I am raising funds to help pay for emergency veterinary expenses for my cat that was adopted 2 years ago. Not much is known about Stanley before he came to live with us. Oh, we know that Stanley is a handful and the previous people that tried to adopt him said nope, he had too much personality for them. It was the fastest adoption fail the rescue had ever seen.

We were determined that Stanley would always have a home with us. Fast-forward to two years later, we find ourselves with Stanley having a urinary tract blockage, which is very deadly in cats. If not treated immediately, Stanley would die a very painful death. This type of emergency is time-sensitive; if we had waited any longer, Stanley could have had a ruptured bladder, kidney damage, or liver damage. As I type this, he is currently at the emergency vet with a bill of approximately $4000. It is unknown if this is going to cost us anything extra, since we know that he'll have to be on a special diet if he survives the next 24 hours.

Stanley came to our family because our dog, Izzy, was really missing her feline companion, Duffy. Her last companion died of a sudden heart attack, and it broke her heart. For 2 years, Izzy would not look at another cat until she met Stanley, and it was love at first sight.

When we went to adopt him, someone else was in line ahead of us, and they took him home on a Saturday only to bring him back by Sunday—16 hours later. Stan was a tiny bit aggressive and used to bite. Over the last two years, he has learned how to be a sweet, loving boy (no more bites from him, only kisses).

He loves to give head boops and hops on our laps to give kisses. He chases Izzy’s toys because he likes to play ball too. He has stolen her dog bed and claimed it as his own. Being such a big boy, he loves to reach up and knock things off of counters, grab the doorknob, and close the doors in the apartment.

We know times are tough for many people this time of year. A lot of people can’t afford much. If you can afford even a tiny bit, that would be amazing. This last year has been really, really rough on our family as I had an accident in the spring, which resulted in needing to have knee surgery this last fall. I haven’t taken a regular paycheck for a very, very long time due to struggling with a small business during a recession. Money is beyond tight; there were no presents under our Christmas tree for my husband or myself, and this expense will make it impossible to pay bills over the next couple of months.

I hate asking for help, but we really need it. Thank you for your consideration as we try to save Stanley.