‘Chippy': CHP officer adopts kitten he rescued on Highway 1

( KRON ) — A California Highway Patrol officer, Ryan Moore, rescued and recently adopted a tiny kitten found running in the middle of the lanes on Highway 1 on June 14.

"A motorist saw the scared kitten, and I was called to the scene," Moore said. "At first, I stopped on the left-hand side, but when I went to grab the kitten, she ran across the lanes. I immediately thought: oh gosh, please don't get hit!" Moore then temporarily closed all lanes to rescue the kitten.

"I was driving to work on Highway 1 right before the Highway 68 turn off when CHP Officer Moore started a traffic break," Tom Greeley, who was driving his Prius to work, said. "I could see the tiny kitten running on the shoulder of the highway."

Officer Moore attempted to catch the kitten again, but he said she jumped into Greely’s Prius’ wheel well and crawled up to the fuel tank. "My hand was just a foot away from grabbing her, and then she ran up and behind the Prius engine," he said.

This led Moore to contact the SPCA Monterey County for help, which in turn led to an investigation supervisor, Jacob Duarte, arriving on the scene. After confirming the kitten was safe, Duarte then slowly drove the car back to his workplace parking lot, with Greely following him with emergency lights on.

According to SPCA, Duarte then used “a camera on a wire to locate [the kitten], and after removing a few car parts, [Duarte] scooped the kitten up and brought her to safety.”

"At first, I had a moment of ‘why did this cat pick my car of all cars?'" Greely said. "But it was a really heartwarming reinforcement of the good in society. The CHP officers were so great, Jacob was amazing, and together, we made a difference and saved this little kitten."

"I couldn’t just leave this little kitten out on the highway," Officer Moore said. "I needed to try to do everything I could to help her. I'm so glad that Jacob was able to get her out."

The SPCA said they’ve since named the kitten “Chippy” to honor the CHP officers who helped her. Chippy had “a drink of cool water, some healthy food, and a thorough vet exam,” the SPCA said.

A little less than two weeks following the rescue, the SPCA announced that Chippy was adopted. Of all potential furr-ever homes Chippy could have gotten, the SPCA said she was adopted by the same person who rescued her– Officer Moore.

“Just a great, feel-good story,” Moore said.

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