Disaster averted: Cat prevents baby from tumbling down stairs

Dogs may be man's best friend, but hey, cats are not too shabby either.

For people who have grown up with family pets, their furry friends may have acted as stand-in babysitters on occasion.

One such kitty in Columbia took its duty seriously, and prevented its young charge from getting injured on Oct 31.

In a video clip that has gone viral on Facebook, a toddler in a red onesie can be seen crawling on the floor of a living room while a cat watched on as it lounged on a sofa.

The inquisitive tot then started to wander around and made her way towards a door that led down a flight of stairs.

Sounds like a recipe for disaster?

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Mere moments before the baby could crawl out the door (and presumably tumble down the stairs), the cat dashed to her rescue.

In a flash, it pounced on the toddler's back and started to wrestle the baby off-course.

The feline continued to guard the doorway until the child turned around and crawled back to safety.

It is unknown if the curious baby had escaped from her playpen, or if she was left to wander on the floor of the living room.

While the cat saved its human family from danger this time, young children should not be left alone at home.

There has been a string of tragedies where kids have fallen to their deaths from open windows after they were unable to find their family members at home.

Parents, be warned.

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lamminlee@asiaone.com