Tacoma’s cutest cats go viral on TikTok

Artist Chris Watson has gone viral on TikTok showcasing the best hidden feature of Tacoma: its cats.

Since the pandemic began, Watson has been posting daily “catwalk” TikToks where he records the cats he sees on his daily walk, who typically meow or run up to him. His most popular video now has more than 110,000 views.

“A lot of people are calling me the cat whisperer,” said Watson, 30. “We’ve counted over a dozen cats around a mile walk. I thought it’d be pretty cute to let people see how nice the cats are.”

In the videos, Watson calls the cat by name. He said that sometimes he knows the neighbors who own the cat, sometimes the cat has a tag with their name, and sometimes he makes up the name.

He added that people really like Nicole, a fluffy white cat with green eyes. Sometimes he gives the cats cat treats as he walks by.

“Every time I see (the cat) Satin, he walks across the lawn with a perfect gait and meows while running to us every single time,” Watson elaborated.

According to data from the City of Tacoma, there are 3,197 registered cats of 40 different breeds in Tacoma. The most popular cat name is Kitty, and some unusual names people have registered their cat under include Tiddlywinks, Wendell, Preacher, Ponkey, Seattle and Michelangelo.

With approximately 82,000 households in Tacoma, that means 1 in 24 households in Tacoma have a cat.

Watson only joined TikTok and started the catwalk after quarantine began. By day, he is a video producer and an artist who goes by Aronunc. Originally from North Carolina, he has lived in Tacoma for five years.

While Watson doesn’t have a cat himself, he says a fluffy cat shows up on his porch every night at midnight.

This story was originally published July 21, 2020 at 10:00 AM.