Somebody Feed Phil

Somebody Feed Phil! It's a fun show, but Phillip the Cat also needs food! He just spent all my money just to stay alive, so here's his story:

Phillip was rescued after being abandoned by his owners outside in Tracy. He's FIV+ but has a pretty sweet personality and did not deserve the hard life he was living. Having found nowhere else to go, I agreed to take Phil on to help him find a better life in SF. Things were going according to plan until Phil suddenly collapsed from congestive heart failure. This surprised everybody, as Phillip is only about 2 years old. He also was seen by a veterinarian and given a clean bill of health two weeks prior to his heart failing. So Phillip had NO symptoms or any way for anybody to know he had heart disease before he collapsed. Phil was rushed to the ER and almost stopped breathing on the way there. His lungs had filled up with fluid because his heart couldn't pump it out. Somehow, after a weekend in the oxygen cage, Phillip made it home. That's no small feat! He beat considerable odds just to make it back home and used up one of his nine lives to survive heart failure! Unfortunately, that has shortened Phillip's life expectancy considerably.

Phillip was diagnosed with mitral valve disease. His heart valve is not doing a good job at pumping. This kind of heart disease is not as common in cats (more common in dogs) and could have been caused by numerous reasons. It could have been a birth defect, perhaps a damaging illness as a kitten, or maybe his FIV. We do know that his lifespan is most likely shortened after an episode of heart failure. Phillip is now looking at a life expectancy of 6-18 months. There is a very small likelihood that he could live beyond 18 months, but there is also a chance he could live only 3 months. A heart condition like his is fairly unpredictable. In the meantime, Phillip has become a permanent resident in my home, and I will do my best to extend his life. Knowing this, all funds raised will be used to cover his existing and future medical bills. We will not be pursuing further diagnosis or specialty care at this time because of the nature of his condition, and cardiologist appointments are also booked out for 4-6 months. There is not much they can do to help at the moment, and Phillip is very stable. (The need for a cardiologist may change if Phillip lives beyond 12 months.)

Phillip is currently feeling better than ever, but he's left me with an unexpected bill over $3400, not including his follow-up visits and another $200 worth of medications to help keep him alive. I'm also doing my best to keep his sodium intake low, so a diet change has been implemented.

If Phillip survives the next 6 months, we will need new chest x-rays to get an updated view of his heart and see how he is doing then.

His bills are as follows.

$3422.89 for 36 hours at the ER:

$110.56 at the regular vet for cardiac follow-up:

and $218.39 at the pharmacy. This was AFTER a discount! Fortunately, this is about 100-days worth of medication for Phillip. Just wow, look at the price of that pimobendan!

He's receiving pimobendan to help his heart work, clopidigrel to prevent blood clots, furosemide (diuretic) to prevent fluid build-up, and a small amount of gabapentin because he is a very overstimulated guy.

Phillip is a very good sport about taking his many medications every day, twice a day. He's a voracious eater, and it's one of his favorite things to do. He also gives fantastic hugs. I keep an app to track his respiratory rate and keep a close eye on his breathing daily. His respiratory rate is completely normal right now! A great accomplishment for someone who experienced heart failure.

I am still paying off the last kitty chaos emergency, and I've taken on several other special-needs cases this year already. We saved Phillip's life, but now I have to pay for it! So, thank YOU for helping me with Phillip's unexpected bills. Cheers to Phillip and the next few months!