A rescue cat named Lottie has melted hearts across TikTok after a video captured her learning to meow for the first time in her new home.
The clip, posted on April 26 by user @littlemisslottieslife, shows the 1-year-old cat sitting quietly in a hallway. Lottie lets out a series of soft, tentative sounds—early attempts at meowing. The overlaid text reads: “I’ve never learned to use my voice like this before but now I’m learning to meow at humans.”
The 22-second video has since gone viral, gaining more than 1.7 million views and over 480,000 likes. Viewers were quick to share emotional reactions to Lottie’s small but powerful milestone.
“We recently rescued Lottie,” her owner, who lives in England, told Newsweek. “She was very shy and timid at first, but she has been making excellent progress each day in her forever home.”
According to her rescuer, Lottie came from a crowded environment where many cats competed for food and attention. She likely hadn’t learned how to vocalize properly because of limited socialization.
“We saw her getting talkative, letting out little meows,” her owner said. “But she can’t meow properly yet. It’s probably because she never had the chance to use her voice.”
The caption, “learning to use my voice,” resonated with viewers as a deeper metaphor for healing and trust. Many rescue animals stay quiet or withdrawn when they’re scared, but begin to vocalize when they feel safe. Lottie’s first meows mark a turning point in her emotional recovery.
Comments on the post ranged from lighthearted to deeply moved.
“No because I’m sobbing thinking about how no one was there to listen to her meows so she stopped bothering and forgot how,” wrote one viewer.
Another shared: “One of my little boys can’t speak either. After six months, he started to try. I still act like I can hear him and answer him. He’s a rescue.”
Others offered humor to soften the moment. “She’s squeaking in lowercase,” one person joked.
For many, Lottie’s small voice carried a big message—every animal deserves the chance to feel safe enough to be heard.
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