Moonpie: A Recovery In Progress
Donation protected
This is Moonpie. He needs your help.
Moonpie’s Story So Far
On Tuesday, October 16th, an adorable and very tiny black and white tabby cat hitched the ride of his young life to downtown Pittsburgh from Moon Township via the engine well of a pick up truck. The driver, my colleague, found him and brought him into our office, where a line of potential but eventually impossible homes were immediately offered, and – due to his origins in Moon Township and his being a fuzzy ball of sugar between black ears and tail – he earned the name Moonpie. After determining the next day that Moonpie couldn’t stay with my colleagues due to cat allergies and other obstacles, he rode the trolley home with me in a banker’s box.
Well, not straight home – straight to my car and to our local emergency veterinarian.
During the wait in the exam room, I noticed that Moonpie was limping a bit, avoiding putting weight on his right back paw. Perhaps more concerning, he also didn’t seem to be in control of his bowels. But he relaxed very quickly, and seemed happy to have company and a safe place to be.
The veterinarian ordered an X-ray, an FeLV/FIV test, and sent a fecal sample out for testing. The FeLV/FIV test was negative, but the X-ray showed a spiral fracture in his back right tibia. The vet’s recommendation was that I take Moonpie to the local specialty emergency clinic right away. The office exchanged our banker’s box for a donated cat carrier and gave us a medication for intestinal parasites, and off we went to the second emergency vet of the evening.
The wait to see a veterinarian in the specialty clinic ended up being a grueling 5 hours, but during that time, Moonpie and I bonded (mostly over how adorable he is, because clearly in that moment, I was not).
The second veterinarian concurred with the spiral tibia fracture, and was also concerned that there might be nerve damage causing the loss of bowel control. She did a pinch test on the kitten’s back, pinching the skin hard up and down the back on both sides of the spine. Moonpie didn’t flinch or make a sound. We were given three options: (1) let him stay overnight at the specialty clinic so he could see both a surgeon and a neurologist the next day, at an estimated cost of $1,500 to $2,000, (2) apply a half splint to the fractured leg and take him home, hoping the fracture would begin to heal properly and making a surgery and neurology consultation appointment later, or (3) take the kitten home with no splint and surrender him to a shelter, where his fate would be out of my hands.
I took the second option, and so far it seems to have worked out. We arrived home in the wee hours of Thursday morning with a half splint, kitty-morphine, and lots of worries about the future.
Since then, Moonpie has seen a surgeon at the specialty clinic, and we have been told that the fracture is healing well. He now has a full splint, and will need to have it replaced in two weeks, and two weeks after that they hope it will be fully healed. His bowel issues seem to have abated, lending hope that they were caused by now-resolved parasites and not any nerve damage. He has an appointment next week with the neurologist to attempt to confirm this hypothesis, and we will be following up with our local clinic regarding his vaccinations and ongoing kitten health.
About Us
Liz and Eric are already proudly owned by Calvin the Ginger Cat, and formerly Lego the Beagle. Lego passed away in April of this year, and while his loss was very difficult for all of us, we are ready to share our home and our hearts with a new furry friend. We weren’t looking for another addition to our loving family so soon, but having met Moonpie we now hope he’ll be with us forever.
The Cost So Far
The fee for the first trip to the vet where the X-rays, FeLV/FIV test, and fecal sample test for parasites (which came back positive for round worms) were done was $458.08.
The fee for the emergency specialty vet that same night where the half splint was applied was $200.19.
The fee for a follow up surgery consultation, where the half splint was replaced with a full splint and a recovery plan was laid out for the tibia fracture, was $383.00.
Our current total investment in Moonpie’s health is $1,041.27.
We expect the two follow up visits with the surgeon for his fracture to be around $250 each, and the neurology appointment to be about $300, so we’re estimating an additional $800 on top of what we’ve already spent, though that amount could easily go up if these upcoming visits don’t go as we expect.
Moonpie is an exceptional kitten and we feel lucky that he found us, but we weren’t prepared for such a large expenditure this year. If you can and are willing, all three of us would be so grateful for your help in covering his care through this recovery. Expect lots of updates on his progress and cuteness.
