I am guilty but desperate

[hat_plays_sims]

I hate to do this, I really hate to do this when I've been so epically non-productive lately (I actually have so much stuff so close to done, it's like two thousand files, but it's not quite ready for prime time so to speak), but if there's any chance you've been considering making a donation... Well, okay, lemme cut this: it's vet bills, basically.

My cat, Harley, is thirteen years old. She's been MY cat since she was born (and, you know, the cat chooses the human, not the other way around). She's a Maine coon mix, so she's got some pretty epic hair.

Well, that pretty epic hair gathered into a pretty epic hairball. She tried to get it up and it clogged her esophagus for three days before we figured out what was wrong. She needed surgery to remove it, and she's currently being fed by gastric tube. By me, at home, because I am so scared to leave her at the vet just in case anything happens to her.

We're up to, like, seven thousand dollars in vet bills we can hardly afford, and that's if everything goes flawlessly from this point on very likely to increase, because I got a call from the vet saying the underlying cause of her drain-clogging hairballs is lymphoma. Cats respond to chemotherapy better than humans do, or so the vet tells me, but I have no idea how much kitty-chemo costs, or how long it will buy her.

UPDATE: Harley is basically recovered from surgery; her gastric tube comes out on Halloween, the same day as her first oncology appointment. She came through surgery like a champ and is now allowed and encouraged to eat and drink by mouth. She's only had one off day since her last vet's appointment, and really that was less a day than three hours around breakfast time. I'm equal parts terrified and hopeful, and I'm incredibly grateful to everyone who's donated so far. (I'm still on the laptop, far away from my in-progress files and my full game installation, but that's because somebody has to be Watched or she over-exerts her fool self.)

UPDATE AGAIN, 11-18: Harley has had two appointments with the oncologist now. She's got her stomach tube out, no more e-collar or surgical sweater-vest, and her shaved bits are starting to get downy again. Harley is on oral chemotherapy and steroids, and while she has a very healthy appetite, she's only managing to keep down kitten food. (Well, and sour cream and margarine, when she can get 'em. Anything with chunks comes back up.) We're working on switching from oral steroids to a transdermal cream, because Harley's having trouble keeping the steroids down (and they're too bitter to powder and sneak into her food). Her white cell count looks good, and her lymphoma is small-cell lymphoma, which is treatable. She'll probably be on medication for the rest of her life, and the chemo should buy her at least a year, maybe more if she responds well or manages to go into remission. Her emergency care (fluids, an overnight stay at the emergency vet, surgery, biopsy, pain meds, prescription food) totaled out at about $8,000, and her ongoing medications run around $100 a month. Donations have been amazing, close to $600, which is more than I ever hoped for. If you've donated, thank you, so much, I can't even describe how much I appreciate it. Harley has been My Kitty since she was born.

If you'd like to see pictures of Harley, here's one and here's another and here's a third:



That's mostly the end of my sob story, so I'm going to end the cut here. I'm going to be turning EVERYWHERE for help (including eBay) as soon as I'm not stuck home alone and tethered to my cat, but in the meantime...

If you can donate anything, anything at all, I'd be incredibly grateful. I have some Monster High dolls for sale if you'd rather get something physical for your money. I'm willing to swap Sims content for donations, too, but given that I won't be getting more than four and a half hours of sleep at a time for a while (and I can't be on my Simming computer while a post-surge cat gets in trouble any time I'm more than six inches away from her), please bear with me in terms of how long it takes to FILL those requests.

Even just good thoughts are appreciated. Harley's got some good years in her if she pulls through this; I'd like her to have as many of them as possible. (I mean, purchases and donations are appreciated MORE, but only because vets need money, not grateful tears.)

Comments

Hang in there.

[(Anonymous)]

I have two senior cats, ages 11 and 10; the 11yr old siamese is our therapy cat and constant companion, even spent a year on a sailboat with his bengal gal and our corgi. After our first bengal and corgi passed within a year of each other, I had been volunteering at a cat sanctuary... and brought work home with me one day. LOL Despite being a beautiful bengal girl, she had a few things that did not work in her favor for adoption: she was at least 8yrs old, front-declawed means she pees on piles of clothing and bedding, and her wild appearance. I have the love and patience to deal with her incontinence, but yeah... Vet bills I understand.
Long story short, because of losing our first gal to cardiomyopathy (she had a sudden heart attack), I have a special place in my heart for senior pets and give extra love to the dogs and cats in my care (I'm a kennel assistant at a dog daycare). I do feel bad that I am tapped out right now, having just helped out my friend with vetting for a hoarding rescue, but I can boost the signal. And depending upon what my pay looks like, my daughter collects Monster High dolls, so I might hit you up with the holidays coming...

