California - It was the moment Ariella Spinas had been dreaming of for years: her beloved cat Toe finally met her newborn baby, but the new mother was not prepared for the pet's reaction.

The California native, who is now 28, adopted the black and white cat seven years ago.

Ariella and her cat have experienced some of life's most important milestones together, as the woman found the love of her life, adopted a new puppy and another cat, and eventually became pregnant.

When Ariella and her husband returned home from the hospital with their baby a few days ago, Toe got to meet the bundle of joy for the first time.

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Of course, the young woman had imagined what the first meeting between the cat and child would be like, and she was certainly worried that the two might not get on so well.

After all, Toe was her "baby" for seven years and enjoyed a lot of solo attention. Now, the cat has to share with the little one!

Luckily, Ariella captured the moment when cat and baby met on video – because something quite magical happened!

In the clip, Ariella's husband can be seen sitting on the couch with the baby in his arms while Toe takes a seat right next to him.

After a few incredulous glances from Toe to the baby's father, the furry friend starts sniffing the baby and then cuddles up lovingly to his head.

Anyone who knows anything about cats knows what the head-to-head gesture means – these two are about to become fast friends!

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Ariella admitted to Newsweek, "I was definitely crying behind the camera!"

"ItI was 3 days [postpartum] recovering from an emergent C-section and this was a very tender moment in a very difficult time," she explained.

Since then, Toe can't seem to get enough of the baby and has been gently stroking the infant's head over and over again in recent days, following his new sister wherever she goes.

The video has already reached more than 2.6 million views on TikTok, with one user commenting, "He gained another best friend."