Emergency Care Expenses for Butts the Cat

Hello friends! Catmom Kristen here - thank you for any and all well wishes for my sweet furchild Butts (his legal name) who has been through a pretty rough week.

Most people who know me, or who have seen one of my Twitch streams, or have seen pretty much any of my online content in its various forms, know and have experienced the deep love I have for my sweet boy. Many of you have seen him in action, whether he's causing trouble in the background or trying to cuddle during a livestream. He's my familiar, our mascot, my best friend, and my first priority.

Which is why when he got very sick this past week, there was no question that I was going to do everything in my power to get him better again <3

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The Details

From May 11-14, Butts's condition was a mystery! Out of nowhere he stopped eating entirely, couldn't get enough water in his system, and couldn't keep anything down. We were back and forth with the vet daily, doing blood tests and exams and trying different foods and prescriptions. Unfortunately nothing was working, and his condition deteriorated to the point where he could no longer jump, walk, meow (y'all know how talkative he is), or ultimately do anything other than sleep in a dark closet. While we were streaming live, he got physically ill and we shut everything down immediately so we could get further care (the VOD of this is available on Twitch with additional details on his sickness progression).

On May 15, things escalated quickly, and there was no choice but to bring Butts to the Emergency Room. He was bleeding where he shouldn't have, shaking, and much too weak to stand. The ER doctors noticed he was so severely dehydrated that even with IVs and supplements, he simply couldn't get back to a healthy level. I knew then that none of our at-home treatments, or any care I could give him myself, was going to be enough to save him, and taking him in was the best decision I could have made.

After even MORE tests - blood work, ultrasounds, etc - they discovered a blockage in his intestines, and determined he had to go into surgery SOON. Unfortunately, Butts ALSO has a heart murmur, and needed to undergo cardiology checks to even make sure they could give him the anesthesia for the procedure. If he couldn't pass these tests, truly I'm not sure what our solution would have been from there. By now it had been 6 days since he last ate anything.

Long story short, cardiology gave the okay, and the procedure didn't sound too complicated - BUT there were additional risks involved, and they had to take biopsies during surgery as well (the status of which is still pending). Thankfully Butts had a successful surgery, they removed a blockage that he simply couldn't pass on his own, and he entered a 30-hour recovery stage in hospice.

While there are still some things we're waiting to hear back about, Butts is now in a stable enough condition that he has come home after 4 days away, to continue recovery here at home. After a very intense and scary week, he is now starting to become more himself, and is finally interested in eating again! I'll be monitoring him over the next few weeks, but in the meantime, have yet another big fish to tackle:

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The Expenses

While I am BEYOND ecstatic that Butts is home and recovering, I know this would not have been possible if I hadn't brought him into ER. There was nothing I could do for him myself, other than watch him slowly and painfully pass away at home. When the hospital told me about cost estimates, I was absolutely floored - but there was no question to me whatsoever. The doctors could help him, and expected recovery was high, and I simply had to do it. The alternative simply wasn't an option. That said:

The total costs of EMERGENCY ONLY totaled out to $9,435.37 with the potential for more.

This includes his 4-day stay, multiple rounds of blood work, anesthesia/surgery, medication, cardiology, radiology, multi-day IVs and catheter, and take-home medications. For this GoFundMe goal, I'm not including previous vet visits or care pre-ER, and am rounding down. Originally I was quoted about $12k but this has since changed, and our goal reflects these final costs only.

So many of you have been so kind as to ask about donation options, and while I feel so embarrassed and reluctant to ask for anything at all, I have decided to start this page in the event that anyone would want to help out a little! As many of you know, I've only just started a new job after 5 months of unemployment, and was struggling financially even before this past week. While I am of course prepared to shoulder the majority of these costs one way or another, these bills are so incredibly daunting and a lot to take on on my own.

All donations received will go directly into paying these ER bills! But also please do not feel the need to donate, especially if it isn't within your means. Take care of yourselves out there <3

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Thank you for taking the time to read this, for any and all donations, and ultimately for being such a valuable presence in my life and our community. I am constantly humbled and touched by the kindness and generosity (not just monetarily!) of all of you in our little corner of the internet. The sheer amount of messages and support Butts and I have received in the past week has been such a comfort and I am truly lucky to share this space with all of you.

Thank you thank you thank you x