Blessed be,
BrendaLee (lunalovegoddess on livejournal, AikoKitsune on ModtheSims2)

Re: Hang in there.

[hat_plays_sims]

Thank you even for signal boosting, and for your comment.

I do have a couple more dolls than what's on that list, if you find out that your daughter's looking for something specific. I actually have a first-issue Frankie with everything but her pet and her original stand-- I know Mattel is re-releasing the six main ghouls in their basic looks, but the original outfits are of much, much higher quality than the upcoming re-releases.

[drewsims]

ugh that is awful, vet bills are ridiculous im so sry. im unemployed atm so im getting money doing odd jobs like babysitting and stuff but when i get a lil extra i will try and help out! in the mean time, would u like me to post something about it on my simblr? i have almost 3000 followers and it would help signal boost a bit? (idk if u have a tumblr and made a post about it? if u did i can reblog it) i hope things work out!!!

[hat_plays_sims]

Vet bills are terrifying and there's a point where you're just sort of sobbing and going 'can I trade you for organs I'm not using? I don't need TWO kidneys.' Thank you for commenting and don't feel bad about not being able to help out right now. Signal-boosting on your simblr would be amazing, though-- do you want me to find a picture of Harley? I know tumblr is a very visual medium and I think I have some pics of her on this computer.

[lovelyxwow]

I saw this post via Drew's tumblr and first I just wanted to say that I hope your cat will be ok! I'm praying for her and boosted your post. I added some money to paypal account...it'll be 3-5 business days for it to go through, I think, but it'll be $90. I hope that this helps.

[hat_plays_sims]

Oh my gosh, thank you so much, I'll keep an eye out for that. That'd cover most of an emergency vet visit if one needs to happen, thank you.

[nixed_sims]

Oh no, that's terrible! As a fellow pet owner (if a dog one), I know how hard it is when our furbabies get sick. And there's no such thing as a national health insurance for them, not even in this country. :(

Have donated. I couldn't do much, but I figured a little must still be better than nothing at all. Please send Harley my love (I'd send Signe's - my dog's - love too, but she's a little sceptical when it comes to cats. I'm sure she wants Harley to get well, though)!

[hat_plays_sims]

Thank you so much! Signe can send well-wishes, too, Harley speaks Dog.

The weird thing is, I'm WAY more likely to put off my own health issues than Harley's, regardless of the money. She can't tell me how bad it hurts, after all.

[toastedsims]

Donated, and signal boosted over on Tumblr as well. (My tumblr handle is Ophidiae, which is also the name I use in the Sims communities I belong to.)

You have both my sympathy and empathy. My eldercat got terribly ill earlier this year, and it scared the ever-living hell out of me. All the money I'd saved for a new computer went to paying off the resulting vet bills, but it was worth every penny. Spooky's been my companion for almost twelve years now, I'll move heaven and earth to keep him (and his newly adopted sister, Sasha) happy, healthy, and safe.

[hat_plays_sims]

Thank you so much for the donation and for your sympathy. Is your email provider your first and last name? If so I'm gobsmacked and terribly grateful.

I can at least say Harley's doing pretty well tonight-- she practically climbed into my dinner plate, which is a pretty good sign when the first symptom of Something Wrong was loss of appetite.

Boosting

[(Anonymous)]

Leefish reporting in. Have signal boosted on tumblr and donated; I know it''s not a lot but its what I could spare. I hope Harley lives many years more.

Re: Boosting

[hat_plays_sims]

Anything helps, and I'm grateful! Thank you so much.

[aquilegia]

Ah god, Hat, I'm so sorry you and Harley are having to deal with this. I don't have a lot, but after I do some budgeting today I'll throw a bit of cash your way.

[hat_plays_sims]

It's rough but she's doing almost inconveniently better the last two days (seriously Harley SIT DOWN my god). I'll dearly appreciate anything you can spare.

