Cat Siblings With 'Incredible Bond' Nap Cheek to Cheek in Adorable Photo

An adorable brother and sister cat duo have captured the imagination of the internet after their owner shared a photo of the feline siblings snuggled up together.

Baby Billy and Aimee Leigh—named after characters on the Danny McBride comedy series The Righteous Gemstones—have made a habit of cuddling up cheek to cheek around the home of their owner, Brad Canze.

"They're always ending up cuddled up in cute positions," Canze told Newsweek.

"They don't sleep like that every single night, but usually at least once a day we will catch them cuddling."

Eager to show the world the unique bond that exists between the two felines, Canze decided to share a snap of the cats cozying up together on Twitter.

The post blew up, racking up over 17,000 retweets, and more than 154,000 likes in the space of a few short days.

It quickly turned into something of a love-in, with cat owners sharing snaps of their own feline friends enjoying naps with another furry resident.

There were matching white cats.

Decidedly different cats.

Cats on chairs.

Cats and dogs.

And even just dogs and dogs.

According to Canze, Baby Billy and Aimee Leigh are American shorthairs and siblings who were rescued together and share "an incredible bond."

"They cuddle and groom each other and if they're ever scared they always protect each other," he said. "Baby Billy is on the left and Aimee Leigh is on the right [in the viral picture.] She has a longer snout and a larger body."

Canze and his wife originally adopted the two cats from a local foster network called Pittsburgh C.A.T.

"We originally got them for my mother-in-law after her cat ran away," he said. "But we ended up adopting them when her runaway showed back up six months after taking off."

The two cats have been living with the couple for "a little over two years," with Canze estimating that the felines are around 3 years old.

He said that while the two cats have gone through more difficulties than most felines, their unique bond has helped them pull through and become stronger together.

"They are very close and depend on each other above all else," he said.

A cat's penchant for cuddling can often be determined during the early weeks of their life. Sally E. Bahner, a feline consultant and pet writer, believes it's vital kittens are socialized from the age of two-to-seven-weeks-old.

"That means being handled and petted regularly, which will get them used to being cuddled early on," she explained.

This isn't the first time a cuddly, sleeping cat has proven popular on social media. Another pair of felines ended up going viral after a video surfaced of them snuggling up. Similarly, another cat's affectionate response to their owner's dog went down a storm after a clip was posted online.

A pair of American shorthair cats.
American shorthairs Baby Billy and Aimee Leigh were rescued as brother and sister from a Pittsburgh animal adoption center. Brad Canze/Twitter

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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer


Jack Beresford is a Newsweek Senior Internet Culture & Trends Reporter, based in London, UK. His focus is reporting on ... Read more

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