Edit: Hi everyone, It breaks my heart to write this, but I want to be fully transparent. Lana has unfortunately passed away. If anyone still feels moved to donate to help alleviate the medical bills I accumulated during her emergency care, it would be greatly appreciated, but please do not feel obligated to donate or share. To those who already did share and donate, thank you so much. It means the world to me. 

I completely understand and just wanted to be honest and transparent about what happened. 

I was able to take Lana to urgent care last night after finally getting enough funds together, and I had to make the toughest decision of my life. I had to put her down. There were too many complications with her liver, kidneys, colon, and ongoing seizures, and the vet explained that her chances of recovery and survival were very minimal even if we started a full care plan. 

I’m completely heartbroken and devastated. 

Below is the original post explaining what happened and the medical situation leading up to this decision.

Original Post: Help Lana Get Medical Care

Hi everyone,

I never thought I’d be making a GoFundMe, but my 12-year-old cat Lana is going through a medical emergency, and I need help getting her the care she needs.

Lana has been my best friend since she was a baby, standing by me through some of the hardest times in my life. She’s truly family to me, and seeing her like this has been heartbreaking. I don’t have a big family to lean on. My parents have both passed away, so right now, Lana is all I have.

On Friday the 20th, she started acting unusually vocal and distant. By Sunday, she began running in circles and drooling. At first, I thought my boy cats were picking on her possibly causing neurological stress, but it became clear something was very wrong. I called my best friend crying, and she immediately came to help so we could rush Lana to the emergency vet.

The emergency visit cost about $1,500 for the exam, x-rays, and labs. They found that her stomach was extremely extended with a large amount of stool, causing dehydration and nausea. Some of her lab values were also elevated and may need further testing if she does not improve. The vet explained that follow-up treatments, fluids, enemas, g-tube, medications, and possible liver testing could cost up to $4,000.

I was only approved for a $2,000 CareCredit card, so we started with the most urgent treatments: an enema, fluids, and anti-nausea medication. Unfortunately, Lana began having seizures the next day. I even had to take time off work to monitor her, which I couldn’t really afford, but I couldn’t leave her alone.

Since then, I’ve been contacting multiple vets to find affordable care, none offer payment plans and require large upfront payments of $1,000 or more just to restart testing and go from there. I’m doing everything I can, but I’m also juggling major personal expenses, including needing dental work and a car repair. Right now, my priority is making sure Lana gets the care she needs.

She’s walking unsteadily and avoiding her usual furniture and cat tree, so I’m carefully watching her, encouraging her to eat and drink, and blending pumpkin puree with her food to help with constipation and to keep her hydrated while we wait and hope for improvement.

It really sucks that we live in a world where getting proper care for our pets or ourselves can mean going into debt. I hate asking for help, but Lana means everything to me, and I want to give her every chance possible. Any donation or share would mean so much and will go directly toward her vet care, treatments, and medications.

Every vet that I called to explain the situation told me that if she’s having seizures I need to take her in right away, but the catch is you need money to do that.

it’s hard feeling like I’m not being a good cat mom, but I know I’m doing everything I can for her right now.

Thank you for reading and for keeping Lana in your thoughts.

Summer & Lana