Saying Goodbye to Melee and Jade

Hi, my name is Josh, and this fundraiser is all about two of my cats: Melee and Jade.

Tragedy has befallen my little family as of late, as both cats have now passed away. Melee first got sick about a month ago. I had to take her to the ER, as there were no vet appointments available for a month. She was kept overnight, rehydrated, given an enema, and had her bloodwork sent out for further tests, including electrophoresis. The theory was cancer, but we wanted to make sure.

Unfortunately, the tests came back inconclusive, so I had to put her on steroids...which she absolutely didn't want to take. I actually had to take her back to the ER later that same week, as she wasn't taking the meds, and she didn't seem to be getting any better. They gave her some more fluids and sent her back home with me. After this, she did start to get better; she was playing again, snuggling like only she could, and taking the new liquid steroids, even though she still hated them.

Three weeks went by, and her symptoms came back. She couldn't stand up for very long, she was stumbling when she walked...I feared the worst. I took her to the ER for a third time at this point, where she was again admitted overnight, given fluids, and an enema. When I brought her back home the next day, I told the vet of my fears, that she would have to be brought back in every three weeks, something I could not afford. He said he wanted me to follow up with them later this week on her conditions, and he wanted to see her again the following week. At that point, we would discuss chemo.

Unfortunately, she didn't make it to that appointment. The following Sunday she was acting even worse than before. Something had happened to her overnight, so I called the ER. The vet wasn't in, but he got my message and called me back. Based on her symptoms, he believed that she had had a stroke, and believed that the humane thing to do was to put her down. I brought her in that evening, accompanied by my fiancée, and I held Melee in my arms as she left this world. She was only 10.

All that week, my other two cats were acting off. It was clear that they missed their sister. Jade, the oldest cat, had started acting as though she had simply given up on life at that point. She was 19.5, so moving slowly was to be expected, but I feared that the loss of Melee had been the final straw for her. I had previously set up a vet visit for this week, so that we could do a quality of life check, but she didn't make it to that visit. She passed away overnight this past Saturday, quietly in her sleep.

Nothing is going to change the fact that I lost two members of my little family in less than a week, but what I'm asking for today is help in the financial aspect that their passings/treatments have brought on. Between 4 total ER visits for Melee and 1 for Jade, I have accumulated just over $8000 in vet bills that are now on my credit card, or on my fiancée's credit card. Roughly:

$4500 for the first visit (overnight stay, meds, services, and tests)

$500 for the second visit (fluids and medicine)

$1500 for the third visit (overnight stay, meds, and services)

$750 for the fourth visit (putting Melee to sleep and cremation)

$450 for Jade's visit (cremation)

I'm not expecting to get all of that paid off through this fundraiser, I'm simply hoping that a bit of relief can be found.

If possible, please help myself, my fiancée, and my cat Dagger recover a bit from this earthshaking loss. Any bit is appreciated and will be received with love.

Thank you,

Josh