A woman in South Carolina is being praised online after rescuing a tiny tuxedo kitten found face down in a puddle in the middle of the road. The heartwarming rescue, captured in a viral TikTok video, has drawn millions of views.
The clip, posted Monday by @mikeysmadlit, shows the woman gently picking up the soaked kitten and carrying him to safety. At the end of the video, the kitten is seen drying off in a cardboard box lined with warm towels. The caption reads, “My wife got chosen on Mother’s Day.”
The following day, the couple took the kitten to a veterinarian, who confirmed the cat was male, around six weeks old, and weighed a healthy 1.5 pounds. In a later update, the couple shared that they named the kitten Jaxson, in memory of a recently passed pet.
The video struck a chord online, quickly going viral with over 5.6 million views and 1.2 million likes on TikTok.
The rescue also sheds light on the broader issue of stray and feral cats in the U.S. It’s estimated that 60 to 100 million cats live on the streets without shelter or care. According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), nearly 3 million cats entered U.S. shelters last year. Of those, 2.2 million were adopted, while about 273,000 were euthanized.
Some states, especially in the West, report higher rates of animals surrendered or found as strays. Statista lists New Mexico as having the highest rate, with over 3,200 animals surrendered per 100,000 residents.
Jaxson’s story, though, has a happy ending—a reminder of the impact that one act of kindness can have.
