Holland arrived at a Chicago shelter covered in dirty mats, some of which were more than 6-in. long

A pedicure can make you feel like a princess, so Holland must have come out of her masterful makeover feeling like the Queen of the Universe.

This Cinderella story starts with the required grim beginning. Not too long ago, Holland was surrendered at an open access shelter in the Chicago area in “deplorable condition,” according to a Facebook post from the Trio Animal Foundation.

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Holland needed help fast.

“The width of the matted fur on her legs was over 2-3 inches thick. A shell like casing of matted fur covered most of her back and it looked like an exoskeleton from behind. Holland’s matted ears dragged the ground and were at least 6 inches long … they should have been more like 2,” the animal rescue wrote in the same post about how Holland arrived at the shelter. “The wet matted tendrils on her face wreaked and she rubbed her face incessantly trying to itch her irritated skin.”

Image zoom Sue Naiden/Trio Animal Foundation

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Realizing that Holland needed more care and attention than they could provide, the open access shelter contacted the Trio Animal Foundation to see if they could help, and they happily accepted.

Image zoom Sue Naiden/Trio Animal Foundation

Once under the foundation’s care, Holland was rushed to an emergency grooming session. Unfortunately, the dog’s mats proved too much for grooming scissors alone: After two hours of work, the shelter staff had only removed a thin layer of the fur imprisoning Holland, who was getting tired and stressed, so they decided to take the next step and had her “sedated for a surgical groom at the vet.”

Image zoom Sue Naiden/Trio Animal Foundation

Holland awoke from her grooming a new and surprisingly healthy pooch. Aside from some bruises, scrapes and skin degeneration, which the shelter treated with antibiotics, she got a clean bill of health for her new life ahead.

Image zoom Sue Naiden/Trio Animal Foundation

Down several pounds of fur, it took some time for Holland to learn how to walk without the extra fluff — and it also took her some time to start smiling again.

Image zoom Sue Naiden/Trio Animal Foundation

After several weeks of socialization training, Holland, who had shed her shell of fur, emerged from her emotional shell as well. Thanks to the dedicated nursing and nurturing provide by the Trio Animal Foundation, Holland recently found her perfect forever family.