One evening, Paris Zarcilla, who lives in London, went into his bedroom to grab a sweater, but what he discovered was far from ordinary. Lying under his bed was a stray cat, and to his complete surprise, she had just given birth to a bunch of kittens.
Shocked by what he stumbled upon, Zarcilla quickly took to Twitter to share the unexpected turn of events. What started as a simple trip to fetch a sweater suddenly turned him into a cat dad! His reaction was understandably full of disbelief, and the internet soon caught on, with his tweet gaining over 80,000 likes as it went viral. Throughout that first night, Zarcilla kept updating his followers on his new role as an accidental cat father.
Realizing the mama cat and her newborns needed immediate attention, Zarcilla jumped into action. He swiftly ordered cat food online and began researching how to care for his new little family. Despite being thrown into this situation without any preparation, he quickly adapted to the responsibilities of being a cat dad.
What makes the story even more touching is how Zarcilla felt the kittens were helping him just as much as he was helping them. In one of his tweets, he shared how much this unexpected event meant to him:
“This is too much. I’m approaching nirvana. I legitimately suffer from anxiety attacks and depression and my capacity to deal with it recently has been waning. The Cat Gods have smiled upon me with benevolence and turned the monsters under my bed into kittens.”
Zarcilla has already started making plans for the future of the cats. He’s intending to take the mama cat to the vet to check if she has a microchip, hoping to find out if she belongs to someone. But if she turns out to be a stray, Zarcilla has promised to adopt both her and her kittens. In a heartfelt message on Twitter to his new little family, he wrote:
“To my cat sons and daughters, I’ll be the hero you deserve, but not the one it needs right now (because of mama cat). So I’ll hunt for you, because I can afford it. I’ll be your silent guardian, your watchful protector. Love, #CatDad.”
After a chaotic and sleepless first night, Zarcilla finally tried to get some rest. But when he woke up the next morning, he found the mama cat doing what moms do best—caring for her newborns, nurturing them through their first few hours of life.
Although everything happened so fast, Zarcilla hasn’t yet had the chance to name the kittens. Once he has a moment to breathe, he’s planning to think of the perfect names for his new furry companions.
These poor kitties were rescued from an animal cruelty case where they were starved, locked in cages with inches of feces, and received no water or food. Now, these cats need your help!
In just a single day, Zarcilla’s entire world was turned upside down. It’s almost as if the mama cat knew she would find a loving home with Zarcilla, someone who would care for her and her babies with kindness and devotion for many years to come.
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I have run the gamut of human emotion today. Unexpectedly discovered more than kittens but also the hidden depths of my own capacity to love. Cat Twitter, thank you. You've been a wonderful source of support. My brain has divided by 0 so #CatDad must sleep. More tmrw. Much love x pic.twitter.com/4Zj4biyIRd
— Paris Zarcilla (@ParisZarcilla) May 30, 2018