'Talking' Cat Relives Frightening Coyote Attack on Feline Siblings

A cat that witnessed a potential coyote attack on his feline friends has relayed the terrifying experience to his owner—thanks to talking pet buttons.

In the video shared to TikTok earlier this month, @justinbieberthecat_ explained that three of her four cats were hanging out in the catio, a caged patio for cats, on May 8 when they were approached by two coyotes.

Although the three tuxedo cats spotted the wild canines, her other feline Justin was inside at the time. She assumed he was sleeping, but a "conversation" the next day suggested otherwise.

Trained to use "talking pet buttons"—a communication tool based on alternative and augmentative communication (AAC) devices for non-verbal people—the 8-year-old feline relayed the traumatizing incident to his owner.

Justin's owner began teaching him in 2021 to talk using buttons. Although his first instinct was to eat the board, he has since made impressive progress, becoming famous online for his vocabulary skills.

The orange cat now knows which buttons to use for "mom," "Mike" (the poster's boyfriend), "yes," "bye bye," and more. However in the TikTok video, Justin repeatedly steps on the button for "stranger."

"There was a 'stranger dog' last night," his owner tells him. "Did you see him?"

In response, Justin pushes the "mom" button over and over again, followed by "stranger."

"He was very mean," she tells Justin, while giving him a comforting stroke. "He tried to eat you guys."

"You can see he's on high alert," his owner said. "And looking towards the windows that face the yard."

Nevertheless, his anxiety seems to dissipate as his mom walks around the corner, and he runs to her for comfort while meowing loudly.

"I know buddy, I know," she says. "It's ok, we're gonna keep you safe."

She then taps the buttons for "dog" and "bye bye" to reinstate her point, with a reassured Justin finally relaxing into a flop on the floor.

TikTok Users React

Users on the social media platform were amazed by Justin's communication skills, with the clip receiving 1.9 million views so far.

"Such a smart boy," said Mel.

"He is brilliant," agreed Pja Shah..

"He said: 'MOM HOW ARE YOU SO CALM ABOUT THE STRANGER?!'" wrote user3297751045501.

"Justin was like IM TELLING," said toriancrane.

"The mom mom mom mom stranger was very much like a toddler," joked Crapburger.

"Good guardian cat," wrote Chantal.

"See," commented Lyssy Sho. "I told my mom cats can have intelligent conversations!!!"

Newsweek has reached out to @justinbieberthecat_ via email for comment.

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