A car-owner in Johannesburg found a family of Cape Hyrax, small animals that resemble guinea pigs, living in the engine of her BMW.

Hoping to shake them off she drove at high speed to a dealership but failing to do so she just dumped her vehicle with no explanation.

Employees at the dealership phoned Johannesburg Zoo and asked them to send someone and save the Cape Hyrax family from the car since the car is blocking their driveway.

“The guys (BMW staff) called us and said that there was movement in the engine, that there were animals (there),” said collection manager at the zoo Dominic Moss.

“When we opened the bonnet the dassies were running about the engine and chassis plate, under the engine and inside the bumpers of the car,” he said.

“Dassies can get quite big, the size of a cat. If you can imagine having six cats in your engine,” added Moss.
According to the Animal expert the dassies had chosen the car as their new home because its space and warmth made them think that they were in the rocks.

“The BMW is obviously nice and warm and looks like a rocky outcrop and that’s why they wanted to live in it,” he said.
Judging by the mount of dung found in the car, the dassies had obviously been around for a while, he added, after the car engine had been stripped down to get at the little creatures.

“They were covered in grease and had fan belt burns… some were badly injured,” Moss said.

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