Save Zot: Urgent Dental and Diabetic Care

Hello to all who may see this. This is incredibly urgent and I appreciate your support.

My name is Stephanie, and I am in desperate need of assistance in funding for the urgent care of my thirteen-year-old Norwegian Forest Cat mix.

A week ago my sweet boy grew a lump on his right cheek. We took him to the vet immediately. The vet informed us that his temperature was running a bit high at around the 102 range and he may have a potential abscess, but to confirm that, and to identify what the issue was being caused by they would need to sedate him and get a closer look as he was reasonably uncooperative due to pain and inflammation. The cost of the next step was too great to consider on the same day and I immediately went in search of resources and assistance in funding that as well. In the meantime, he was given painkillers and a precautionary antibiotic injection. Through the kindness of friends, strangers, and family I was able to raise enough money to have him further evaluated.

Two days before his sedated examination, Zot's skin began to fall off at the site of the inflammation and scabbed over causing him a lot of irritation and itchiness in the area. We did our best to monitor him and keep him from pawing at the wound.

The day before his sedated examination, the abscess on his face popped, which prompted us to go in for an additional examination late that day. After the examination, the Veterinarian confirmed the suspicion that it was indeed an abscess, and attempted to clean some of the wound and get a closer look but Zot (reasonably so) was once again, too uncooperative. We'd have to continue with the same plan to have it examined while sedated the following day as he does not do well on sedation, it was late, and they wanted to have more hours in the day to closely monitor him once he woke up. She also informed me that she wanted to do another glucose test as his last one in October was over 500mg/dL and while could have been a freak stress reaction, was probably more of an indicator of diabetes. I agreed to have the test done along with his sedated examination.

We took him in the following day where he got sedated, had his wound cleaned, and bloodwork done. He did really well under sedation this time, and they identified the cause of the abscess which is a toothroot abscess, and diagnosed him with diabetes when a reading of 300mg/dL came back on the glucose test. We discussed pricing to treat the abscess first, and due to its nature being dental-related and probably requiring one or more teeth to be extracted the price estimate I was given is very expensive. To get to this point it has cost me everything I have, in combination with almost everything I have been donated and I cannot afford the next step in his care. The estimate I was given was a minimum price of $600, to a maximum price of $2,300, not including the post-op treatment of antibiotics and painkillers.

This does not include his diabetic care which they also are recommending I start a week after I schedule his dental surgery. He will need bloodwork done once every week or every two weeks until they find the correct dose of insulin for his diabetes.

I am trying desperately to find resources and help as I do not want to lose my best friend who has grown up with me, and who has been there reliably for me when I've faced hardships and struggles. Anything helps and is so appreciated. As the situation stands, right now we are heading towards euthanasia. I am also searching as a last option to rehome him to someone who can love him just as much as I have and make the commitment I want to, to him.

Where are the funds going exactly?

The funds donated will go directly to Zot's dental surgery and post-op care. More specifically, the tooth or teeth extraction(s), abscess/wound care, post-op medications such as painkillers and antibiotics, potential x-rays, any care that may be necessary during the active procedure, and to begin his diabetes treatment afterwards. I do not have paperwork for his initial diabetic care as my vet feels that the main focus is the dental surgery. Below I've linked an imgur image with the evidence of the dental surgery estimates.

Treatment Plan and Cost Estimate

A little more about Zot

Zot was born in Portland, Oregon on June 14th, 2011.

He is a long-haired Norwegian Forest Cat mix.

My neighbor's cat had gotten pregnant and she was looking for loving homes for the kittens. The second I laid my eyes on Zot, I knew he was the one for me. His personality was so bubbly and goofy, impossible not to see. I spent everyday at my neighbor's house watching over him and helping in his care until he was old enough to come home with me.

He has always been such a wobbly little guy with a very obvious orange-cat personality. He has a slow reaction time, a lack of object permanence, and favoritism towards anyone who will give him scratches on his chin or bum. He has been with me through middle school, high school, my 3-week stay in the hospital, and a move. He has been bringing smiles to everyone around him since he was just a lil' guy. He has brought me emotional support in many ways, and imagining a life with him gone too soon does not feel real to me.

I've made so many phone calls looking for support, emailed so many resources in hopes to save him or find him a better life elsewhere, but he is running out of time. All help is welcome and appreciated and I will be forever grateful to all the help I've received thus far in treating Zot. I want to be able to continue to provide the best life I possibly can for him and I want him to have a chance at fighting this infection.