Summer the Calico cat was only eight months old when rescuers discovered her, but she was already too familiar with how unfair life could be.

She was abandoned, pregnant, and living in a feral cat colony.

Keep reading to discover how this homeless pregnant cat living on scraps was given the greatest gift of all.

Learning to Love

The workers at Cat Adoption and Rescue Efforts (CARE) knew Summer’s rescue journey would be a tough one.

Like most feral cats, Summer was very timid at first. She was scared and didn’t know if she could trust humans.

Day after day, workers and volunteers tried to gain her trust and help her understand she was safe and cared for.

Just as they started making progress, another obstacle appeared: it was time for Summer to give birth.

Miracle Babies

Summer had been living a harsh life on the streets and become pregnant at an early age.

Because of her young age and previous living conditions, the birth was very complicated.

Vets had to give her an emergency C-section in order to save Summer and her kittens.

Even then, the prognosis wasn’t good.

Workers were prepared to lose the kittens, but then a miracle happened—Summer gave birth to three healthy babies!

The vet techs said the experience brought them to tears as they realized both Summer and her kittens were going to survive.

Summer was a great mom to her babies. She nursed them, groomed them, and kept them safe and warm.

Many mama cats reject the runt of their litter, but not Summer. She cuddled the tiny runt, Splash, with extra special care.

She was nervous when vet techs took Splash away to weigh and feed her, but was happy when Splash was returned to her.

Summer’s hard work paid off and all three kittens grew up healthy and strong.

Summer and all the kittens were fixed and vetted once as soon as it was time.

Two kittens were adopted into the same loving home, but Summer couldn’t bear to part with Splash.

Together Forever

Summer and Splash were inseparable. She had grown very fond of her smallest baby, even after he was weaned.

Summer even taught Splash new tricks, like how to eat from a plate!

They ate together, napped together, and played together. As the months went on, their bond only grew stronger as Splash grew bigger.

Even though they were up for adoption, shelter visitors overlooked them in favor of more outgoing cats because Summer and Splash were a shy bonded pair.

Finally, the perfect family came along and adopted them! Now, Summer and Splash are together forever.

This mama cat and her tiniest baby will never have to be apart.