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On Thursday, December 6th, I found Beric lying still in a dark closet when I came home from work. I rushed the poor guy over to the animal hospital, where I learned that he has a urethral obstruction that is causing him great pain when he tries to urinate, and will be terminal if I can't get him surgery soon.
I'm a bit shy and awkward on social media, so please bear with me, and I promise to keep this brief: all I want is for Beric to have a long, happy life. I adopted him almost exactly one year ago when he was tiny and precocious, and you couldn't imagine a more rambunctious little guy. He hopped around my apartment like he owned the place, and he dove right into my leftover Indian food, because he apparently assumed all food was made for cats, and in particular for him. At not even a year and half old, Beric deserves better than his condition, and I have spent every cent I have so far giving him whatever care I could scramble together, including a $700 drainage operation to stall his death, which was very unpleasant for him.
I don't have the money to save him. I used up the last of my credit to pay for his care so far. This puts me up to $4000 in debt in addition to student loan debt that has reached about $40,000. This is a last-ditch effort to save him, one which I resisted until now out of shame and embarrassment. But I'm out of options and at the end of my rope, and I can't adequately express how much this silly guy means to me, so let me be clear: anyone who is willing to contribute *anything at all* will be deeply, sincerely loved in my heart for the rest of my life.
Update 1, 12/10/18: A small update: we had just arrived at a new vet in Warrenton, VA when Beric peed ALL over the counter (and the vet, and my sweater). This is amazing news! It signifies the blockage in his body has subsided to some degree as opposed to continually getting worse. In my good mood, I took a small video of him wandering the lab room (with surprisingly good energy) and reminded him how we handle these situations: https://twitter.com/ILive66Failed/status/1072290845368426496
Beric is staying with the lovely folks at the vet for two nights. It was a difficult decision, but I think it is important to ensure all his meds and antibiotics are being administered professionally, as opposed to being fumbled around like I often do.
Everyone's support has been incredible. I'm not a super affectionate guy, but I wish I could give everyone who has donated a stiff, firm, professional handshake, as well as a small vow of eternal gratitude. I will update again tomorrow or Wednesday, depending how much there is to report.
Update 2, 1/2/19: First off, apologies for the lack of updates. Every time I thought we were good to go, some other development would occur, so I would push it back. That's the nature of these things, I suppose. So I've decided to just post something quick and brief every time we make a decision.
Basically, Beric has been up and down. After bringing him back from his stay at the vet in Warrenton where he peed everywhere, I honestly thought he was on his road to recovery. Unfortunately, last week he declined again, showing some of the same symptoms he had originally had when I first took him to the emergency clinic. We took him back to Warrenton, where they drained him and inserted a catheter to help him urinate. He's been back home for a couple days now, but he is still showing signs of pain and irritation, and more importantly, it looks like he's still having trouble urinating on his own. So as you likely have guessed, the only recourse we are left with is to bite the bullet and do the surgery. We will be bringing him to the vet either tomorrow or Friday (the surgery will be on Friday regardless), and I will update everyone on how that goes.
Let me be clear: the support everyone has given has saved his life. Even if the surgery doesn't pan out and Beric doesn't make it for one reason or another, we would not even have the option without everyone's help. It was the absolute best holiday gift we could ever have asked for, and I am tremendously grateful.
P.S. A huge shoutout to the staff at the Warrenton Animal Care Center, for not only being incredibly kind and professional throughout this entire process, but also for coming in on their days off (over New Year's Eve, no less!) to monitor Beric, saving us likely over a thousand dollars transferring him to a 24-hour clinic. Beric is one lucky cat!
I'm a bit shy and awkward on social media, so please bear with me, and I promise to keep this brief: all I want is for Beric to have a long, happy life. I adopted him almost exactly one year ago when he was tiny and precocious, and you couldn't imagine a more rambunctious little guy. He hopped around my apartment like he owned the place, and he dove right into my leftover Indian food, because he apparently assumed all food was made for cats, and in particular for him. At not even a year and half old, Beric deserves better than his condition, and I have spent every cent I have so far giving him whatever care I could scramble together, including a $700 drainage operation to stall his death, which was very unpleasant for him.
I don't have the money to save him. I used up the last of my credit to pay for his care so far. This puts me up to $4000 in debt in addition to student loan debt that has reached about $40,000. This is a last-ditch effort to save him, one which I resisted until now out of shame and embarrassment. But I'm out of options and at the end of my rope, and I can't adequately express how much this silly guy means to me, so let me be clear: anyone who is willing to contribute *anything at all* will be deeply, sincerely loved in my heart for the rest of my life.
Update 1, 12/10/18: A small update: we had just arrived at a new vet in Warrenton, VA when Beric peed ALL over the counter (and the vet, and my sweater). This is amazing news! It signifies the blockage in his body has subsided to some degree as opposed to continually getting worse. In my good mood, I took a small video of him wandering the lab room (with surprisingly good energy) and reminded him how we handle these situations: https://twitter.com/ILive66Failed/status/1072290845368426496
Beric is staying with the lovely folks at the vet for two nights. It was a difficult decision, but I think it is important to ensure all his meds and antibiotics are being administered professionally, as opposed to being fumbled around like I often do.
Everyone's support has been incredible. I'm not a super affectionate guy, but I wish I could give everyone who has donated a stiff, firm, professional handshake, as well as a small vow of eternal gratitude. I will update again tomorrow or Wednesday, depending how much there is to report.
Update 2, 1/2/19: First off, apologies for the lack of updates. Every time I thought we were good to go, some other development would occur, so I would push it back. That's the nature of these things, I suppose. So I've decided to just post something quick and brief every time we make a decision.
Basically, Beric has been up and down. After bringing him back from his stay at the vet in Warrenton where he peed everywhere, I honestly thought he was on his road to recovery. Unfortunately, last week he declined again, showing some of the same symptoms he had originally had when I first took him to the emergency clinic. We took him back to Warrenton, where they drained him and inserted a catheter to help him urinate. He's been back home for a couple days now, but he is still showing signs of pain and irritation, and more importantly, it looks like he's still having trouble urinating on his own. So as you likely have guessed, the only recourse we are left with is to bite the bullet and do the surgery. We will be bringing him to the vet either tomorrow or Friday (the surgery will be on Friday regardless), and I will update everyone on how that goes.
Let me be clear: the support everyone has given has saved his life. Even if the surgery doesn't pan out and Beric doesn't make it for one reason or another, we would not even have the option without everyone's help. It was the absolute best holiday gift we could ever have asked for, and I am tremendously grateful.
P.S. A huge shoutout to the staff at the Warrenton Animal Care Center, for not only being incredibly kind and professional throughout this entire process, but also for coming in on their days off (over New Year's Eve, no less!) to monitor Beric, saving us likely over a thousand dollars transferring him to a 24-hour clinic. Beric is one lucky cat!