I am an independent cat rescuer based in South Brooklyn, raising money for the medical needs of recently rescued Simon. He is struggling with gastro-intestinal issues causing him to struggle to defecate. Over 2 vet visits in the last 3 days, I am looking at bills totalling ~$2,400 so far.

I met Simon in 2023 in Dyker Heights, when he was an indoor pet whose owner I helped with getting him neutered, chipped and vaccinated. What happened in the years since is unknown; in August 2026, he was found by a rescue group (Victory to the Voiceless) at a fixed colony in Staten Island. When his chip was scanned at the vet after rescue, it had not been registered by the owner and thus mapped back to myself and Bronx Community Cats. I quickly took him in and am very grateful he was found and that V4V had him checked out at the vet!

Simon appeared fine other than an old injury on his tail, until late last week when I noticed he was straining to produce stool. He also lost his appetitite and vomited up what food he was getting down. We ran to Blue Pearl Friday evening around 5pm, after he had not produced feces in about 48 hours.

Upon evaluation and an x-ray, it was found he had a very significant amount of fecal matter stuck in his colon. We elected to proceed with enemas to see what could be removed. The break near the base of his tail was also clearly identified in the x-ray.

While the doctor's were caring for him, I received new information that he had had a previous caretaker on Staten Island a few blocks over from where the rescue picked him up, who had brought him to the vet for his gastro issues in July. He had been prescribed 3 meds at that time, 1 for stimulating the bowels and 2 for stool softening as well as prescription food. His tail had also been examined and was felt to be an old injury. The caretaker verified he had had the tail injury when she stared feeding him about a year ago.

This information was shared with his doctor's at Blue Pearl, and after 2 enemas I elected to do out-patient care with meds and a follow up appointment monday at our primary vet, Park Slope Veterinary Center.

By Monday, he was still not producing stool, so he did a half-day hospitalization with Park Slope for 2 more enemas, bloodwork, fluids and another x-ray. At this point his stool is soft, but he is not yet getting it out on his own.

He was without his meds and special food for at least a month, and we are still struggling to regulate his bathroom use. So far, very little is coming out as far as stool, and he likely will need additional care.

Any little donation towards this unexpected medical case would be so appreciated, I would like to be able to continue to get him whatever he needs.