Cat and Puppy Slowly Fall in Love in Heartwarming Clip: 'So Precious'

A video of cat and puppy becoming friends has gone viral on TikTok, where it received 1.3 million views at the time of writing.

A message overlaid on the video shared from the TikTok account @archibald_cav_ read: "Watch these two become best friends [teary-eyed face emoji]."

The footage begins with a tiny Cavalier King Charles spaniel puppy being gently placed on the floor next to a larger ginger-hued cat. The puppy can be seen bouncing around the cat's tail before the feline friend pounces on the dog.

The two pets are later seen wrestling each other before they are shown sleeping next to each other, with the tips of their paws touching.

A caption shared with the post read: "I could have made this video so long #ckcs #cavalierkingcharles #dogtok #fyp #foryoupage #cavalierkingcharlesspaniel."

An August 2020 study in the peer-reviewed journal PLOSOne stated that the language of a dog and cat may be different and "this could influence their mutual relationship, as well as those with humans and with other animals."

The study said more cats had a "disinterested, aggressive, or a fearful approach" with known and unknown cats than dogs, while 42.7 percent of the pet owners surveyed "described the relationship with known conspecifics of their dog and cat as playful."

According to the pet owners, when many of the dogs saw a cat, they either attacked, barked or wagged their tails, while only one dog ignored the cat. Many cats at the sight of a dog were reported to have escaped, ignored, hissed or approached the dog "amicably," the study found.

Good early life experiences play a key role in helping cats and dogs to get along, Zazie Todd, the author of the books Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy, previously told Newsweek.

The early part of a kitten's life, from the age of two to around seven weeks old, is a sensitive period for socialization. So cats will get along better with dogs if they are introduced as kittens.

"A wide range of positive experiences in this time helps them grow up to be friendly, confident, adult cats. So if they have positive experiences with dogs in their first home (with the breeder) and then in your home too while they are still kittens, that's ideal," Todd said.

Pam Johnson-Bennett, the author of several books on cat behavior and training who is the former vice president of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants, previously told Newsweek that along with socialization and positive exposure to other animals, the personality and characteristics of the specific dog breed plus the age and activity levels of both pets play a vital part in their introduction.

The success of the introduction will rely on how well-trained the dog is and how safe the cat feels, Johnson-Bennett said. "If you hope to have these two animals become life-long friends, take the time to do a safe, gradual and positive introduction."

Todd agreed, noting slow and gradual introductions are important, beginning with smell before moving onto sight of the dog and short, safe introductions to each other in the same room.

The latest interaction between the cat and dog has warmed the hearts of users on TikTok.

Daianna, MacLeod said: "That's it.. this is just too freaking adorable... aww!"

User AR pointed out "The head snuggle!" while tracymonk579 wrote: "So precious!!!"

Ali_Adams said: "The touching of paws while sleeping," while Britt simply wrote: "The paws."

User @mamabrowniemite said: "A dog that has a cat who loves them is blessed."

Newsweek has contacted the original poster for comment. This video has not been independently verified.

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