On 3/22/26 we had to make the very hard choice to say goodbye to our 12-year-old cat, Kelso. As hard as it is to ask for help, we are now left with over $3k in debt and broken hearts.

Kelso started acting odd the week before and wasn't eating. We spent a week going back and forth to her vet for blood work, urine samples and medicine. Our vet became worried about her blood levels and thought she had diabetes. We took her to West Park Animal Hospital and initially got the feeling this was fixable. We were told she would need to stay for 2-4 days to get fluids and be monitored. The first night and next day things were looking up as her blood sugar levels were back to normal and she was eating again. By Sunday, she was back to not eating again. We were told she would need to stay another 2 days and we should consider her quality of life after. We decided we wanted to bring her home and if it came to euthanizing her, we would do it at home. We asked if they could do an x-ray to make sure she wasn't constipated and that's when things got really bad. She started to struggle breathing and needed to be put in an oxygen cage. They found a tumor in her kidney and fluid on her lungs that were likely cancerous. We were told if she was moved too much or we brought her home, she could die in that process and we had to rush to the hospital to be with her. We weren't even able to hold her as she passed, all we could do was place a hand on her because she was struggling to breath.

To now have thousands of dollars of debt on top of not bringing our girl home is heartbreaking and stressful. We've spent the past week numb as this is our third cat we've had to put down in 3.5 years. If you know us, you know our cats are our world and this has destroyed us.

Originally, the cost would have been more manageable for overnight stay, but with the x-rays, euthanizing and cremation services that nearly doubled. Kelso was on medicine and prescription food to help prevent kidney disease and because of this, she didn’t qualify for pet insurance Asking for help is almost as hard as processing this grief, but it's a lot of debt to carry on top of the rising cost of living in this economy.

We appreciate any help if you have it in your budget and hearts. If you can't donate, sharing this is just as helpful and appreciated. We thank everyone who has reached out during this time, and we won't forget your compassion.