13 years ago, Erin Merrin encountered a stray ginger cat. As soon as he entered her arms, he steadfastly refused to let her go.
Bailey the cat has been with Erin for more than ten years. The most astounding thing is his passion for the owner’s four-year-old daughter Abby, for whom he became a guardian angel.
Erin from Illinois met Bailey during her college days. The little kitten jumped into her arms and grabbed her paws so tightly that it touched the girl to the core.
“We sat for several hours on the floor, and then he did everything possible, just so that I would not return him back to the cage. I decided to take a chance and try to hide the kitten in a student dormitory where, of course, you can’t keep animals, ”recalls Erin.
She secretly brought Bailey to her room on the 8th floor, but a week later everything was revealed. The girl was given 48 hours to get rid of the cat. “I was in despair. My parents already had two cats and a dog, they were not going to take another pet.”
Erin was able to connect Bailey with a single woman after making several phone calls. “I shed tears for at least four hours. My father told me, “Erin, you may take a kitten a hundred more times,” when he called and heard the tears in my voice. “No, Dad, I won’t ever find another like this,” I said.
In the new family, our hero did not take root, did not get along with local cats. As soon as Erin found out about this, she immediately offered to take him back – the winter holidays had just begun. “I decided that I would spend the whole month persuading my parents to leave him. In the end, my mother gave in. Dad was not happy, but he also gave up.
Now fast forward 4 years from now. Erin has a beautiful daughter, Abby. Returning with her from the hospital, Erin was worried about whether the furry pet would react well to a new family member.
However, he was immediately smitten by her! I captured some lovely images of Bailey holding the infant Abby,” recalls Erin.
The kitten embraced the infant, kept watch over her, and purred to express how much he cared about her. After the girl had a chance to mature a bit, Bailey eventually became accustomed to being an attentive elder sibling.
When Abby first rolled over, Sweet Ginger was there. She made her first sound with him. Bailey followed Abby around the home because she wanted to share all the fun childhood experiences with her.
“He is greedy for attention and follows us from room to room. Doesn’t like to be left out,” Erin adds. – If we are in the kitchen, he is too. We go to the bathroom – he goes there too.
One day, Abby picked up a book and tried to read it—with Bailey’s encouragement, of course. So, the girl found her ideal listener. The cat was completely fascinated by the fairy tale performed by the young hostess.
When Abby was 2 years old, another wonderful baby appeared in the family – Hannah. Bailey was in seventh heaven. He volunteered to babysit the baby himself and “praised” Erin with the laying on of his paw for being such a good mom.
But Abby remained his beloved girlfriend. It is with her that he hugs every time during a quiet hour.
“His character leaves no one indifferent. He gets on his knees and caresses all my friends,” says Erin.
“When I put my daughters to bed, he walks us upstairs and climbs into their beds.”
Bailey loves being around girls, especially Abby, who now reads stories to him every day. This is his favorite pastime. “Their relationship is so touching. She reads to him all the time!
Abby found a book about Bob the yard cat and immediately shared her find with Bailey.
The stories Abby recounts never get old to Bailey, who is her biggest admirer. She is motivated to read more by this.
Ginger is there, curled up in her hands and ready to listen, as soon as the girl picks up the book.
At these “literary evenings” Bailey especially feels loved. He’s blissfully resting his head on Abby’s shoulder or rubbing against her chin.
Now the red-haired handsome man is 13 years old. They have been practically inseparable from Abby ever since they first met.
Even the most severe skeptic will be touched by the sight of this incredible connection.
What Bailey most needed was his own house, which Erin provided him.
He responded by loving her family with all of his heart and soul.
