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For China the stowaway cat, nine lives were enough

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HENDERSONVILLE, North Carolina (AP) -- After Eric Congdon opened a crate from China and discovered a cat inside, coming up with a name for the furry stowaway was easy.

China the cat had chewed through one of the boxes before it left Shanghai, China, on April 3 and spent at least 35 days on a ship inside the container filled with motorcycle gear.

"I saw something in the container move," Congdon said. "I turned up the headlights on the forklift to get a better look."

That was when he saw the cat cowering in a corner, weak but still alive. Congdon, owner of Olympia Moto Sports in Hendersonville, said he and a co-worker called the county's animal services when the cat would not let them near.

A co-worker of Congdon's plans to adopt China, as animal service workers are calling her, if she checks out with a veterinarian. North Carolina law says any animal coming into the country must be vaccinated and quarantined for six months.

"We have to take precautions," said animal services manager Brenda Miller.

How could China survive for so long on no food and water?

"Usually, we say that animals can only survive a few weeks without food and only a few days without water," said Michelle Misavage, a veterinarian in Raleigh, North Carolina. "The theory is that cats have such good kidneys, their bodies adjust to the lack of water, and somehow they received small amounts of moisture from condensation."

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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