Millions of pet videos deepen our understanding of human–cat interactions with implications for management

Abstract Free‐ranging cats pose significant threats to biodiversity, yet the cat‐related media online has attracted millions of viewers. The reasons behind this surge in popularity, however, remain underexplored. To address this gap, we conducted a comparative culturomic analysis of over 6 million comments and 60,000 unique tags from over 3 million animal‐related videos on Bilibili, a major Chinese video‐sharing platform. Using natural language processing methods and network analysis, we found that cat videos consistently generate higher emotional engagement than other animal content, with viewers frequently expressing affection and treating cats more as unique individuals. While cuteness is a major factor, it is not exclusive to cats. Content creators specializing in cat media show a powerful impact in influencing content visibility and audience engagement online. These findings suggest that conservation efforts could benefit from leveraging social media and collaborating with influencers to promote responsible pet ownership and ecological awareness. Balancing emotional connections to cats with the ecological challenges they pose is essential for developing sustainable management strategies. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.