Photo: Darya Sannikova / Pexels
The Krabi Convenience Store Cat Who Runs a Treat Racket
A grey tabby cat in Krabi has gone viral twice over after video emerged showing it walking foreign tourists directly to the pet food aisle of a local convenience store, then fixing them with a slow-blink until they buy it something to eat. The cat, identifiable by its red collar, has been doing this long enough that Thai broadcaster Bright TV confirmed it as a pattern rather than a lucky fluke. It has since become a minor sensation across Thai social media.
How the Scam Works
The routine is straightforward. The cat approaches tourists near the store, leads them inside, and positions itself in front of the cat food section. Then it deploys the slow-blink: a gesture that, in cat body language, signals trust and affection. Both documented incidents ended the same way: tourists purchased treats, and the cat ate them on the pavement outside.
The slow-blink is a genuine feline signal of comfort and trust, which is presumably why it works so consistently on visitors who have never met the cat before. As one social media user put it, "Cat language is international."
Going Viral
The first video to spread widely was posted on July 15, 2026, by a South Korean tourist on Instagram (@jmiiyaaa), who captioned it simply: "This cat took us to a cat food corner in a convenience store." Shortly after, a second clip surfaced on Threads from Taiwanese visitors (@c.h0ilam), filmed at the same store, in front of the same aisle. Both videos circulated extensively on Thai social media.
What Thai Internet Has to Say
Thai commenters have been enthusiastic about the cat's methods. Reactions ranged from affectionate to mock-conspiratorial:
- "At first I felt sorry for the cat. Then I realised I should feel sorry for the tourists."
- "The leader of the scam gang has arrived."
- "The shop staff must be part of the operation. I've never seen cat food displayed on the bottom shelf like that."
Should You Worry?
Not really. The cat looks healthy and appears to be owned (hence the collar), so buying it a snack does no harm. The behavior is deliberate and repeatable, but the consequences are mild: you lose the price of a small bag of cat treats and gain a story. Social media users are currently calling on the owner to identify themselves, though no one has stepped forward yet.
If you happen to be near this particular Krabi convenience store and a grey tabby in a red collar makes eye contact and starts walking purposefully toward the entrance, you already know what comes next.
Information sourced from The Thaiger.