Hi there, I'm Vicky and I'm a single mum to a fantastic 11 yr old boy and 2 gorgeous cats, Ruby 5yrs and Alfie 18 months. Sadly, on Tuesday 27 July 2021, our beloved Alfie was hit by a car and has sustained quite significant injury to his jaw and face, he was luckily taken to a local vet by a witness. Both myself and my son were out, and we would not have known that this had happened if it weren't for that amazing member of the public.

What has happened since then has been the most traumatic and upsetting few days I have known especially for my son who absolutely adores his cats. I had to take Alfie the following day to a specialist animal hospital to undergo further tests and potential surgery. His jaw is completely mis aligned, he can't close his mouth or eat and will need to have a feeding tube inserted to give him nutrition. Alfie has a possible broken jaw, concussion, bruising and the extent of which we don't yet know fully. To know exactly what we are dealing with, Alfie needs a CT scan, x-ray, and imaging and then probably surgery. They feel it is all fixable and he will be able to carry on with a happy life, but we won’t know for sure until he has the CT scan under a general anaesthetic, which on its own holds a risk.

Alfie is an incredibly loved family member, he is affectionate, hilarious, great fun and has brought out the kitten in Ruby, who misses him so much she is sleeping in his bed.

My son has cried every day since I broke the devastating news to him, when I told him that Alfie had been hurt, he burst into tears and sobbed for hours.

The devastating thing is we don't have insurance for him, and the treatment is likely to cost up to £5000 - I work full time in the Arts and care for my son without any financial or emotional support from my son's father. To allow me to complete this treatment for our Alfie, I am reaching out for some fundraising to help me with some of the costs. I am aiming to raise £2000 towards the total figure as I just cannot contemplate the alternative. My family are helping a little bit and I am willing to make lifestyle changes to give me some spare cash each month. I simply cannot afford this but I can't even consider or see any other option and for that to be because of money is heart breaking for us and we really, really need some help with this as soon as possible.

It would heal my son and I if we could raise something towards these costs - so we can look after Alfie and give him the life he deserves. If any of you are animal lovers and have lost a pet to any illness or traumatic injury, I am reaching out to you - please help us to help Alfie recover.

Thank you so much for reading this, both me and my son would be beyond grateful for any support that you can give.

V&J x