It’s rare that I report on ‘old news’ unless the story is extremely interesting. I came across this YouTube video posted April 18 and felt the need to share with the readers here at PoC.
On December 16, 2016, the Humane Animal Rescue League in Pittsburgh posted photos of a 14-year-old cat rescued after her 82-year-old with Alzheimer’s left the home to move into a nursing home. The cat was left behind and forgotten, with a distant relative coming in every so often to feed her.
The relative was eventually able to capture the cat, now named Heidi, and took her to a veterinarian for treatment. Heidi was sedated and the fur, a whopping two pounds of it, was removed from her neglected body.
The video below from TomoNews US tells her story. Only a bit over a minute are about Heidi and I love the graphics used in their YouTube presentations.
Another interesting aspect of this story is how many people on the Facebook thread for Humane Animal Rescue thought the photos were Photoshopped. A few of those involved in the de-matting assured everyone Heidi came in severely matted and explained an older or overweight cat may not be able to efficiently groom itself.
I’ve written several articles about dogs in this condition, but this is the first cat I’ve seen in this shape. Now Heidi now has a new home with the man who saved her.
If Heidi’s story teaches us nothing else, we should take from it the need to check on the pets at the home of any relative or friend with a medical condition that affects the memory. Unfortunately, there’s no way to know how long Heidi had to suffer before her rescue.
‘Before’ photos taken from Facebook: Humane Animal Rescue. Heidi after being shaved is a screenshot from the YouTube Video.
Elisa
