Junior the cat thought Amira the dog should be her mother after only one glance, and the kitten wasn’t going to accept “no” for an answer.
Amira is a street dog who resides close to Il Gattaro d’Aleppo, often known as “The Cat Man of Aleppo,” a renowned shelter for cats in the conflict-torn country of Syria.
Although Mohammad Alaa Jaleel (also known as Alaa), the sanctuary’s creator, has been trying his best to look after Amira, he is unable to let her live with the other 80 cats that call Il Gattaro d’Aleppo home due to safety concerns.
When Alaa discovered Amira was pregnant, he let Amira sleep in his room until it was time for her to give birth, hoping to give her a little comfort.
But when Amira went into labor, tragedy struck — none of the puppies were born alive.
The friend of Alaa who manages the Facebook page for Il Gattaro d’Aleppo from her residence in Italy, Alessandra Abidin, said, “We were upset and horrified for her, and we gave her a plush teddy bear to snuggle since she was extremely unhappy.”
Like Amira, Junior the kitten had lost her family, and she was living on the streets before Alaa found her and brought her to live at Il Gattaro d’Aleppo.
Junior settled in at the refuge right away, getting to know all of the numerous cats who lived there. She also saw one of Amira’s teddy bears and Amira, who typically sat outside the sanctuary’s entrance.
She saw the dog’s teddy bear and carefully approached the dog to play, according to Abidin.
Amira didn’t seem to mind, and she even let Junior crawl on top of her.
“We found them together,” Abidin said. “And the kitten was riding her [Amira], and she is completely fine. She even seemed to smile.”
Amira visits Il Gattaro d’Aleppo several times a week, and every time, Junior is there to greet her. Junior might be smaller and a different species, but Amira has grown to adore her — and the feeling is clearly mutual. The two of them play together, share food and take naps together.
According to us, she is a princess because of her wonderful soul, therefore we gave her the name Amira, which means princess, Abidin said.
