Stevie was found abandoned by a good Samaritan when he was only a few weeks old. He was in very rough shape. He was severely underweight with bruises across his face and badly damaged eyes. It was pretty evident that he had been abused by a human and left for dead.

Stevie was brought in to one of the rescues I foster for (Homeward Bound Pets Humane Society in Mcminnville, Oregon), where our vet staff and shelter manager worked hard to save him and bring him back from the brink of death. Miraculously, they were able to save his life, but he ended up having to have both eyes removed since they were injured beyond repair.

Stevie spent a few months at the shelter while he recovered and then came to my home as a foster when he was about five months old. However, within one day in my care I knew that he was meant to be mine forever. So I adopted him and it was one of the best decisions of my life.

Today Stevie is a very happy and capable little guy who just loves life and every single person and animal he meets! He amazes me each and every day and can do anything a cat with eyes can do. He never lets his disability stand in the way of anything. He runs, jumps and plays with all of our foster kittens and is a major cuddle bug who just eats up all of the attention he can get! One of his favorite things to do is visit with residents at a local retirement home and make other appearances throughout town, bringing happiness and joy to everyone he meets. Just recently we were contacted by the Washington State School for the Blind in Vancouver, Washington and we will be visiting there in May at a big event for blind children across the country. We are working on a children's book about Stevie that is going to be translated to braille and we will read it with the children while they spend time with him. We are so excited about that! We have also been talking with someone about working with autistic children in our community and we hope to be able to visit with other children with disabilities and make trips to the children's hospital in Portland as well. Stevie is the perfect therapy cat and I can't wait to see what the future holds.

Last year Stevie got 4th place in the America's Favorite Pet contest (and 1st in Oregon) and had an article written about him in Caster Magazine! He has also been the subject of many articles in our local newspaper and become quite a local celebrity. But he also has many social media followers all over the world who love and adore him too!

All that being said, Stevie is currently in a situation where he needs your help. Unfortunately, he has had breathing issues and really bad chronic congestion ever since his eyes were removed. He sneezes out large amounts of snot constantly and I have to suction him out several times per day. I also have to give him breathing treatments from time to time when it gets really bad. The vet who removed his eyes said it was most likely because his tear ducts don't drain properly and the yucky stuff backs up into his sinuses. We are also pretty sure from seeing the very large bruise that he had across the bridge of his nose, that he took a boot or fist to the face which most likely broke it, severely narrowing his nasal passages and adding to his breathing difficulties.

Up until recently I thought this was just going to be the way his life would be forever. He has taken many, many medications and had just about every non-invasive treatment under the sun in order to try to help with his condition but nothing has worked so far. But just recently I brought him in to see our local vet, Companion Pet Clinic, just to see if they had any last ditch ideas on how to alleviate Stevie's breathing troubles, if only just a little. That's when the vet referred us to a specialist at DoveLewis Emergency and Specialty Hospital in Portland... something I had never even thought of. I, of course, was onboard with this idea and it kind of renewed my hope that there is something out there that could drastically improve Stevie's quality of life.

So on January 19th we had a consultation with an orthopedic surgeon at DoveLewis so she could evaluate Stevie and tell us if there was anything that could be done about his damaged nose to help him breathe better. She said surgery would most likely be needed but wanted us to get advanced imaging so they could get a better picture of what needed to be done. She also referred us to one of their internal medicine specialists to cover all of our bases before any further action was taken.

So a few weeks ago we saw the internal medicine specialist and she thoroughly evaluated Stevie, went over all of his medical records and, like orthopedic surgeon, advised us that specialized imaging would have to be done before they could proceed. She did want to get blood work done first though to make sure Stevie was well enough to be put under anesthesia so they could do the scans. The next day the results came back and showed that there was a slight increase in his white blood cells and a decrease in albumin (one of his blood proteins). She said the white blood cell increase could be secondary to the inflammation in his nose and the decrease in albumin could possibly indicate a loss of protein from the intestinal tract or kidneys or it could signal decreased production from the liver, etc. She advised us to do follow-up labs in two months to see how things looked but said she still felt comfortable putting him under anesthesia for the imaging.

Which brings us to the reason for this fundraiser...

If you have ever had to get specialized imaging and/or surgery for your pet, you know just how expensive those things can be. For Stevie, there are going to be a LOT of medical expenses as we navigate through all of the necessary steps to get him the care that he needs. Between the specialist consultations, blood work, CT scans, rhinoscopies and eventual surgery (or surgeries), I've been told all of these things will total well over $10,000. I am on a fixed income retirement and there is no way I can afford even close to that amount of money on top of all of my other expenses. I mean, could I just scrap it all and let Stevie live the rest of his life with these miserable health conditions? Yes. But after all he's been through, this sweet boy DESERVES to live the best life that he possibly can. As a veteran who struggles with PTSD, Stevie has been a lifesaver for me. He knows when I need him and just brings me so much love and comfort. He is my baby and I would do anything to make him feel better.

That's why I'm asking you all to help Stevie out and donate to his medical fund. No amount is too small and we would be so appreciative for your support. We will be keeping you all updated on this page so you can follow his journey every step of the way. As a token of our gratitude, we will also be offering free custom "pawtographed" pictures of Stevie for anyone who donates and wants one! So please help our sweet boy live his best life and share this page with all of your friends, families and followers. Thank you all so much!

You can follow Stevie's adventures on Instagram @stevieraythewondercat ❤️