[kalynn06.livejournal.com]

I'm glad she's got her appetite back. If I weren't clear on the other coast, I'd spell you with the the tube. I think half of the time I spent on treatment duty in the small animal hospital involved feeding cats with tubes. We're sending positive thoughts your way instead.

When I get paid, I'll see what I can do. Sadly, it won't be much. Pretty much every cent I make that is not involved in subsistence pays my school loans.

[hat_plays_sims]

Her appetite is frustrating, she's only supposed to have one medication by mouth until she gets her tube out, so stalking my pasta with sharklike intensity was a hilarious problem last night. Thank you so, so much for the good thoughts. The tube isn't so bad! It's the powdered sucralfate paste by mouth that she fights me on.

Don't worry about it not being much! Anything helps.

[(Anonymous)]

I have a maine coon mix, she's 3, and my greatest fear is an illness overcoming her. So I have to help! I donated $50 Australian coin, which I think is close to $60? I'll donate more around payday, I really hope everything works out!!!!

x
Ekho
http://www.kingdomofmarlowe.com/

[hat_plays_sims]

Thank you so much, I'll keep an eye out for it! (If your email address includes the word contrary, I got it and it went through in US dollars.) I dearly appreciate it.

I do know one thing to look out for in Maine coons and mixes, which Harley doesn't have, but her late brother did. I think it was hypotension (not hypertension, thanks, Greek, for making those sound so similar), but basically it's a cardiac issue that can, and in Brother's case, did, lead to saddle thrombosis-- basically, a stroke, but in the hips, not the brain. It's next to impossible to treat a saddle thrombosis successfully, but if you can catch the underlying issues before a stroke happens, you can probably prevent one.

... Also, if you have pill pockets in Australia? Buy those and occasionally give them as treats without any pills in them. It is so much easier to pill a cat who LIKES pill pockets and thinks they're getting super-delicious nummies than a cat who knows they have to have them whether they want them or not. Cats hate obligation. Bribery and trickery are the only options.

[vereiya]

I saw the post on tumblr and I just wanted to tell you firsthand as someone who had a 14 yr old cat with Lymphoma survive a year and a half more on chemo, they do VERY well and Harley will probably take it like a trooper if she's so active and happy early on. My cat, Papa had started losing weight already when we caught it, but as soon as we decided to do it, he started looking better and eating more/generally suffering less. He was able to do nearly everything he usually did and then some (literally he got up on the roof for the first time in about 5 years and to boot brought me a squirrel on my birthday. He had never done that before and I shrieked at him but I think he was trying to prove how much he loved me. :P).
Unfortunately it did spread to his brain in the end, but we figured as long as we could do it for him and as long as he wasn't suffering it was worth it for the extra time we got to spend with him. He was pretty happy right until the end.

I hope the best for Harley and will send some cash sometime this week. If there's any questions you have also, feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer them. :)

[hat_plays_sims]

Thank you so much for sharing the experience. I do know Harley's regular vet said that everything else looked good in all her blood tests, so honestly I have high hopes for her on chemo... I just sort of have to hope it's considerably cheaper than when my dad was going through chemo (the cat does not have Aflack. Which is not unreasonable, the cat doesn't have a job).

And oh dear the squirrel! Harley used to be indoor-outdoor (she's been indoor only for about three years now), and she was a murder-cat, happily decimating the local wildlife even though we fed her plenty. If she ever caught a squirrel, she never brought one home. Young pigeons, though, and plenty of mice. (Thirty years of pets in this house and the most ridiculous prey they've brought in has included a six-inch earthworm, the biggest, greenest grasshopper I have ever seen, a bat, a stick (paraded just as proudly as any other 'prey'), and one time my sister's dog (black lab, husky, malamute, pit bull, and wolf mix) brought in a fledgling dove and settled down under the kitchen table to lick the poor thing, which was alive and in perfect health.)

[(Anonymous)]

So, I'm not very much on social sites, but I've enjoyed your content for a long time, and I have a huge soft spot for kitties. Last December, my Proleiko's liver started failing and we were giving him timed shots and had him on IV for hours a day for about a week during finals. It was so harrowing, and my poor boy didn't make it, but in a bittersweet way, I was glad that I got that time to be with him and appreciate him. My heart goes out to you, your kitty, and everyone else who's worrying and caring for her in this tough time.

