Touching viral TikTok shows 13-year-old’s priceless reaction to getting a cat for her birthday

There’s nothing like the moment when an animal-loving kid gets their first pet. I remember when I got my first cat—my mom picked her out of a box of kittens in front of the supermarket (back when that was a thing) and couldn’t even wait for me to get home from school—she zipped Shadow up in her coat and dropped in to surprise me right there in the classroom. If you’re anything like me, you won’t be able to watch this adorable viral TikTok of a teenage girl getting surprised with her first cat without tearing up a little bit (or a lot).

“So I decided to surprise my daughter with a [cat emoji] on her birthday… wait for her reaction,” a caption over the video reads.

In the video, the 13-year-old girl is at the animal shelter when her dad says, “My daughter’s here to get a cat.”

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You can see it takes a moment for his daughter to realize what’s happening. First she responds, “Yeah.” Then, her head whips around to face him, her face lights up, and she says, “What?!”

Her dad laughs and repeats, “She’s here to get a cat of her choosing. Absolutely. Happy 13th birthday.”

The rest of the video is a heartwarming montage of the new teen meeting cats and picking out an adorable black and white kitten to take home. If you can watch her cuddle her new baby, who she names Cierra, with a dry eye, your heart may need to grow a few sizes. It’s clear that there’s just no better present for this cat-loving 13-year-old—and it’s a touching reminder that the bond between a child and their pet is something truly magical