Imagine the heartbreak of realizing your whole family has moved away and left you behind. That’s what one poor senior cat experienced, after his owners left him behind in their former home.

Thankfully, one kindhearted neighbor stepped up to save the day… ❤️

A woman named Alex noticed a 12-year-old orange cat wandering around outside in her neighborhood. She stepped in to care for the senior cat — and soon learned his heartbreaking story.

“We fed him outside for a week, and another neighbor told us he had been left behind when the neighbors left,” Alex told Newsweek. “He wasn’t thriving outside at all, like some cats can. So we brought him in.”

She says a vet contacted the number in the cat’s microchip, in case he was left behind by mistake, but it became clear that the neighbors had abandoned him intentionally.She says a vet contacted the number in the cat’s microchip, in case he was left behind by mistake, but it became clear that the neighbors had abandoned him intentionally.

In a Reddit post, Alex revealed that she has decided to adopt the “senior gentleman,” and named him Red. “Welcome to your new home Red!”

People on the site were shocked and heartbroken by the cat’s abandonment, and thanked her for stepping up to rescue Red. “I don’t understand how people can abandon a cat of 12 years,” one comment reads. “I’m glad he has you to look out for him in his senior years!”

“Imagine a feline that has bonded with you for over a decade and you still have the guts to leave them to fend for themselves,” another wrote. “Some people are monsters and some people are also angels for having a heart and took them in. You will be fine Red!”

“Thank you so much for taking care of this handsome fella. Hope everything turns out great for him,” another added.

Despite the circumstances, Alex says Red has been settling in well to his new home. “He’s been doing a lot of sleeping, but so charming and funny when awake!” she wrote on Reddit.

Alex wrote that she has taken Red to the vet, and is working on introducing him to her other cat.

It’s heartbreaking that this cat was abandoned by his owners, but we are glad he was taken in by a kind new owner who will care for him in his senior years ❤️