To pet owners, their pets are the cutest, smartest and most perfect little creatures they’ve ever seen. They can’t stop taking photos and videos of every single minuscule thing their furry friends do and then they have to show it to others. Even if that thing is not so special or entertaining to anyone except the owner.

But there are universal things pets do that steal everyone’s hearts. Like a dog tilting its head or a rabbit eating a carrot that it holds in its hands. Or a cat blepping. Actually, people are so fascinated with cats blepping that a whole subreddit exists that is dedicated solely to pictures of cats sticking their tongues out.

More info: Reddit

#1 Tiny Blep From A Tiny Lady

Image credits: blueeyedtangle

The subreddit is called r/Blep and it currently has 371k members. Its description says “A place for blep” but only for cats. What is very important in this subreddit is that a lick is not a blep, so not all stickings of the tongue out are accepted and there are 10 moderators to ensure people upload only true bleps.

It was created by BillohRly whose name is not actually Bill, but he is a reasonably grown up man from Sweden. Bored Panda got in touch with the redditor and we got to know a little bit more about him: "I am fond of books and things that most people like. I do not consider mayonnaise and French fries a mortal sin. I pay my taxes and enjoy moderately overweight animals. I am relatively ignorant regarding social media, and I don’t really live in the Insta-verse. But I love a few accounts intensely, such as Useless Farm, Balam the Cat and Hoomie, the cosmic lil walrus cat. Please check him out. He is a treasure."

#2 Big Surprised Blep!

Image credits: tumbles_

#3 A Blep Of Epic Proportions!

Image credits: PigeonPenelope

As the subreddit is dedicated to cats, we asked if BillohRly had many pets and he does have a calico cat name Kattbarnet, which, the owner explained, means “The Cat Child.” She describes her as “wonderful to humans, and god awful towards other cats.” He also added, “I am happy with one cat. Except when she pukes on my expensive rugs.”

#4 Smol Blep

Image credits: Civil_Ad_5520

#5 She Blepped At Me After Biting Me

Image credits: birdtaxi

Now, the subreddit is called r/Blep and if you don’t know what a blep is, you don’t have to worry about your vocabulary, because it’s not a word you will find in the Oxford dictionary. But the most popular slang dictionary on the internet, Urban Dictionary, will explain to you that it is “the act of a cat sticking its tongue out slightly without realizing it, often for long periods of time.” Other resources claim that blepping belongs not only to cats, as Wikipedia gives this definition: “(Internet slang, of an animal) To extend the tongue beyond the lips without opening the mouth fully.”

#6 Went To A Cat Café Today And This Fella Blep All The Time

Image credits: motoattadipnz

#7 Sweet Old Lady Named Patches, Giving A Blep

Image credits: bac0n_cheddar

#8 Baby’s First Blep (Six Days Old)

Image credits: a-supreme-fiction

The word was actually invented by the subreddit creator. When we asked how the idea of creating the subreddit came to him, he answered, “Well, here’s the thing. I made up the words ‘blep’, ‘blop’ and ‘blup’ to describe the situation when an animal forgets to put its tongue back in. But cats came first, the other two words were more of an afterthought to make a difference between different animals.”

And the most wonderful and surprising thing for the subreddit creator was not reaching such a big members’ number. He didn’t expect that either, but what he says is, “I was flabbergasted when we hit 10k. But I am even more shocked at seeing the words themselves become part of internet vernacular. It’s amazingly strange.”

#9 Smeet Smeagol. He Is A Majestic Blep Floof And I Hope Everyone Enjoys Him

Image credits: ensictif

#10 Teva’s Bleps Usually Have Some Attitude

Image credits: oak_nuggins00

#11 Chutney Doesn’t Blep Much But When He Does It’s Great

Image credits: ReleaseTheNerd

We were interested why the subreddit focuses only on cats and turns out, it wasn't intentional. The creator explained, "I made up the meme “blep” and started to use it on cats forgetting to put their tongues back in. The other words for other animals followed not too long afterwards. I have seen journalists claim that no one knows where “blep” comes from. But it is all from me. Me making up stupid words and my awesome mod friends keeping the subs fresh and tidy."

So now you know, BillohRly is the creator of the word describing cats forgetting to put their tongues inside their mouths that became so widespread on the internet.

#12 A Month Ago Chewie Was Living In An Abandoned Hospital Parking Lot, Now He’s The Blep King Of The House

Image credits: adelinethequeen

#13 Content Blep! Was Told By Others That This Deserves To Be On This Sub, So Here Is Maryjane With Her Towel❤

Image credits: Hedgehoginascarf

The subreddit was created 7 years ago and now is quite popular, but it wasn’t like that at the start. The redditor BillohRly gives us a little summary of the subreddit growth, “It has been slow and steady. In the beginning it was just me and Camsy34 slogging along and spreading the word in various subreddits over the years. Other than that the growth is down to having awesome mod friends who keep things clean and nice.”

#14 My New Kitten's Napping Blep

Image credits: 6gummybearsnscotch

#15 I Spent A Solid 5 Minutes Laughing At His Blep Today

Image credits: youdontsharewelldog

Now that we know what we are talking about, the natural question that follows is why do cats do this? We know of several reasons why humans do it—to mock someone, express disgust, playfulness, or sometimes when they are trying to concentrate.

Well, there are multiple reasons for cats too. When they stick out their tongue, they are investigating the environment and picking up scents, which is associated with the Flehmen response. It also may mean they have food stuck in their teeth or they experienced a new taste and are trying to understand it.

#16 She Held This Blep For Like 5 Minutes

Image credits: HavohejPantocrator

#17 Tiny Blep From 9 Week Old Raffa

Image credits: ohhhleyroy

It can be an indicator of some problems with their teeth, poisoning or other medical issues; however, blepping is completely normal unless it is accompanied by other unusual behaviors for your cat. There is also a thing called hanging tongue syndrome, which could be caused by severe dental disease.

But most often, it just means that the cat is relaxed. That is why even if they don’t blep while awake, you can catch them blepping while sleeping. So in most cases, there is nothing to worry about and cat owners can calmly admire their pets’ silly little faces.

#18 Such A Pretty, Yet Annoyed Blep

Image credits: DazzleMeAlready

#19 Found This Blep Going Through Old Pics Tonight. Magic, Gone But Not Forgotten

Image credits: txtw

#20 Blep If You're Cute And You Know It

Image credits: lemonlevy

What do you think of this list? Does your cat blep often and do you find it adorable? Leave your reaction to these cats blepping in the comments and don’t forget to upvote the cutest ones!