Cat Walks Across Computer Keyboard β€” And Wins Something Special

"I discovered that she'd pressed 'submit' ... I had a minor panic attack."

A curious cat named Mochi has prying paws and an obsession with flashy computer and TV screens β€” and the combination ended up causing a very happy accident for her human, Jessica Schleider.

Rescue cat Mochi with her proud human
Jessica Schleider

Mochi has loved putting herself in between Schleider and her work from the very beginning.

Rescue cat Mochi watching a laptop
Jessica Schleider

The cat was found as a stray living inside a UPS truck with two of her kittens and was adopted by Schleider and her partner when the couple was still in graduate school.

"She was enthralled with my laptop from the start," Schleider told The Dodo. "I think she visited multiple websites over the course of this particular nap."

Rescue cat Mochi sleeping on open laptop
Jessica Schleider

Now that Schleider is an assistant professor of psychology at Stony Brook University, where she devotes herself to research on mental health, much of her work involves applying for funding to make sure she can do the research she needs to do. 

And that's just what Schleider was doing recently when she decided to take a break. The grant she was applying for was particularly important β€” it was worth $100,000 β€” so she wanted to make sure she'd dotted all the proverbial 'i's before submitting the application.

"I was working from home and decided to go outside to walk our dog, Penny, before 'taking the plunge,'" she said. 

Rescue cat who loves her mom's laptop
Mochi loves the calming warmth of laptops β€” and so decides to sleep on them. | Jessica Schleider

It so happened that Mochi, while Schleider was out, decided to insert herself into Schleider's work in a whole new way. 

When Schleider came back, she looked at the screen and realized something had happened.

"I discovered that she'd pressed 'submit' on [the] grant application," she said. "I had a minor panic attack."

Rescue cat Mochi on a laptop
Jessica Schleider

But there was nothing Schleider could do except wait for the results of the application.

Mochi seemed largely unconcerned β€” and as it would turn out, the cat was right not to worry.

Rescue cat Mochi watching TV
Jessica Schleider

"This week I learned that I got the grant," Schleider said. "Her screen obsession finally paid off!"