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- Hello, my name is Savannah. In October 2023, I found Nemo on my front porch in Collingswood. From chatting with neighbors, I was told that Nemo was abandoned by his owners when they made the decision to move. My parents wouldn't allow me to bring him indoors. So, I cared for him as much as I could on my porch. I would feed him, treat him for fleas, and brush him outdoors until I decided to move out into my own apartment to be able to take Nemo with me to become a fully indoor cat.
- Nemo presented as a generally healthy boy from his vet appointments, where I made sure he was healthy and up to date on any vaccines he needed. On May 12 2025 I noticed something just wasn't right. His eating, drinking, and bathroom use stopped completely. The next morning, I knew I had to take him to the hospital right away.
- Nemo had 1. Pyrexia (fever due to presumptive feline infectious peritonitis- FIP) severe leukocytosis ( severe elevated white blood cell count), hyperglobuinemia (elevated globulins, proteins made by the immune system), low albumin: globulin (A/G) ratio - rule out FIP, vs. Cancer, vs. Inflammitory disease (in this case it ended up being pancreatitis.
2. Cachexia (muscle loss) rule out age related vs FIP
3. Ultrasonographic changes- small intestinal wall changes, accessory spleen, cholecystic debris, and mild right sided adrenal gland enlargement.
After running blood panels, urinary cultures, ultrasounds, and xrays, Nemo spent 2 days in the ICU before we decided we needed to discharge him for financial reasons. We brought him home, but continued to administer all the hospital care that was being done for him at Mount Laurel Animal Hospital. Nemo's fever persisted for a week at home. This included 6 medications. One of them is a medication for FIP (feline infectious peritonitis) and providing fluids subcutaneously, which we are still doing.
At our recheck appt at the hospital, we ran additional blood tests to see if Nemo responded well to the FIP medication. FIP can be difficult to diagnose. When we got the results back, Nemo's doctor concluded that Nemo was responding very well, which suggested we should continue to treat FIP for 84 days total. This would completely treat his FIP.
- This treatment, along with his next recheck appointment with the hospital, is going to cost a minimum of $2,000. A cost I would ordinarily just pay right away. Unfortunately, at this point, I have already spent just over $7,000 USD saving Nemo. It is the best, (and only!) $7,000 I have ever spent. The additional $2,000 to finish his treatment, is just not within my reach anymore. I still have my own apartment, food, and other bills to pay. I have exhausted my options, and am heartbroken that I cannot push just a little more to ensure Nemo fully recovers. I am very uncomfortable asking for help, but I am dedicated to doing whatever I can to try to help Nemo complete his treatment. If you feel so inclined to help my big orange guy, thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
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