Surgery Costs for Smee

I'd like to introduce Smee, a medium coat black cat with both chocolate and silver tones who is wonderful. I love him. He's about the age to be called Mr. Smee as he just turned two years old on April 21 but he's not quite grown yet. He's still a baby to me. His name also is his description, if you go by author L.M. Montgomery's use of the word which was to mean "sleek and glossy and soft and fluffy all in one and something else besides that I can't express". And he is so soft. That belly is my weakness as he knows it, and he enjoys me petting there. His nicknames include Sméagol/Gollum, Fluff-Butt, My Baby, Jealous Brat, and well, a few playful expletives I won't type out. His behavior is a bit odd to many people with a flair for melodrama. I am heavily dependant on his company. I have not been able to acquire a service dog, and that will not be happening anytime soon. I rely on him for comfort and companionship, and honestly, I have been a mess these past few weeks with his condition and the uncertainty it brings. I moved here solely in my efforts to keep him, and he's had a respiratory infection, and now the current issues, I've struggled to get his vet bills covered. Now the problem is great, he's in pain. I noticed he was thinning a bit, and his hips seemed to have some muscle atrophy. He wasn't jumping on things and instead would even drag himself up from clawing, my lap learned that one. There was also less playtime and much more cling, he was uncomfortable and I was so worried. I still am. Xrays were performed and it was revealed he is suffering from Legg-Perthes disease in both hips with the right is the worst. We even waited a couple of weeks with some careful restrictions and redid the Xrays. It is the same, this will not improve on its own and in fact will continue to degrade. His condition is caused by avascular necrosis of the femoral head, sometimes caused by injury or trauma but in his case, it is likely congenital. That bit they won't know more on until they do the surgery. This is an uncommon condition overall. This means he will require 2 surgeries, with healing between as his other hip is also in rough shape. FHO (femoral head osteotomy) is a procedure in which they remove the “ball” part of the ball-and-socket that makes up the hip joint. The resulting scar tissue and muscles make it where the hip still functions although it may be a diminished capacity, without the pain. This is the last resort and only solution, it is not the same as a hip replacement, as there's no artificial joint added in. There is 2 surgeries necessary, and the first is estimated up to 1500$. $3000 is the highest end of both surgeries, but they won't know the extent of what they have to do until they get into surgery. I know normally this would be a lot to ask of others, and especially with all the things going on in the world currently. In 2018 I had to put down my elderly cats within a short time of each other, Finn (12, kidney failure) and Jake (14, severe complications involving dementia). I took this very hard, and with other stresses, I didn't attempt to look for another cat. My now ex-boyfriend at the time had a dog, and his cat, so I wasn't entirely alone either. I had a terrible anxiety-inducing barrage of appointments and after visiting my disability advocate I stopped by the SPCA just to visit the animals and try to calm down. This was a few months after the boys - the last being put down in April that year and this was now August, and I wasn't feeling as raw. I went through and visited all the dogs first (I use to keep an eye out for service dog prospects) and then came to a room of all black kittens. I have an affinity for black or tuxedo cats typically. So I went in to visit kittens, still kinda having considerable issues controlling my emotions. I petted a kitten in a bed near the bench, so soft I thought and then sat down to play with the other kittens. This little boy, he just couldn't stand it and went to lay in my lap and knock away the toy as he did not want to share attention. I had a hard time leaving him and he seemed very affectionate. Cue over a week of wanting this kitten and kind of being mocked because "he sees dozens of people all the time, he doesn't remember nor care about you, it's just a cat". There would be no help to get him. Then there was a half-price day, and I happened to have limited funds from a commission I did. I haven't worked in an official capacity since 2011 and I'll detail that more later. So up I went, first ones into the black kitten room and soon as I opened the door I went "My baby!" and behold, the kitten formerly marked as Midnight meowed, hopped up and ran right to be scooped up. After a rather smug "HA!" I made my ex hold him and went to fill out paperwork immediately. He has been my clingy dear ever since. In October of last year, I made the difficult actions to leave that relationship and move. I don't quite want to get into many details on that at all, but I will say it became a very toxic and strenuous environment and my mental health suffered greatly. Smee gave me some added strength to do that. I am currently living with a very kind couple of friends who among others have shown patience and support of which I am grateful. I am still trying for disability income, but I do not work aside from occasional art commissions. I suffer from C-PTSD, severe chronic depression, generalized anxiety disorder, severe social phobia, and I am on the autism spectrum with it limiting my ability to function properly. There may be evidence of that last bit in how I'm typing this all out. He is very important to me and I don't have much. I have many stories of his cuteness or strange things he has done that I'll break up and share as updates. I had been doing little doodles of him like a comic, but it's unreliable at best. If I can work on them I will share them as well. I am anxious, downright scared about making this fundraiser, but I am trying to be optimistic. I need help, if you're able and willing, I would greatly appreciate your assistance.  All funds will go towards Smee's medical care and any supplies he may need. Thank you for your time. #smeeyow