ScreamingAva Is Saving TikTok From Misogyny, One Bark At A Time

Every time a bad take about women reaches your FYP — think someone claiming women have become “unhappier as they gain more rights” or a video of a man slapping his girlfriend’s stomach to remind her to suck in for a photo — you’re left wondering where you went wrong. That is, until the video is replaced by a 3-year-old husky, yelping on camera. The ScreamingAva account, made by full-time content creator Divya M., aka Ava’s mom, was created to keep these grimace-worthy videos in check through the eyes of a very opinionated (and vocal) dog.

“I kept seeing cringey videos on TikTok, and I was like, someone needs to react to these because they’re not OK,” Divya, who doesn’t share her last name publicly, tells Elite Daily. And so, ScreamingAva was born, a now-viral account that uses humor to address these controversial videos. The Vancouver local’s method, which typically involves stitching the clip with a video of Ava reacting into the camera, has gained her 55.8 million likes and 531,200 followers — and with fans like Julia Fox and Drew Afualo, Ava’s steadily approaching TikTok royalty.

Whether Ava’s howling, barking, rolling her eyes, or licking her nose, she makes her opinion known. Somehow, no matter what trash POVs are on the app, Ava is able to articulate what everyone else is thinking — sometimes with the help of Divya’s narration. For example, when one user posted a video of her husband playing Call of Duty during the birth of their child, Ava’s vocal response resonated with many. “My thoughts exactly,” one TikToker responded to Ava’s yelling. Another commented, “SHES SPEAKING HER TRUTH.” Maybe it’s because such nonsense deserves a gibberish reply?

Here, Divya opens up about why she started the ScreamingAva account and what it’s like to be a dog mom to a viral phenomenon.

Elite Daily: What prompted you to start posting Ava on TikTok? How did you figure out she had the potential to be a star?

Divya M: I randomly started the ScreamingAva account [in 2021] because I heard that one video of the guy with the raspy voice talking about women… and Ava’s voice is very raspy. Her morning voice especially sounds like his. That’s actually what inspired me to respond to it. That was the first video that really blew up.

When I pointed the phone toward her, her facial reactions to videos would just be so funny. She’d give side eyes or start howling. I just continued from there and then any video that I thought was cringe or funny, I’d react to. People loved it.

ED: You have another husky, Milo, who you occasionally have in videos. How did you decide to focus on Ava for TikTok?

DM: I started that page solely for Ava because I think she has a lot of personality — she’s such a funny dog. Milo’s a pretty chill, calm guy. On the other hand, Ava is very vocal and she’ll actually let you know what she thinks. She shows it. She’s expressive. She always has been, ever since I got her when she was 6 months old.

ED: How do you choose which videos to duet?

DM: It’s usually a video I find cringe, or sometimes I get tagged in a lot in certain videos. My followers really let me know which TikToks they don’t like, and if I agree with them, I’ll go ahead and duet it. The videos are typically men making fun of women or having controversial opinions about what women should and shouldn’t do.

ED: Now that this is what you’re known for, is your FYP full of men being offensive?

DM: It’s 50/50 at this point.

ED: Do the people you duet ever respond?

DM: They usually comment on the video and laugh at it. There’s rarely any hate, but sometimes they will delete their original video.

ED: Plenty of big names have taken notice of ScreamingAva. Do you have a favorite?

DM: When I started the ScreamingAva account, Julia Fox commented “Lol” on one of my videos. It made me realize the reach Ava would have and how many people enjoy watching her.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.