Coal was brought in to BluePearl GVS one year ago, on the evening of October 14. I came home from work and found him barely conscious, barely growling, scooped him up and flew out to GVS to the Emergency center and handed him over to the "team" that met me at the front door.
I had no idea what was wrong with him, but, soon would learn more than I ever wanted to know about male cats and urinary blockage. I was told he was "blocked", and, that they had successfully "unblocked" him, but, he was in such bad shape it wasn't certain he would live through the night.
I sat in my boyfriends truck that night, by myself, all night, in the parking lot at GVS, going in every 2 hours to check on Coal. He made it through the night, his temperature began to rise ( when he was admitted it was 92*... a cats should be around 102*, I think), and his bladder and kidney functions slowly began to improve.
What I didn't expect was that a few days later, they would discover stones in his bladder, and, the doctors at GVS would suggest that I take him to my vet for the surgery to remove the stones.
So, that first surgery was performed by his vet, who was stunned at how bad his bladder looked when she opened him up. She removed the stones, flushed and flushed out the bladder, but didn't give me lots of hope with his recovery, because of the condition his bladder had gotten in, from the time he lay there "blocked".
She suggested I take him back to GVS so he could be watched and given 24/7 care for awhile. And, that's what I did.
Ultimately, Coal would have two more surgeries at GVS, with me staying close by his side, visiting him all I could, before, during, and, after work. He stayed at GVS for three weeks, in the "intensive care" unit . I cooked chicken breasts for him, I took his blankets, toys, even his mother, once, and prayed hard for his recovery.
I took him home , once, only to have to get him back to GVS the next morning when he started to throw up. I just handed them my credit card whenever I needed to "settle up", not really sure how I would pay those bills.
I was shocked and surprised after the third surgery when they told me that they had gotten me assistance with my bill, and, the surgeon had waived , or, lowered her charges. They handed me your brochure. This was the first time that I had ever heard of your organization.
So, today, one year after that horrible night when I found my cat, dying, I want to say "Thank You!" for helping me through such a tough time.
Thank goodness for groups like yours, that can help and assist , financially, those who love their animals and are struggling to save them. I'm sure many have to let their pets go when the bills get too high!
One day, when I get these medical bills paid, I will donate to "Frankie's Friends" , so that, hopefully, I can help someone else to save their companion, through your group.
Coal is doing pretty well. He gets checked by Dr. Derek Duval every few months and, we have to give him antibiotics for bacteria that he gets in his urine, due to that bladder damage. But, Dr. Duval says he looks good, his bloodwork is generally, good and they scan his kidneys and bladder, and, "knock on wood", that looks good, too.
Again, Thank You! from the bottom of my heart, for helping me! It was one of the kindest , most generous gifts that I could ever receive.