Who is Howie the crab? TikTok’s viral pet shows off sign language skills

Howie the crab has gained millions of views on TikTok and continues to shock her fans with her abilities.

Sometimes being adorable has its perks — like becoming a viral standout on one of the internet’s largest platforms, TikTok.

While she may be non-verbal and as small as her owner’s palm, Howie the crab has almost 900K TikTok followers and boasts millions of views because of how “cute” she is.

Howie’s owner, Laura Porter, has taken care of her beloved crab since at least 2016 and began posting TikToks about her over the last few years.

Since day one of posting, Laura and “the most loved crab on earth” have gained millions of views on multiple videos.

One of her most viral posts, which reached over 23M views, showed how Laura placed Howie on a leash.

To begin, she safely took her pet crab out of her tank with tongs to prevent her shell from cracking. She then placed her in a big tub where she harnessed Howie in a rainbow leash.

The two then took off on a walk while Howie wore a mini crown, fit for a crabby queen!

In another viral post, which gained over 3M views, Laura recorded a “cranky Howie” while she was in her tank. As her owner approached, Howie jilted towards Laura like a toddler stomping their feet.

Laura explained in the video’s caption that her pet crab was waiting to “molt.” Molting is when crabs shed their exterior layer to make room for more growth.

And in one very impressive TikTok, Howie showed off how she knows sign language. While wearing a variety of knitted hats, Howie could be seen tapping her mouth with her claws to indicate she wanted food in a compilation video posted by Laura.

Fans of Howie have commented on their many positive affirmations, with many agreeing that she is among all else, smart and adorable.

One fan even deemed Howie “mind-blowing,” while another said they couldn’t help but fall in love with her despite not expecting to.

While Howie is an older crab, Laura described her as being “agile” and “intelligent.” Hopefully, their companionship continues with joy and health.

Despite Howie being ultra cute, Dobby the labradoodle also took TikTok by storm when his owner revealed that he understands Harry Potter spells.

In one of Dobby’s viral videos, his owner called out Harry Potter-themed spells, to which he responded by following the command. Some of which were “stupefy,” which means “down,” and “azkaban,” which means to go into the crate.