Internet Sobs at How 10-Year-Old Stray Reacts to Their First Time on a Bed

The internet has been moved to tears by a heartwarming video of a senior stray cat finally getting a comfortable life.

Sadly, in the U.S. approximately 6.3 million animals end up in shelters each year, including 3.2 million cats, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).

But in positive news, this number is far reduced from 2011, when 7.2 animals entered shelters across the country.

And, the organization states, each year a whopping 4.1 million animals are adopted from shelters each year, including 2.1 million cats.

One such positive story comes from TikTok user @Happypurr, Lyn, in Singapore, who has dedicated her account to showing her senior cat settling into life in a loving home after being abandoned twice previously.

One particular video, shared on April 24 and garnering over 1 million views, has had a huge reaction from animal lovers.

The clip, which you can watch here, shows the gorgeous black kitty leaning on a cat bed, hesitating, and then lying down and stretching.

As she sinks into the bed, her face becomes relaxed—with her new owner revealing why this moment was so important.

In a caption, she wrote: "POV: You rescued a 10 year old stray cat & it's her first time lying on a bed."

She later explained in a reply to another user: "She was adopted at some point but was abandoned twice long ago."

And in an even sweeter update, she revealed her rescued cat had been given the name Happy.

Speaking to Newsweek, preschool teacher Lyn said she had started feeding Happy as a stray, after people in her local area told her the cat was "always hungry."

After feeding the stray cat for over a year, Lyn took her in and adopted her, but she had spent so much time as a street cat it took her a while to settle in, Lyn said.

"She was yowling and meowing day and night because she couldn't get used to being indoors," Lyn said, adding that at first her family were unsure about taking in a stray until they "saw her sweet personality."

Still, "every now and then she will whine for me to bring her out for walks," as Happy can get "bored at home" having spent so much time in the outside world, so Lyn brings her for walks for "mental stimulation" whenever possible.

Thousands of animal lovers flocked to the comment section of the TikTok to share their love for Happy's video, many sharing their own sweet adoption stories.

One wrote: "When we brought my first cat inside, he was a stray who'd been kicked out as a kitten. Once he settled, he slept so deep and so long he looked dead. It made me cry a bit, seeing him finally feel safe."

Another shared: "I had a tiny black kitty who was a stray find years ago and I often used to hold her crying about how sad I was she ever didn't have nice things."

And as one person put it: "She has waited 10 years to meet you."

Others praised her for showing the beauty of black cats, who thanks to old superstitions can sometimes be overlooked at shelters.

In old European folklore, which spread to the U.S., black cats were considered to be bad luck, and the companions of witches.

And even in more modern culture, the sad fact is that some potential pet owners don't find black cats to be photogenic enough.

Purina previously wrote: "To this day, some people are still fearful of crossing paths with a black cat, while some Instagram-conscious cat owners keep away from black cat breeds for fear that they don't photograph well.

"This means that black cats end up waiting the longest to find a loving home in animal shelters everywhere," the organization added.

Lyn did not expect such a massive reaction to her video of Happy, as she "merely wanted to share how sweet she looks when she was on my bed".

She acknowledged that sometimes "people wouldn't want a black and senior cat. But trust me, black cats and senior cats are the sweetest!"

Update 5/13/24, 7:44 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include comment from Lyn.

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