VACAVILLE, Calif. -- It seemed like any other morning when Walt Witthoeft walked out of his Vacaville home and prepared to head off to his job in the Bay Area.

But when he attempted to start his Ford truck, the engine won't turn over. He had taken the truck into the repair shop recently so he was naturally quite angry when he went to pop the hood.

Then he got the surprise of his life. Two eyes were starring back at him.

"When I popped it open there was a pair of eyes starring back at me," he said. "And there was a growl. It just blew me away."

What Witthoeft was starring at was a 60-pound pit bull that somehow had gotten wedged into his engine block and couldn't get out.

"My daughter works for the SPCA and I didn't know what to do," he told the Vacaville Reporter. "So I called her and left her a voice message. She called back and I said (to her), 'you're not gonna believe this.' "

Witthoeft called the Vacaville police and they came and helped remove the dog, but not before it had eaten all the wiring it could reach.

The dog nestled in the engine compartment wore no identification tag, but Solano County animal control officials were hoping the owner would see the story and come forward. The dog was covered with grease, they said, but no worse for the wear after its misadventure.

Witthoeft said it was something he would never forget.

"I kinda call it a pit stop," he said. "A pit got struck in my engine. It was a fine place to stop. I'm never going to forget it."