One older cat's adoption story has captured hearts online after a video of her adoption journey went viral.

With 12.4 million views, the video from March 6 shows Mallie the cat at last finding her forever home.

In the video, a text overlay told the story and said: "We were running errands and stopped by Petco to pick up litter. We decided to stop and play with the cats for a little [while]. The last one we met was a 10-year-old surrender named Mallie. Mallie was a senior cat given up by her family who was having a child and could no longer care for her."

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In a clip further in the video, adoption papers sit on a table and the overlay text read: "It was love at first sight. We got a few things to make her comfortable and took her home."

When Mallie gets home, she goes straight from her carrier to her new bed, and her new owners wrote: "Welcome home, Mallie."

With over 3.2 million likes on TikTok, the video has also been re-shared on Reddit's popular r/cats forum, where it has gained even more attention.

Delighted by the success story, users online were overjoyed to see Mallie find a new home. One comment said: "Her eyes are so sad, I am glad you took her in, bless your heart," while another viewer wrote: "Thank you for taking her in. Made me cry happy tears for her."

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) reports that 6.3 million companion animals enter animal shelters every year in the U.S.

A 2020 study published by the National Library of Medicine reported that while the adoption rate of dogs and cats from animal shelters has increased, the proportion of animals returned to the shelter after they are adopted has also increased.

The study also found that cats are most commonly returned due to the owner's personal reasons, with 56.9 percent reporting this as the reason for surrendering their cat.

One TikTok user said: "Sadly cats are just an afterthought for some families if they have kids or dogs."

Another commenter thanked the new owners for giving Mallie the new home she deserved: "What a sweet baby. Thank you for giving her a new, brighter chapter in her story. I wish you both the best life of love."

Before long, Mallie's new owners started posting updates on her progress. After her first few days, she had visited the vet where she was given a clean bill of health, apart from a sinus infection. Mallie has since recovered from the infection and will soon be introduced to the other cats in her new home.

With over 115,000 followers on her dedicated TikTok account little.mallie, this senior cat has a whole host of fans rooting for her success in her new home. In an update comment, Mallie's new owner wrote: "Y'all really made Mallie's first week magical and special and we can't thank you enough. Thank you for all your support!"

Newsweek has reached out to little.mallie for comment.

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