3-years old black cat needs urgent life-saving surgery!

Hi everyone,

My name is Arianna and I have been here in Portland, OR for a year. I moved here from Italy to pursue my passion for medical research. I am currently doing a postdoc at Oregon Health & Science University.

I came here with my beloved cat, Bubi. He is the sweetest and smartest cat I have ever met, and if it weren't for him I would still think dogs are man's best friend.

I found Bubi in the backyard of a friend's house in March 2021. He was less than a month old and had probably been abandoned by his mother because he had a terrible anal prolapse due to a parasite.

Bubi was terrified and did not want to be approached, but if I had left him there, there was a high chance he would have died. After several attempts we managed to catch him and take him to the vet.

Over the next 3 weeks Bubi started to start better because of the parasite treatment but unfortunately he still didn't trust me. He would not let me approach and pet him.

One day when I was feeding him dinner, Bubi started to paw slowly toward my direction, sniff my hand and then rub his head against the back of my hand.

I must admit it was exciting and touching because it marked the moment when Bubi began to trust me.

Bubi taught me that trust is built with time and patience.

Since that time, Bubi has grown healthy and strong. His favorite daily activities are playing with balls, looking out the window, sleeping on the headboard of the couch, and being petted on the head.

Bubi made me very proud when we embarked together for the first time on a 15-hour flight that brought us here to Portland. Despite the very long flight, Bubi did great. He settled into his new home and city quickly.

One night Bubi kept me up all night because he kept meowing. There was nothing that could calm

him down. I knew right away there was something wrong so the next day I took him to the vet.

At the visit, the veterinarian hears that Bubi has a mass in his abdomen. This is followed by blood and urine tests, abdominal echo, x-ray, and consultation with two veterinary specialists who conclude that Bubi has severe hydronephrosis of the left kidney. See below ultrasound images of Bubi's enlarged kidney with no functional tissue but just liquid and stone/crystal causing the blockage.

Hydronephrosis is an accumulation of urine inside the kidney, caused in this case by a stone in the ureter that has blocked the outflow of urine from the kidney.

Bubi's left kidney is no longer functioning.

The only option for Bubi before he can go into renal failure and die is to remove the no-longer-functioning left kidney through a surgical procedure called nephrectomy.

The estimates for nephrectomy that I have been given by several veterinarians in the Portland area are around $5000-9000. The range is so wide because it also includes complications during the operation, such as if Bubi needs a blood transfusion (a transfusion is around $800-900), an extra day in the ICU (costs $800 for 24h), and longer anesthesia ($350/h).

Bubi has already started a diet to prevent stones from forming in the urinary tract and reduce the risk of her right kidney also becoming damaged. This specific diet, depending on the brand, is around $30-50 for 24 cans of wet food and $80-100 for 17.6 lb of kibble.

Once Bubi is on one kidney, she will need to have an abdominal echo every three months to keep track of the presence of stones and intervene in time before it causes another kidney failure. The cost of an abdominal echo is around $450-600.

I hope that the nephrectomy procedure will go smoothly and will require the minimal cost of $5000, the remainder will be used to cover the first six months post-surgery, the specific diet to prevent stone formation, and a follow-up abdominal echo.

Bubi is still a young cat with so much energy and so much time still ahead, and I am not ready to live a life without my feline companion beside me.

If you can donate anything, or even just share this post with friends and family, thank you, thank you, thank you, from the bottom of our hearts.

Arianna and Bubi