Only a few days after leaving town for the holidays, we got terrible news from our friend that our sweet, healthy, 6-year-old cat Patty had stopped eating. This was VERY unlike Patty who's never been picky, never misses a meal, and usually steals her brother's food when we're not looking. We hired a mobile vet to examine her, and he suspected that she had a severe problem with her liver and needed immediate hospitalization. Our friend took her into the ER, and Spencer and I frantically found the quickest flights back to LA, as it was clear this was very serious. Before we could get back, she needed surgery to remove a mass from what looked like her liver. It turned out to be her pancreas, In which case, they couldn't remove it. The mass had already grown so big that it was blocking flow to her liver which is why she wasn't eating and her skin was yellowing. They took biopsies on several organs, and found cancer in all of the tissue. We got her bloodwork done just months ago with no concerns, so this cancer attacked her extremely quickly and aggressively. This is not common for young cats, and the doctors could only explain it as "bad luck".

Unfortunately, the surgery and associated cost of the ER was a huge financial setback, and even more unfortunately, it couldn't save our baby girl. We left town with a completely happy, energetic, hungry kitty that never missed a meal, and when we returned days later, she was visibly underweight and could hardly stomach any food. It looks like we only have a few more days with her, and we are shocked and absolutely heartbroken. The "bad luck" of losing a young pet unexpectedly is hard enough to deal with once.

As many of you know, we went through a similar experience with Patty's brother, Doug just two years ago. He was 4-years-old and developed stage 4 kidney disease which took his life 5 months after it was found. As hard as it was, we were so thankful for those 5 months we had with Doug, even knowing he wouldn't get better. With Patty, this has all happened within 2 weeks, and we are now deciding when to say goodbye so she doesn't suffer.

As an assistant and an actor in LA, we don't have $15k for this surgery. But we were forced to make an impossible decision while we were out of town for the holidays. We didn't know if we would get a chance to see Patty at all, and we were desperate to help her. We really would have done anything, but sadly there was nothing that could be done and now we have to deal with letting her go. We are asking for help to cover the burden of these bills. We know money is tight, but any amount you could spare would be so greatly appreciated.

I know anyone who has visited our home has cuddled with Patty at some point. Many of you over the years who "aren't cat people" have succumbed to her charms. She is such a special kitty who loves people more than anything. She makes everyone feel welcome, curling up on their laps and nuzzling her face right into them. She's a good girl - well behaved, silly, vocal. She loves going outside, rolling in the dirt and coming inside a dusty shade of beige. She purrs SO loud and rubs into our legs so hard she trips us constantly. When we fostered her litter of kittens, she was the cat I chose first. She was needy and loud and I felt so connected to her. We love her more than we can describe, and she did not deserve any of this. </3