Support Django's Fight Against Heart Failure

On February 28th, I woke up to Django breathing very rapid and shallow and I called my vet. They told me to take him to the ER immediately.

Upon entering the ER, a team of medical professionals all leapt up from their seats, swarming Django and calling out words and phrases you see on television shows. I had no idea it would be so serious.

After running X-rays and keeping him held in an oxygen tank for his breathing, I was pulled aside and told that he had congestive heart failure. One side of his heart was enlarged which was a sure sign of heart disease. I was then given 3 options.

One, I could pay the thousands I would need to keep him in the ER overnight to regulate his breathing, get him on medication to clear all the excess fluid that had built up in and around his lungs due to his heart failing, and then pay even more to schedule an appointment with a cardiologist to prescribe him the specific medication he would need to save him. Insurance was out of the question since he already had a preexisting condition. However, since he is not too old and is incredibly healthy despite his heart, I was told he could have years more left of his life. I just had to be able to afford to give it to him.

Two, I could save the thousands of dollars and take him home with me, where he would struggle to breath, a feeling they described to me as the same feeling as drowning. He would be in pain, he would be miserable, and he would be dying. They told me he would live 6 more months, tops.

Three, I could put him down. Right then and there, I could say goodbye to the sweet little stray kitten I found in the woods at a friend's house 10 years ago. The little kitten who came right up to me out of the dark trees, jumped on my lap, and snuggled with me all night by a campfire. My friends said they had been feeding him for weeks and he would never come close to them. But there he was, right on my lap, so tiny and so trusting of me.

It came down to having money or having my cat. I chose Django.

Unfortunately, the bills exceeded what I could even imagine. I had no time to save up money, because the longer I waited to take him to a heart doctor, the shorter his life would be. To save Django, who the doctor said had extremely healthy organs despite his heart and has a very good chance of living a much longer and happier life with his new heart medications, I had to spend money I do not have, all within a span of 5 days. They would not allow any sort of payment plan, and I was denied the CareCredit card because my credit score was too low. I explored every option I could, continuously getting denied, which is why I am here now.

The amount I have requested covers all of his ER bills, his X-rays, his catheters, his ultrasounds, his in-patient medications, his echocardiogram, his radiograph, and all the other treatments he was given to save his life. I can handle the cost of the multiple medications he will be on for the rest of his life. I just cannot afford the path I had to take to ultimately save him.

I know this is a big sum, and if you know me then you know I hate that I have to ask for help, or admit I can't take care of something on my own. But also if you know me, you know how much I love my cats. I have had Leeloo for 13 years and this summer I will have had Django for 11. They have been with me through it all, and with the last couple years I've had, I can't handle losing one of them. Especially this soon.

Every dollar goes such a long way and I thank you, you who is reading this right now, for even just taking the time to listen.

Django was named after a survivor. HE WILL SURVIVE!