Cats are frequently thought of being independent beings who can survive on their own. They are low-maintenance pets since they frequently spend lengthy periods of time roaming outdoors and coming inside just to feed and groom. But some cat breeds have fur that needs to be groomed frequently, and neglecting it can cause havoc.

Hidey the cat suffered years of neglect since her owner was unable to give her the proper grooming. The unfortunate creature was in such awful shape that the first time the rescuer saw the fearful Hidey, they thought it was a cat huddled under a blanket. He compared it to a scene from the science fiction movie Alien. The man had come to see how his elderly relative’s cat was doing, unaware that there was another animal in the house. He was unable to identify the enigmatic animal that was hiding in the same house, though.

Paul Russell told PEOPLE, “It darted out from under a bed.” “At first, I believed it to be a cat with a blanket covering it. The following day, when I entered the eerie old cellar, it was tucked away in a corner. I said, “My god, this is a cat!”

An animal-loving couple from Churchill, Pennsylvania, took both cats into their care after learning about Hidey, a 14-year-old neglected cat who was given the nickname due to her propensity to hide. The staff at the Animal Rescue League Shelter & Wildlife Center then scheduled an appointment and removed the matted fur that had formed over the course of several years on Hidey’s body.

The cat’s new owners, the Russells, who gave it a name, claim that the cat’s former owner has Alzheimer’s disease and is no longer conscious of her surroundings, and they think that the cat’s inability to properly groom herself as a result of her weight contributed to the mats. Hidey has become a poster child for the significance of keeping an eye on the health of elderly people and their pets ever since she was saved.