Meet 'Sinbad,' the cat who's made an amazing recovery after 5 pounds of matted fur shaved off

CHICAGO – Meet Sinbad, the abandoned Persian cat who won the internet's heart with his amazing recovery story after friends at Chicago's Anti-Cruelty Society shaved off 5 pounds of matted fur.

Investigators with the Anti-Cruelty Society received a call from a utility worker about Sinbad, who he saw while working in the basement of a home, according to WGN-TV.

"They had the pictures on the camera phone and they said, 'Elliott, we found you a cat,'" laughed Sinbad's new owner Elliott Serrano, a humane education specialist at the Anti-Cruelty Society. "I said, 'Really?'"

It took the team hours to shave off the matted mass of fur that kept Sinbad from moving his back legs properly. Unable to see where the hair ended and the skin began, it was a slow process that ended up requiring anesthesia. Sinbad was also severely malnourished.

"He was so sweet and tolerant during the process that we knew he was a special little guy," Serrano recalled. "After all that he's been through he's a sweet, loving cat. How can you say no to that?"

The Anti-Cruelty Society is launching a new program that will focus on helping pet owners who can no longer care for their pets. If you are in that situation, you can contact them at: (312) 644-8338 or anticruelty.org.

You can also follow Sinbad's adventures on Instagram and Facebook.