We here at PawCulture love a good interspecies friendship, and this one out of an animal shelter in London is no exception.
In early August, a tiny, helpless kitten was found abandoned in a garden at just one day old. The kitty was rushed to the Battersea Dogs & Cats Home for immediate care.
Thankfully, the kitty—named Ava—had no ailments or injuries, but she still needed to be hand-fed around the clock and given some major TLC.
While Barney the 3-year-old Labrador, who belongs to Battersea’s Head Nurse Rachel Ab’dee, couldn’t do the former, the kitten-friendly dog was happy to do the latter.
Debbie Chapman, the head of media for Battersea, tells BeChewy that, to date, Barney has already fostered nine kittens who have come through their shelter.
“Ava spends much of her day in the Battersea clinic office, and it is here that she met Barney, who quickly decided that he was the top dog for the job of kitten-sitting,” she explains.
His kind disposition and cuddly manner was a perfect match for Ava, who wanted nothing more than to get snuggly with a caring creature.
“It was lovely to see, especially as Ava has no brothers or sisters,” Chapman says. “Barney is her best friend, and her confidence is really building around him.”
When they’re not snuggling together, Barney has been teaching Ava (now 5 weeks old) how to play with cat toys.
While Ava, thankfully, has been adopted and will head to her forever home when she’s fully ready to make the transition, she and Barney are spending as much time together as possible until then.
“Barney sees Ava most days as she comes in with her foster carer at 8 a.m. and normally spends the day, until 5 p.m., hanging out with Barney,” Chapman explains.
You can watch one of Ava and Barney’s adorable cuddle sessions here.
Images via Battersea Facebook
Aly Semigran is a lifestyle writer for the world, and roommate of Ruby, the cutest dog in the world.
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