Horror as Woman on Lunch Break Realizes What She Left Inside Her Car

The moment when a stowaway cat took a trip to his owner's work has left people in stitches this week.

The video has received more than 900,000 views since being posted on February 3 by Haley Shively, who lives in Southwest Virginia.

She shared the moment she headed into the car park on her lunch break and was shocked to be greeted by her cat, 9-month-old Cheeto, staring back at her from the front of her Jeep.

The accompanying text overlay read: "When you go out on your lunch break and realize your cat was in your jeep the entire time."

Amazingly, Cheeto had managed to pull off the ultimate stealth mission, sneaking into his owner's car and accompanying her to work without her noticing until her lunch break. Since arriving, however, the pet seems to have changed his mind, casting a disdainful glance at the camera as if to say: "Can we go home now?"

"He got in my car because I had left the car door open and ran back inside while putting my son in the car, and I didn't know he jumped in," Shively told Newsweek.

Leaving an animal alone in a car, especially in extreme hot or cold temperatures, can be hazardous to its health. On summer days, the temperature inside a car can rise rapidly, leading to heatstroke and even death.

Thankfully, the owner confirmed Cheeto wasn't harmed during his unexpected trip, and said that it was an accident.

This isn't the first time Cheeto has shown off his hiding skills, either. Shively recalled: "He has never done this before in the car, but he has gotten good at hiding. I've found him in our gun safe before as well after being locked in there all night long."

The post quickly garnered a flood of comments from amused viewers sharing their own experiences with adventurous cats.

"He mad," posted TikTok user Iamjustalliyya, while Kristen wrote that it was "bring your cat to work day."

Viewer Heather was amused by the Cheeto's seriously unimpressed facial expression from the front of the white Jeep: "He's looking at you like it's your fault," she posted.

Meanwhile, others shared their own experiences of stowaway felines. "My cat jumped in the tack room of my trailer and went to a barrel race two states over with me," wrote one viewer.

Another recalled the moment her cat took an unexpected trip with a little bit of extra help. "My kid snuck our cat into the car and took it to a birthday party," she posted.

Some viewers even admitted to close calls with their own accidental cat passengers.

Merlin wrote: "I brought my neighbor's cat to the grocery store on accident and now I'm paranoid of something like this happening, too."

User katewoodcomedy commented: "I had this happen except it wasn't my cat. Got on the expressway and heard a concerned meow."

"I was honestly shocked at first trying to figure out what was in my window," Shively said. "I couldn't leave work and drive home, but I did go out and check on him multiple times within the 3 hours he had left to wait for me to take him home."

Cheeto isn't the first one to enjoy a ride in the car either. Last year, 5-year-old Zazu gained viral attention for his love of hopping into the car with his owner to get a lift back to their house.

Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com with some details about your best friend, and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.

Update 02/14/24, 03:30 a.m. ET: This story was updated with additional comment from the poster.