FOLSOM – A feral cat nicknamed “Little Bear” has forged an unlikely friendship with an aging bear at the Folsom City Zoo.

The black cat with a clipped ear is rarely far from 18-year-old Sequoia, one of Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary’s largest black bears. Zookeepers tell the Sacramento Bee that Little Bear joins the lumbering Sequoia as he lounges in the shade or wanders through his enclosure. They’ve even shared meals.

If the bear is sleeping in the grass, then Little Bear is invariably a few feet away.

Little Bear is part of a colony of feral cats living at the zoo. Lead senior zookeeper Jill Faust says she suspects the cat feels comfortable around Sequoia because the bear’s arthritis has slowed him down.