Hello all! Our name's are Mack and Lex, and we're trying to raise enough funds to be able to support our kitty of 5 years, Frankie.

On Saturday, April 25th, Frankie was playing around with his twin brother Ray-Ray and while I was on the phone I heard Frankie yell out. When I went to check on them, Ray-Ray ran off but Frankie just layed there and didn't move. That's when I also noticed his breathing was laboured, like he was struggling to. It was also extremely heavy. After I picked him up, he limped off and became lethargic the next day (not eating, not drinking, hiding, barely moving). It felt like we were holding our breath all day, waiting and praying for him to be okay.

On Monday, April 27th we were finally able to get him to the Vet. They took him back and he got his X-Rays done.

That's when the Vet told us that he suspected Frankie had a mass on or near his lungs. He proceeded to show us the x-rays and Frankie had only been able to breathe with about 30% of his actual lung capacity. The mass has been causing fluid to fill inside his lungs, compressing them.

The vet told Lex and I that Frankie needed to be taken to the emergency vet immediately to be placed in an oxygen cage and to have some of the fluid drained. He also needed to get an ultrasound.

So we started to Hawthorne Emergency vet (They were FANTASTIC, very helpful and honest. We really needed and appreciated that). On the car ride there, I sat in the back with Frankie and he was extremely lethargic by this point. He was barely responding to me, his mouth was open as he was trying to catch his breath, he eyes were glazed over. My heart was breaking every second that passed as I now knew the pain he was in. I held his paw the whole way and talked to him to keep him awake and calm. We just desperately wanted to save our baby.

When we got to the vet they immediately took him back to the oxygen cages and sedated him so he could finally rest. The next day, after a trip to the radiologist, blood tests, an ultra sound and draining, we were going to get to be able to bring Frankie home.

The Vet confirmed that he had a mass near his lungs and it is continuously filling with fluid. Even after the oxygen cages, and after the draining. It was all coming right back. She did did not know if the mass was cancerous or not, seeing as Frankie is only about 5-6 years old which she says is pretty young for cancer in cats. There were no cancer cells in his bloodstream, which could also mean it's in early development. But chances are it's either cancer, or fungal. Frankie and Ray-Ray are mostly indoor cats though, they rarely go outside.

She said he could be transported across the river to Manchester, Missouri for a CT scan and to confirm if the mass he's dealing with is cancerous or not. However between the price of Frankie's first visit to the vet, then to the emergency vet it was already over $2000. The CT Scan by itself would be another $2,000-$3,000, and that doesn't even include the surgery itself to get it removed.

She prescribed him Prednisolone to take until we could get him back for another X-Ray to see how it works.

After using the prednisolone for about a week, Frankie was feeling a lot more like himself again. He was eating more, drinking water, perking up and mobile. He even wanted to come sit outside with us! It was a dream come true, and prayers had been answered but we knew the fight wasn't over. His breathing was still irregular and he wasn't fully back to himself. He had lost a lot of weight to where we can feel his spine.

We came back for x-rays which confirmed the fluid was still coming back. She then told us that basically if we weren't able to afford treatment, it was keeping him on Prednisolone for the rest of his life as he's comfortable, or euthanasia. She said she didn't know if it would last him a month, or less. It's hard to know. It could be longer.

Luckily my friend was able to tell me about Care Credit which I was able to get to be able to afford the vet bill the first time around.

Lex and I currently live with family so we can save money to live on our own comfortably after struggling living on our own for 4-5 years in a different state. that only had a minimum wage of $7.25. Frankie and Ray-Ray found us in 2021, in the midst of struggling, living in a slum apartment, and after my kitty, Mollie (of 16 years) had passed away that same summer. One of the greatest heartbreaks I had ever known.

My grandma told me that summer before I left for college, if a stray kitty follows us to take it home, because that's a sign that my old kitty Mollie sent for us!

Low and behold, Lex and I find ourselves in a park in Paducah, Kentucky that same summer and there are two orange kitties, friendly to everyone that passed. After spending some time with them, we started to leave and behind, Frankie and Ray-Ray followed. Frankie wouldn't leave without Ray-Ray ( he kept checking behind to make sure Ray-Ray was following too haha ) and we knew we had to take them both. Our spirit babies. And they looked just like Mollie! We don't know what we would do without them, truly, they are our family. Like our own kids.

We've been doing all that we can to care for Frankie and Ray-Ray in the meantime. Things are different... They are hard. The kitties have to be separated when we are gone so Frankie doesn't get too worked up to where he can't breathe. It's sad to have to monitor them, not allow them to play because they are so, so close. Bonded at the hip.

We genuinely don't have any other options, and we would move mountains for Frankie and Ray-Ray the best we could. I know times are extremely hard, and if you can't donate, please don't feel bad because we completely understand! Sharing this GoFundMe to help save and extend Frankie's life would mean the absolute world to us. We want to be able to get the CT Scan, any other tests he needs and the surgery to get the mass removed before it worsens or spreads. We need more time with Frankie, and hope that he wants more with us.

Thank you so so much for reading this far if you have, and thank you for donating to help save our Frankie.