If you've never heard a meerkat purr, your wait is over! Meet Minky, a precious — and incredibly spoiled — meerkat who makes the most adorable noises, including purring exactly like a cat. She lives with her human dad Ruben Lambrechts, who runs a family-operated travel guide service, "I Dream Namibia," and takes cares of orphaned wild animals like meerkats, mongoose, warthogs, and more on a farm outside Windhoek. All of the animals are free to roam around the farm and, judging by the sweet videos Ruben posts, the critters all seem thrilled to be part of the family.
Minky is no exception. Ruben has featured the gorgeous gal in many videos, and she always looks so chill and happy. My favorite videos are where she's snuggling with Ruben or just relaxing, and I especially love all of her cute sounds. In this video, she's making the most content squeaks and grunts. One viewer likened them to "old telegraph sounds," which is weirdly accurate. In another, you can hear her purring! I guess they don't call them "meerKATS" for nothing! (To be clear, though, meerkats aren't related to cats, and are, instead, part of the mongoose family.)
Meerkats actually make at least 10 different kinds of vocalization. According to Perth Zoo:
These super chatty 'kats' will purr to show contentment, growl to let others know they're not happy, and bark to raise the alarm. They'll even make a 'vurruk-vurruk' sound when they're busy searching for food.
How absolutely adorable of them!
See (and hear!) more animals in Ruben's diverse family on his YouTube.
Previously:
• Meet Ruben Lambrechts and his friend Cindy, a 29-year-old rescue baboon
