A stray cat in Mallorca picked the most unexpected place imaginable to give birth — inside the hotel room of two vacationers who had only met her hours earlier.
Leia was visiting the Spanish island with her mother, Jodi, when the pair woke up around 2:30 a.m. and decided to sit outside on their balcony.
That was when they spotted a familiar face.
A pregnant stray cat they had seen earlier in the day was wandering nearby.
A few “pspspsps” calls were apparently all it took to convince her to come closer.
Leia and Jodi gave the cat some affection and a little food before she wandered off again.
They assumed that was the end of their late-night encounter.
It wasn’t.
The pair had left their balcony doors open, and the cat quietly made her way inside the hotel room.
She eventually settled beneath a desk on top of a blanket Leia had left there.
The cat seemed restless, but Leia said she did not think the animal looked far enough along in her pregnancy to actually give birth.
So they decided not to bother her and went back to sleep.
About two hours later, everything changed.
At roughly 4:30 a.m., Leia and her mother woke to the unmistakable sounds of newborn kittens.
The stray cat had chosen their hotel room as her delivery room.
By the time they realized what was happening, two tiny kittens had already arrived.
A third was born at around 5:30 a.m.
All three appeared healthy, and their young mother immediately began cleaning and caring for them.
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For Leia, a cat lover who already has two cats back home in England, the surprise was almost impossible to believe.
She was especially touched that the stray apparently felt safe enough around two people she had just met to give birth in their room.
Instead of trying to move the new family, Leia and Jodi decided to let the mother recover.
They provided fresh water, food, clean blankets and plenty of quiet time.
They even continued leaving the balcony door open so the cat could leave if she wanted.
She didn’t.
The little family stayed in the room for several days.
And as the mother became more comfortable, she apparently began treating the two women like trusted babysitters.
By the fourth day, Leia said the cat waited for them to wake up before looking toward Jodi and then heading outside for a short break.
She returned about 10 minutes later.
It was almost as if she had officially assigned Grandma Jodi kitten duty.
Leia and her mother still tried to enjoy the rest of their vacation, but their hotel routine now included checking on newborn kittens, refreshing food and water and sneaking in plenty of cuddles.
Their biggest concern was what would happen when it was time to leave.
They initially worried the hotel might simply put the cats back outside.
Instead, staff stepped in to help.
The hotel connected them with a local animal rescue organization called Amigos de las Patitas and even donated €100 to support its work.
The rescue, which helps street animals in Mallorca through feeding, veterinary care and other programs, took over the family’s care.
The mother cat was given a new name — Nala — and she and her three kittens were placed with a foster family.
Leia has continued following their progress from home and hopes to see them again when she returns to Mallorca.
What started as a middle-of-the-night encounter with one stray cat ended with three tiny new arrivals and one very memorable vacation.
And Nala apparently knew exactly which hotel room to choose.