Socrates Liver Shunt Surgery

My name is Kit and this is a fundraiser for my 2 year old cat Socrates. Socrates is a foster "fail" that I have taken care of since he was 2 months old.

Socrates has already gone through a host of medical issues in his life when he was with the foster agency, and caring for him inspired me to switch careers into veterinary medicine. He is my sidekick at the veterinary hospital I work at as a VA.

For the past year, it has been impossible to go more than a month without him coming in to work with me for some reason or another. He has had seizures, chronic constipation, and general neurologic issues. He often is too weak to move or even play. This is all pretty abormal for a 2 year old kitten.

Thankfully my work allows me to do a large volume of diagnostics for free, so we were able to keep constant tabs on him and treat things as they arose. Socrates is also a dream cat at the vet, as he is VERY easygoing. He frequently gets marks on his chart that say "unable to hear heart due to purring"

Thankfully we have found the cause of all his current medical issues. Socrates has been diagnosed with a liver shunt. This is a congenital disorder that causes some blood to bypass the liver and not be filtered, which causes a buildup of toxins in his bloodstream that bring seizures, general neurological slowness and other issues. He has good weeks and bad weeks, and is currently being medically managed with about 7 different prescriptions. He is doing okay but the prognosis for his life is not great if this is left unfixed.

This is where fundraising comes in. Socrates CAN live a nearly normal life with surgical correction of his shunt. This would be an operation to close off the blood vessel that is bypassing his liver. Unfortunately, it is a very delicate and special procedure, and only a licensed veterinary surgeon can perform it. We have been quoted $11,290 to $15,186 for them to perform this lifesaving operation.

I plan to meet with the surgeon and see if the cost can be brought down any further with me doing pre-surgical diagnostics and some other treatments at the clinic I work at, and to find out if some of the other items like a CT scan are required. No matter what though, this will be an expensive procedure.

If we cannot meet the goal I plan to use the funds raised to cover whatever medical costs Socrates needs, like medications and supportive care through the rest of his life. We really appreciate you reading through this and hope you can help us meet a goal to save Socrates' life and help him live life the way a normal 2 year old cat should.