Moonpie’s Story So Far
On Tuesday, October 16th, an adorable and very tiny black and white tabby cat hitched the ride of his young life to downtown Pittsburgh from Moon Township via the engine well of a pick up truck. The driver, my colleague, found him and brought him into our office, where a line of potential but eventually impossible homes were immediately offered, and – due to his origins in Moon Township and his being a fuzzy ball of sugar between black ears and tail – he earned the name Moonpie. After determining the next day that Moonpie couldn’t stay with my colleagues due to cat allergies and other obstacles, he rode the trolley home with me in a banker’s box.
Well, not straight home – straight to my car and to our local emergency veterinarian.
During the wait in the exam room, I noticed that Moonpie was limping a bit, avoiding putting weight on his right back paw. Perhaps more concerning, he also didn’t seem to be in control of his bowels. But he relaxed very quickly, and seemed happy to have company and a safe place to be.
The veterinarian ordered an X-ray, an FeLV/FIV test, and sent a fecal sample out for testing. The FeLV/FIV test was negative, but the X-ray showed a spiral fracture in his back right tibia. The vet’s recommendation was that I take Moonpie to the local specialty emergency clinic right away. The office exchanged our banker’s box for a donated cat carrier and gave us a medication for intestinal parasites, and off we went to the second emergency vet of the evening.
The wait to see a veterinarian in the specialty clinic ended up being a grueling 5 hours, but during that time, Moonpie and I bonded (mostly over how adorable he is, because clearly in that moment, I was not).
The second veterinarian concurred with the spiral tibia fracture, and was also concerned that there might be nerve damage causing the loss of bowel control. She did a pinch test on the kitten’s back, pinching the skin hard up and down the back on both sides of the spine. Moonpie didn’t flinch or make a sound. We were given three options: (1) let him stay overnight at the specialty clinic so he could see both a surgeon and a neurologist the next day, at an estimated cost of $1,500 to $2,000, (2) apply a half splint to the fractured leg and take him home, hoping the fracture would begin to heal properly and making a surgery and neurology consultation appointment later, or (3) take the kitten home with no splint and surrender him to a shelter, where his fate would be out of my hands.
I took the second option, and so far it seems to have worked out. We arrived home in the wee hours of Thursday morning with a half splint, kitty-morphine, and lots of worries about the future.
Since then, Moonpie has seen a surgeon at the specialty clinic, and we have been told that the fracture is healing well. He now has a full splint, and will need to have it replaced in two weeks, and two weeks after that they hope it will be fully healed. His bowel issues seem to have abated, lending hope that they were caused by now-resolved parasites and not any nerve damage. He has an appointment next week with the neurologist to attempt to confirm this hypothesis, and we will be following up with our local clinic regarding his vaccinations and ongoing kitten health.
About Us
Liz and Eric are already proudly owned by Calvin the Ginger Cat, and formerly Lego the Beagle. Lego passed away in April of this year, and while his loss was very difficult for all of us, we are ready to share our home and our hearts with a new furry friend. We weren’t looking for another addition to our loving family so soon, but having met Moonpie we now hope he’ll be with us forever.
The Cost So Far
The fee for the first trip to the vet where the X-rays, FeLV/FIV test, and fecal sample test for parasites (which came back positive for round worms) were done was $458.08.
The fee for the emergency specialty vet that same night where the half splint was applied was $200.19.
The fee for a follow up surgery consultation, where the half splint was replaced with a full splint and a recovery plan was laid out for the tibia fracture, was $383.00.
Our current total investment in Moonpie’s health is $1,041.27.
We expect the two follow up visits with the surgeon for his fracture to be around $250 each, and the neurology appointment to be about $300, so we’re estimating an additional $800 on top of what we’ve already spent, though that amount could easily go up if these upcoming visits don’t go as we expect.
Moonpie is an exceptional kitten and we feel lucky that he found us, but we weren’t prepared for such a large expenditure this year. If you can and are willing, all three of us would be so grateful for your help in covering his care through this recovery. Expect lots of updates on his progress and cuteness.
Organizer
Elizabeth Roberts
Organizer
Pittsburgh, PA