Willing to do anything for treatment.

[Syne]

Synopsis:
We took our 11-month-old Ragdoll/Burmese kitty, Kessa, to the vet today because she has been throwing up yellow, mucous-like fluid for the past 24 hours. She drinks water, but can't keep it down very long. She's also very weak and lethargic.

To give a bit of financial background, my girlfriend and I are both recent College grads. I'm currently laid off and receiving unemployment, and she is working full-time. We live in Ontario, Canada.

At about 8:00pm this evening, concern took over and we drove her to an after-hours clinic and had her checked out. The clinic informed us prior to our arrival that the consultation fee is $98.00. After we fill out the initial paperwork and send her to the back room, the vet comes in and asks us if she can give Kessa a $15 sedative. We agreed. After a bit, she came back and informed us that our kitty would need an X-Ray, and that X-Ray would cost about $170.00.

At this point, I should say that my girlfriend and I are both very upset. Of course, the welfare of our cat comes first, and we'd never compromise that. But I'm absolutely disgusted that anyone would hold me hostage financially to that attachment. So while our meager pocketbooks are being bled dry, circumstances aside, I can't help but feel as if my emotional attachment to my pet is being exploited.

Back to Kessa.. Well, after the X-ray was done, the vet took us into a small room and showed the X-ray to us. It showed nothing too abormal, aside from a bit of gas, and a bit of intestinal bunching, which may or may not be cause for concern.

Moving on, at this point, she blurts out, "Next step is a Barium X-Ray." At this point, well aware of our financial situation, she informed us that it would be $300.00 to have this done. If the X-Ray showed a blockage, it could be up to $1,500.00 for exploratory surgery and removal.

At this point, I'm almost in a panic. All I can think of, is why they would dangle this carrot in front of us, when we're already looking at a large bill. Worst of all, we're $350 poorer without a diagnosis!

She also gave us the option of out-patient care. We can take our cat home to see if she improves overnight. If she worsens, we're to take her back to the hospital.

So, this is our situation. I'm been up all night. Our kitty has not improved and we love her very much. We don't have any more money to spend. However, we have no intention of sitting around watching our cat slowly die. Because I know surgery has a very good chance of saving her, I'm thinking of dropping her off at a clinic and hoping they'll do the right thing.

Even if she can't live with us, I want to give her the best chance at survival. She's only 11 months old and doesn't deserve this.

Now, I know vets are well-meaning, and in most cases aren't in charge of the clinics financial management. However, it occurs to me that there has to be a point where the pro bono welfare of any animal, has to outweigh the financial loss of performing a free or subsidized diagnosis.

As much as it upsets me to do this, I ask you, what other choice do I have? Have I explored other financial options? Please believe me, when I say these funds are not available to us now, or in the near future.

Any suggestions would be great. Thank you.

[Savas]

Well hopefully it is viral. It would be the cheaper option. This is why I push for people to carry pet insurance. It's relatively inexpensive and it's very helpful.
Let me know how it goes. It sounds like it isn't a surgical problem anymore which is good, but it is one of those "time will tell" situations.

[Syne]

Thanks for the reply.

Well, this morning she was up and about, but still not eating. She was, however, sociable and seemed a bit stronger, likely due to the sedative wearing off.

Our regular vet was open til' noon and they knew our situation the moment we called. We took her in, and they examined the X-Rays. They told me it was 50/50 between viral infection and intestinal blockage. They were also very sympathetic to our financial situation.

They gave us some viral medication, gave her 2 sub-dermal water balls, and a shot of pain meds and sent her home with us. If she doesn't show improvement by tomorrow (Sunday) we will take her back to the after-hours clinic for in-patient IV care.

We HOPE it's viral. She did have a fever and a sickly smell. She's still high from the ketamine, and she seems strong. So, send your prayers for Kessa.

Today's visit cost $89.00 and a day if IV care will cost another $200 if we decide to do it tomorrow.

We've yet to find a vet willing to help subsidize her care pro bono. We're hopeful if surgery is required.

[Savas]

Did they do any blood work at all? Did you get any results? Vets in emergency clinics often screw up from trying to do the right thing and take into consideration the wallet of the owners.

If you drop her off...I'm sorry but they'll just put her to sleep (I gather you know that).  I sympathize, this totally sucks. Some places will work out a payment schedule, but it has to be the normal hours clinic to do this (they should have mentioned this).

Let me know if they did any bloodwork or just assumed blockage...if you haven't already dealt with this.