Hi! My name is Mike, and I'm fundraising for my cat, Milo.

Last Saturday (2/19), I came home to Milo yowling in pain, hissing, and moving sluggishly. At first, I thought he might have injured himself while I wasn't home, but I couldn't find anything wrong with him. I soon noticed that he was making several trips to the litterbox but not producing anything, and in between those trips, he was aggressively licking his privates. I googled his symptoms and found that he most likely suffered from a urethra blockage. Turns out, this is very common for male cats. It's also very common that they die from it within a few days if left untreated. I was surprised by this because he wasn't showing any signs or symptoms earlier on, and he's otherwise an incredibly healthy cat. My primary vet was closed since it was the weekend, but luckily there was a 24/7 emergency vet clinic about 15 minutes away that I rushed him over to.

I got him back a few days later on Tuesday. He was doing fine for the most part but still having some blockage issues. I decided to play it safe and bring him back to ensure everything was okay. I also took the vet's advice and got him a new litterbox with natural clay litter, a water fountain to encourage him to drink more, and the new cat food he was prescribed as well. Now that I have him back, he's been doing great so far and everything seems to be back to normal.

However, the treatment was more expensive than I anticipated. Milo only needed an unblocking procedure and not a surgery, which still came out to about $2000. I wanted to do everything I could within my financial limitations. I have a surgery of my own coming up in a few weeks; a Latarjet procedure for my left shoulder. My shoulder injury occurred last summer, and I had to quit my job because of it. Since then, my work-life has been pretty shaky. Despite my financial struggles, the last thing I needed right now was to lose my cat, and I'm very thankful that he's showing signs of improvement.

That said, any donation helps. Initially, I was planning to opt for a vet-specific crowdfunding service. However, I couldn't because I opened up a CareCredit loan for Milo's procedure, and vet-specific crowdfunds can only go towards actual vet bills, not loans. The fundraising goal is to pay off the loan for the bill, cover his food and supply costs, and pay for a follow-up visit at his primary vet.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post. Any donation amount is appreciated - I'm just happy my cat is alive.