Pet owners often wax lyrical about how much emotional support they glean from their furry friends. Whether you and your pooch are attached at the hip or your beloved cat is more aloof, one thing we can rely on is our animals helping us through times of hardship.
Many pet lovers praise their companion's ability to sense emotions - some even claim that animals help communicate messages from lost loved ones to grieving owners. One such woman believes that fate brought her and her cat together, after they met in an unusual circumstance that made her believe a family member was there in spirit.
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Taking to TikTok to share her heart-warming story, former model Jade Sezer shared clips of her adorable adopted cat Yoshi whom she met during her first ever visit to her father's grave.
The caption on the tear-jerking clip reads: "The first day I visited my dad's grave [sic], this stray cat came out of nowhere and jumped on my lap".
"He wouldn't leave my side and sat with me until I left," she continued.
Sezer, an ambassador for UN Women who has a MA degree in child psychotherapy, felt an instant connection with the feline who just so happened to be a stray in a beautiful twist of fate.
She explained that charmingly-named Yoshi 'didn't have a microchip' when he got checked out at the vets, and no owners came forward for him.
The friendly cat, who has white and brown colouring with stripes across his back, is seen snuggling up to his new owner in the TikTok clips.
In another snippet, Yoshi is donning a blue harness while being incredibly well behaved on the vet's table, while the final clip shows the little cat sleeping soundly on a bed.
Sezer decided to adopt stray cat Yoshi after forging such a strong bond during an emotional visit to her father's grave.
TikTok commenters couldn't help but draw connections between the friendly feline appearing in Sezer's life while she was grieving her father.
One person said: "Dad sent Yoshi to you," while another echoed the same sentiment by saying "well I think we all know who Yoshi used to be...".
The heart-warming post has received more than 85,000 likes so far, as many TikTok users were left touched by the emotional moment.
Taking the theory about Sezer's late dad to lengths, one user said: "Buddhists believe that cats are the souls of the dead who live in the bodies of cats before they get another new life".
The comments section was so flooded with support for Sezer and Yoshi that she replied to share her own thoughts on what brought them together.
"BIG BIG BIG LOVE to everyone who thought this was a sign… I think it could have been too," the influencer explained.
Hundreds of people agreed that Sezer's father somehow had a part to play in this emotional introduction, as one person said: "Your dads spirit sent you this kitty as a reminder of him being with you everyday. Cats are amazing spiritual protectors"
Sezer has since shared a follow-up post to her original TikTok, to assure her followers that Yoshi is settling in wonderfully.
He remains just as clingy as he was when they first met, rolling over to communicate his desire for strokes and waiting at the toilet door for Sezer.
One person pointed out: "If he behaves like this, chances are he was abandoned by someone else. He’s the cutest, wish you the best".
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