Luigi the cat was down on his luck

A down-on-his luck Persian cat was completely matted and in terrible shape when he was found and rescued at an animal shelter three years ago. An employee of the animal shelter found a box outside with a rock sitting on top of it. Fearing the worst, the employee opened it and discovered an animal that she couldn’t tell was dead or alive. She couldn’t even tell it had a head, because it was covered in fur. Moments later, she was taking pictures of the animal when it started to move. When other volunteers and employees arrived, they were able to discover that it was badly matted cat. They took cat to a nearby veterinarian. After getting blood work, vets sedated the Persian cat and set about the task of shearing him like a sheep, removing so much fur that it filled a plastic bag. It took four hours to cut and shave the cat’s body, once shaved he weighed 14 pounds. The vet shaved off nearly 16.5 pounds of matted fur. A good shave is all it took for the Persian cat, who today is known as Luigi by his adopted family. Jodi Johnson, president of Four Paws Pet Adoption in Rexburg, said she likes to believe that there’s good in people. “Someone cared enough for him that they fed him, but he is the type of cat that if you don’t take care of his hair, it’s a problem,” Johnson said. Johnson said she brushes him every day and gets him shaved every four months. “When people drop off animals at shelters, we ask that they let us know the animal’s history, or just let us know they can’t afford their pet, whatever the case maybe. It would have been nice to know Luigi’s history, because it would have saved us $400 on blood work,” Johnson said. Johnson’s said Luigi’s grooming bill is $60. “Do you research on animals and know the expense it’s going to take to care for that animal,” Johnson said. Johnson has another Persian cat, named Pumpkin, and two Australian Shepherds. “Oh my gosh, I can sweep up full grown dogs each week from the amount of hair they shed,” Johnson said. Johnson said Luigi and her connected when they first met. “When he came to my house from the vet, he was still out of it,” she said. “I sat down beside him and he came up to me and sat down on my lap. At that point I just felt a soul connection with him. My soul just connected with this cat and that doesn’t happen very often. He just snuggled with me and clung to me.” It’s become a ritual between the two. Luigi climbs onto Johnson and they snuggle, and Johnson will also take the opportunity to comb him and wipe his eyes. Johnson advises people not to just dump their animals, saying,”Animals have feelings, too, they feel happy or sad. They can feel depressed. Some cats will stop eating when their owner dies.” From October 1 to Jan. 1st, Four Paws is participating in “Home for the Holidays,” which is sponsored by Blue Buffalo and the Helen Woodward Animal Center. People can donate money, or adopt a pet during the event..

To find out more on how you can help or donate, visit http://www.fourpawspetadoptions.org/.