This determined stray kitten refused to leave its dying sibling's side after both of them were abandoned in a field in the Philippines.

The pair were found by a Good Samaritan, Jozephine Abelardo, trembling by the roadside in San Miguel town in Bulacan province on July 15.

They were drenched by the pouring rain and cowered as cars passed by, so she decided to pick them up and bring them back home without a second thought.

She said: 'I dried them off and fed them some warm milk using a syringe. They were so thirsty that they happily gulped it all down.'

After a few days, the baby cats regained their strength, growing livelier and playing together around the house, Jozephine said. However, one of them fell ill with a cold and eventually became bedridden.

Footage shows the kitten watching over its sibling, which was unconscious and bundled up in a cloth to keep it warm.

The stricken young animal unfortunately succumbed to its sickness a couple of days later, with the other one also dying 'due to loneliness' within a few days.

An emotional Jozephine said: 'It's not their fault they were born into this world. They have lives too, just like humans. They feel hunger and pain, and they also long to be loved.

'Let's not separate kittens from their mothers if we know we can't take care of them.'