The canines were found curled up in the backseat of a car that had smashed through a fence and ended up in the yard of a home in the southern Swedish town of Skurup Friday, the Swedish news agency TT reported.

The homeowners initially thought the culprit had fled because no one was behind the wheel, but on closer investigation found the dogs on the backseat, uninjured but very frightened.

"The dogs had presumably managed to knock the gear box and put the car into neutral on a downhill slope while their owners were paying a visit to friends," Calle Persson of the Skane police told TT.