I've just kicked $50 your way... I'm still in school, I wish it could be more, and I hope loads more pet-parents can help you today. Harley is very beautiful, and she's so lucky to have you :)

kukume@gmail.com

[hat_plays_sims]

I'm so sorry about Proleiko. I know how it feels when they just start failing and there doesn't seem to be anything you can do. The time spent with them, even if they don't pull through, is so important. I was terrified something would happen to Harley while she was away at the vet, in a strange place full of strange smells. Home care hasn't been easy (the first week, while I was totally on my own with her, I didn't get more than four and a half hours of sleep at a stretch, and that was if everything went flawlessly), but it's easier on me emotionally. She's here. (And now I have an extra pair of hands so I can actually sleep like a normal person, which is something you don't realize you really, really need until you're not getting it.)

Thank you so much for the donation-- I deeply appreciate it, especially considering I know how tight money can be for students.

[lovelyxwow]

Hi dear! I have sent an amount to you. Can you please let me know if you receive it? Thanks. :)

[hat_plays_sims]

If your email address involves teatime or scribble, then I got it yesterday, thank you! ... If your email address is something else, let me know? I've been trying to send thank-yous directly to everyone who donates.

[(Anonymous)]

Hi Hat, I was just wondering what's happened since you made this post. Sending you good vibes! xo

[hat_plays_sims]

I've been trying to keep the post updated, but so far, we're maintaining nicely.

The oncologist says Harley is in extremely good health except for the lymphoma, which is both exactly what you want to hear (overall good health means she's got the best chance of fighting the lymphoma) and deeply ironic (she's totally healthy! Except for the cancer). She's on chemotherapy and steroids and responding really well to them. Getting pills into her is a trial but what can you do.

She still throws up anything besides kitten food or butter (well, anything that isn't totally soft and mushy), which frustrates her because she would REALLY like to eat other things), and she's affectionate, active, and playful.

Her meds are about $100 a month, which isn't nearly as bad as we feared. She turns 14 in February, and we're optimistic about her seeing the far side of 15, which is a reasonable age for a housecat.

Thanks for the vibes and the concern!

[lauriempress]

I mostly lurk here, and I am a touch late. I can't afford to donate anything at the moment, but I wanted you to know that I will pray for you and Harley. I'm hoping that 2015 will be better for you both.

[hat_plays_sims]

So far, so good! (She said, 25 hours into 2015.) Thank you for keeping us in your prayers; your good thoughts mean as much to me as a donation. Harley's doing much better these days, and I'm really hopeful she'll see more than the conservative estimate of a year.

[(Anonymous)]

Hey Hat! It's rugs, here. Glad to hear Harley's still hanging tough. Hope good things for both of you!

rugrat0ne

[hat_plays_sims]

I deeply appreciate the good thoughts, thank you!

[nixed_sims]

Hi. :) I just had someone on my blog ask me if I knew how Harley is doing, so I thought I should check in on you. How is she these days? Things sounded reasonably good in January?

[hat_plays_sims]

No news is good news, in this case-- she's doing really well! The vet saw her on Groundhog Day and she was doing well enough that her next appointment isn't until the tail end of April. Harley's still having trouble keeping down anything but senior or kitten formula chicken-flavored canned food and that frustrates her to truly epic levels, but her bad days are few and generally just urpy. She's still crazy-active, and has decided to adopt my sister's two-and-a-half-month-old baby. Everybody ELSE messes with the funny-looking kitten when it cries, obviously Harley has to do her part and clean his head in an effort to soothe him.

Oh, and protip, but if anyone reading this ever has a cat with... shall we say, the goopy poopies from medication-- in Harley's case, steroids-- my vet recommended a tablespoon of canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling, just pumpkin, no spices) per small can of food.

Great Good News

[nonnisim]

Thank you for the update, my heart is lighter now. Harley's response to the human kitten even gave me a chuckle. I love stories or anecdotes about pets.

Now for a bit of gushing...I don't usually leave a comment (though I should). I love your hair dumps especially the last one. My friend, Alet, in Namibia, prefers short hair for her AF Sims. I love short shiny hair for my Toddler Sims. You have made our dreams come true.

Re: Great Good News

[(Anonymous)]

I was just looking for an update on Harley. I'm so glad that she's doing well!