A man in Pittsburgh named Paul Russell, recently made an unexpected discovery while visiting the home of his 82-year-old distant relative. His relative has Alzheimer’s and had recently moved to a nursing home, so Paul was at the house gathering some things for the relative and sorting the place out. That’s when he heard a noise.
Paul described the moment as being like something out of the movie Alien. He knew there was some kind of creature in the house, but he wasn’t sure what it was. That’s when he spotted this:
Even after laying eyes on the creature, it still took Paul a minute to realize that he was looking at a cat!
The cat– whose name is Hidey (because of her penchant for hiding)— had clearly been horribly neglected and was living under 2 pounds of matted fur.
Paul rushed Hidey to the Animal Rescue League/Western PA Humane Society. Workers there said they’d never seen matting like this before.
“Our medical team shaved off the pounds of intertwined fur from her body and, needless to say, this cat is feeling so much better now!” wrote the League.
Photos of the 14-year-old cat were posted online, and so many people questioned the validity of them that the League had to follow up with a video pre-shave!
As horrifying as Hidey’s condition was, Hidey’s makeover revealed a new animal underneath all the fur.
Paul and his family have decided to take Hidey home and give her the proper care she’s been missing. The League rejoiced saying Hidey will “finally have a chance at a happy and healthy life!”
Now Paul says Hidey is doing well. “She was originally hiding under the bed in her new home,” he wrote, “but now is snuggled on a warm cat bed on an open floor. She also begins purring while being held.”
The Animal Rescue League ended their post with some helpful advice to prevent situations like this: “Please remember to not only check on the elderly in your community, but also check on their animals to prevent instances like this from happening in the future.”
Thankfully, everything turned out for Hidey!
Share this incredible transformation today.
