My aunt by marriage was completely obsessed by her 2 cats announcing to me one day that her cats were more important than her own life and indeed they were 2 very pampered cats. When she had gone completely bonkers and the fridge was full of milk and cat food, she refused to move into sheltered accommodation despite loads of people trying to help her. In the end social services had to take control of her finances and put her in a home with her cats.
That sounds very sad but I'm sure they acted in that way for a reason.