pacific
She may be only three-months-old and barely register on the weight scale but Ni Hao the kitten already has quite a tale to tell.
The Chinese, short-haired kitten survived a 6,500 mile journey across the Pacific, from Shanghai to Los Angeles, with no food or water while trapped in a container aboard a freighter ship.
She was only discovered after the container was delivered to a Compton, Calif.-area business on Wednesday. The surprised manager of the business contacted the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Control and the kitten was transferred to the Carson Animal Care Center for care.
After arriving to the center malnourished , Ni Hao, a shorthaired kitten, was described as "alert" and "responsive" by officials on Thursday.
"She's doing OK; she was pretty weak and dehydrated," Marcia Mayeda, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care & Control, told the Los Angeles Times. "It was touch and go at first, but staff has been taking good care of her."
Officials say they do not know how long Ni Hao was in the container. The trans-Pacific journey can take as long as 21 days by boat, the Associated Press reported.
Workers at the Carson Animal Center named her Ni Hao after the Mandarin word for "Hello."
Once she receives a clean bill of health and is lifted from the quarantine standard for pets entering the U.S. from another country, Ni Hao will be placed up for adoption.
