Molly's Breathing Treatments
Donation protected
MOLLY'S STORY:
My sweet cat Molly was recently diagnosed with a disease called chylothorax, which causes lymphatic fluid to drain around her lungs. This causes her to have trouble breathing. Because the surgeries and treatments required to fix it -- if they would even be successful -- are unfortunately out of the question due to cost, the vet has given her a life expectancy of up to a year and recommends that we drain the fluid from around her lungs periodically to ease the stress on her breathing.
MOLLY'S CHYLOTHORAX:
This disease, as stated earlier, causes lymphatic fluid to collect around her lungs, which makes it difficult for her to breathe. Healthy cats should breathe at a rate of about 20-30 breaths a minute (closer to 20 when they're resting). Molly varies, but she seems to average at about 30 breaths a minute when she's completely at rest. When she's not at rest, she's closer to 40 breaths a minute. If she has had her fluid drained recently, the numbers are a bit lower than that.
The vet isn't sure if her chylothorax is being caused by something like cancer or heart disease, and it would require an ultrasound to determine if either of those are the root of the problem. That procedure alone would cost approximately $500.
If she does have heart disease or cancer, the treatments for those won't be possible unless the chylothorax is fixed, but -- as stated earlier -- the surgery to repair her chylothorax is unfortunately out of the question due to the cost. So, the point of the ultrasound would simply be to understand her condition better so we can give her the best possible care for as long as we have her.
MOLLY'S TREATMENT COSTS:
Even though Molly is on a daily regimen to help control the build-up of fluid, it looks as if she will require a lung tap to drain her approximately every two weeks. This unfortunately means that her life expectancy might be shorter than a year; the vet had hoped to only have to do this once every month or two. The more often she has to have it, the more likely she will develop some sort of catastrophic lung infection.
That said, if Molly does live for up to another year, that means that the cost of her ultrasound (explained above) will be $500, and her monthly lung tap costs will average around $200. This comes to about $3000 of medical care for her life expectancy.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
Any amount of monetary support is greatly appreciated by me, her furrever mom. Molly came into my life in early 2015, and she has been with me through some of the toughest times in my life. I want to be there for her during hers and give her the best possible life she can have.
Sharing this campaign is also amazingly helpful. The more people that can see this sweet girl's story, the more chances we have of finding her the monetary support she needs to be comfortable for however long she has left.
ABOUT MOLLY:
She is the sweetest, friendliest, most loving cat you'll ever meet. Anyone that has met her says so! She can be a little skittish at first, but once she knows you're friendly, she will immediately come jump in your lap to purr and ask for pets. She snuggles with me nightly as I fall asleep, and she greets me at the door nearly every time I come home. She is a tiny little floof-ball of love.
WHEN WE NEED THE FUNDS:
It would be great to get about $500 pretty quickly so we can do the ultrasound. After that, we have a little more flexibility in raising the funds; $200 a month would be perfect.
However, if we somehow manage to raise more than the asking amount within a month or so (and Molly's ultrasound doesn't reveal some sort of disease that is too far-gone to cure), I will make a consultation appointment with the University of Georgia's vet hospital to see what the exact cost of the chylothorax repair surgery would be. It's been quoted at between $4400 and $6800.
In short, what we're able to do for Molly depends on a lot of factors -- what's causing the chylothorax (if anything), how much money we can raise, and what the exact cost of the repair surgery would be. But, at the very least, being able to drain the fluid off of her will make her more comfortable for as long as we're lucky to have her.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read Molly's story. Please send her and I good vibes and prayers as we go through this stage in her life. We will be sure to send updates periodically on Molly as we get them!
My sweet cat Molly was recently diagnosed with a disease called chylothorax, which causes lymphatic fluid to drain around her lungs. This causes her to have trouble breathing. Because the surgeries and treatments required to fix it -- if they would even be successful -- are unfortunately out of the question due to cost, the vet has given her a life expectancy of up to a year and recommends that we drain the fluid from around her lungs periodically to ease the stress on her breathing.
MOLLY'S CHYLOTHORAX:
This disease, as stated earlier, causes lymphatic fluid to collect around her lungs, which makes it difficult for her to breathe. Healthy cats should breathe at a rate of about 20-30 breaths a minute (closer to 20 when they're resting). Molly varies, but she seems to average at about 30 breaths a minute when she's completely at rest. When she's not at rest, she's closer to 40 breaths a minute. If she has had her fluid drained recently, the numbers are a bit lower than that.
The vet isn't sure if her chylothorax is being caused by something like cancer or heart disease, and it would require an ultrasound to determine if either of those are the root of the problem. That procedure alone would cost approximately $500.
If she does have heart disease or cancer, the treatments for those won't be possible unless the chylothorax is fixed, but -- as stated earlier -- the surgery to repair her chylothorax is unfortunately out of the question due to the cost. So, the point of the ultrasound would simply be to understand her condition better so we can give her the best possible care for as long as we have her.
MOLLY'S TREATMENT COSTS:
Even though Molly is on a daily regimen to help control the build-up of fluid, it looks as if she will require a lung tap to drain her approximately every two weeks. This unfortunately means that her life expectancy might be shorter than a year; the vet had hoped to only have to do this once every month or two. The more often she has to have it, the more likely she will develop some sort of catastrophic lung infection.
That said, if Molly does live for up to another year, that means that the cost of her ultrasound (explained above) will be $500, and her monthly lung tap costs will average around $200. This comes to about $3000 of medical care for her life expectancy.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
Any amount of monetary support is greatly appreciated by me, her furrever mom. Molly came into my life in early 2015, and she has been with me through some of the toughest times in my life. I want to be there for her during hers and give her the best possible life she can have.
Sharing this campaign is also amazingly helpful. The more people that can see this sweet girl's story, the more chances we have of finding her the monetary support she needs to be comfortable for however long she has left.
ABOUT MOLLY:
She is the sweetest, friendliest, most loving cat you'll ever meet. Anyone that has met her says so! She can be a little skittish at first, but once she knows you're friendly, she will immediately come jump in your lap to purr and ask for pets. She snuggles with me nightly as I fall asleep, and she greets me at the door nearly every time I come home. She is a tiny little floof-ball of love.
WHEN WE NEED THE FUNDS:
It would be great to get about $500 pretty quickly so we can do the ultrasound. After that, we have a little more flexibility in raising the funds; $200 a month would be perfect.
However, if we somehow manage to raise more than the asking amount within a month or so (and Molly's ultrasound doesn't reveal some sort of disease that is too far-gone to cure), I will make a consultation appointment with the University of Georgia's vet hospital to see what the exact cost of the chylothorax repair surgery would be. It's been quoted at between $4400 and $6800.
In short, what we're able to do for Molly depends on a lot of factors -- what's causing the chylothorax (if anything), how much money we can raise, and what the exact cost of the repair surgery would be. But, at the very least, being able to drain the fluid off of her will make her more comfortable for as long as we're lucky to have her.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read Molly's story. Please send her and I good vibes and prayers as we go through this stage in her life. We will be sure to send updates periodically on Molly as we get them!
Organizer
Alli Hogue
Organizer
Athens, GA
