Workers at the Calgary Humane Society are still scratching their heads as they try to figure out how a stowaway kitten managed to survive 45 days locked in a shipping container imported from China.

The little critter was discovered in the crate last Thursday, when a crew at Icon Stone and Tiling in Calgary was unloading a shipment of granite that had arrived from China.

"We noticed there was something strange on top of the slabs. We were looking at some shiny eyes," Icon worker Ramon Garcia told CTV Calgary last week. "We thought at first it was a little monkey from China."

It wasn't a monkey, of course, but a frightened and emaciated calico kitten.

Though the kitty was evidently hungry and thirsty, she was also terrified, and couldn't be coaxed out of the crate with bowls of food and water.

Workers had to empty the entire container before they were able to reach the cat, because every time they would try to get at her, she would hide behind another stack of granite.

Eventually, workers asked for help from the Calgary Humane Society, whose staff were able to grab the skinny feline and take her to safety.

So how did the kitten -- who's been named "Mandarin" – survive a month locked in a shipping container? That's a bit of a mystery.

It appears that she snacked on a few mice who found their way into the container with her. As for water?

"We figure that the condensation on the roof of the crate is where she got her water," the Calgary Humane Society's Desiree Arsenault told CTV's Canada AM on Monday.

"Otherwise, it is kind of a miracle. When you think about things, there's really no other way that she could have survived."

Arsenault says Mandarin is doing quite well considering what she went through.

"She's feeling a little better. She's cuddling with staff now. She's only about six months old, so she's still doing the kneading thing with her paws, and trying to get to know us a bit better," Arsenault said.

Though Mandarin appears to be healthy, she'll being kept under quarantine for 14 days to allow Humane Society staff to monitor her for any signs of disease.

And although adoption requests are pouring in, Arsenault says Mandarin is not ready to be taken in by anyone just yet.

"As soon as Mandarin's quarantine is up, we'll look at putting her into our foster care. Our foster parents take these animals into their homes for weeks at a time and take care of them and feed them and give them any medication that they need," she said.

"And when she's ready and up to her proper weight, she'll come back to our shelter and go up for adoption."

Arsenault says if members of the public want to help Mandarin, they can make a donation to the Humane Society to help pay her medical fees.