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Last night I backed up my office chair into my 6-month-old kitten, who had his leg caught in the bottom roller. I didn't realize this and he thrashed while I moved my chair. I think I might have also rolled my chair over his leg. Apparently I had broken his leg because he was moaning and yelling after he broke free.
Last night he was under a lot of pain - I realized he didn't accept his favorite treats, and he tried moving about in his cage but couldn't get into any preferred positions. I noticed when he got up to try to get under my bed, he whimpered as he dragged his right leg over.
I sent him in for a vet visit and x-ray earlier today and I just got off the phone with them. Apparently he fractured his femur, just above his knee and it's dislodged from the socket. Unfortunately, he's going to need additional surgery and pins to be inserted to ensure the bone grows back properly. I was quoted on the surgery, anesthesia, and splint/cast to be about $600 on top of an additional $130 I already paid for his visit and x-rays.
I've already agreed to do the operation. He's the sweetest cat I've ever known - he never bites or claws me and is playful and approchable. Unfortunately, sometimes I treat him like shit and I just couldn't get past what happend to him last night. Unlike other cats, he forgives me almost immediately every time I scare, yell, or mistreat him and opens up to me again quickly.
Has anyone been in this situation with their pet? Would you have paid the amount (or more) for an operation done to yours?
BTW, here's a picture of him...his name is Peaches.
![[image loading]](http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/asdfTT123/photo.jpg)
UPDATE UPDATE: September 2nd:
Today I brought Peaches home from the vet in the morning. The vet said the surgery went well though he needs to be on bed rest for a few weeks. When I took him home, he had a massive bandage that covered his entire right hind-paw. Initially he struggled to move around with it being so cumbersome, he'd often flip his own body over in attempt to move. Basically, he's completely immobile with his bandages on and he can't even limp around. I currently have the dilemma of figuring out the best way to care for him in his state. He can't really get up to get food and water - I have to manually feed him by hand and bring the water dish to him. Also, he absolutely HATES taking his pain/antibiotic meds. My roommate and I forced his mouth open as I popped a small pill but he spat it back out with disgust. It doesn't help that the antibiotics are in a dropper as well because as soon as I stick the dropper in his mouth he shakes and struggles. I guess I have no choice but to mix the meds with his food.
His litter box presents a whole new problem. He's eaten a fair amount since I brought him back this morning but he strangely hasn't needed to poop yet. When he does I'm expecting to clean up a pretty hefty mess on his mat, bandages, and fur. Any advice for that?
Also, he looks extremely depressed just lying in his crate all day. See below for pics. To make matters worse, I have another little kitten who runs up to him and starts clawing at his bandages through the holes in the crate. In the midsts of a starcraft game I heard him groaning in pain because her claws clipped in his bandages and she wouldn't let go. -_-
I'd appreciate any advice you may have. I hope that nobody should have to experience caring for an injured animal. It's quite depressing, you never really know their needs, and they're sometimes uncooperative.
![[image loading]](http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/asdfTT123/rsz_imgp1026.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/asdfTT123/rsz_imgp1024.jpg)
 
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cute cat and 700 bucks is really nothing you're lucky it's not more. We (my wife and I) spent almost 1,500 bucks just because our cat had a bladder infection. Good to see your cat is ok, we are also giving our food special food now to avoid further infections.
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that looks like a full grown cat, not a kitten
anyways as for paying for it, if i had enough money, sure
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United States24679 Posts
I don't really see any way around paying if you can at all afford it. Not much of an alternative. Dumb question perhaps but I've never had a pet: is it possible to get some kind of medical insurance for pets? Like 100/yr to cover for this type of stuff?
Not really sure what you can do to prevent this type of injury in the future except be careful and hope the cat learns not to sit in dangerous places like behind your computer chair?
BTW very cute kitten.
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On September 01 2010 08:00 micronesia wrote:
I don't really see any way around paying if you can at all afford it. Not much of an alternative. Dumb question perhaps but I've never had a pet: is it possible to get some kind of medical insurance for pets? Like 100/yr to cover for this type of stuff?
Not really sure what you can do to prevent this type of injury in the future except be careful and hope the cat learns not to sit in dangerous places like behind your computer chair?
BTW very cute kitten.
Not a dumb question at all, there is pet health insurance you can buy and it is indeed around 100 bucks a month, though it's a gamble like any insurance because you could go years w/o any issues and you will end up behind in cash!
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aww.. 
Hope he gets better
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I definitely would pay if I have the money and make sure that something like that never happens again.
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I just spent like 200$ on surgery for my cat, so he is worth about 400$ now (this surgery and previous) aswell as all the food and headaches he caused. It's your call, putting him down and getting a new cat would be cheaper though.
I sent him in for a vet visit and x-ray earlier today and I just got off the phone with them. Apparently he fractured his femur, just above his knee and it's dislodged from the socket. Unfortunately, he's going to need additional surgery and pins to be inserted to ensure the bone grows back properly. I was quoted on the surgery, anesthesia, and splint/cast to be about $600 on top of an additional $130 I already paid for his visit and x-rays.
It being an accident that you caused (obviously you didn't mean to) I would pay for the surgery, He is going to be a costly cat and sometimes they don't wake up when they go under so It's a gamble but since it isn't naturally caused I would probably pay for the surgery :/
Good luck, hope it helps. Btw, it your cat angry at you? when my cat was ill he was extremely angry for like 2 weeks after the surgery, he wasn't in pain, just pissed, luckily he is better now.
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that doesn't look like a full grown cat, look how long his tale is!
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On September 01 2010 08:05 sRapers_ValkS wrote:
that doesn't look like a full grown cat, look how long his tale is!
do kittens have long tales in relation to their bodies or something?
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my parents paid a similar amound for a broken leg on one of our cats 6 years ago - he tried to jump over a fence and levered his whole body against a leg that got stuck in the fence somehow, splintering said leg - we paid something around 1000 euros for the entire surgery process. sadly, he didnt get along well with his brother and ran off a few months later, but i dont think anyone in our family regrets having spent said money and walking/caring for the cat for the six weeks required for rehabilitation.
and dont mistreat your pet, he looks so cute :>
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My 10 year old cat was diagnosed with diabetes last month. The upfront cost of all the tests and vet visits figuring out what was wrong with him and determining what insulin dosage was appropriate was probably around $600. Going forward he needs special expensive high protein food and two injections a day. I worked it out that the food, needles and insulin are going to cost an extra $2.50 day on top of what I already spend on him. Makes for a pretty expensive pet, but there is no way I wouldn't pay it.
pic+ Show Spoiler +
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United States24679 Posts
Do cats allow you to give them injections? Is it difficult to do if you are someone who doesn't like needles?
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On September 01 2010 08:17 micronesia wrote:
Do cats allow you to give them injections? Is it difficult to do if you are someone who doesn't like needles?
No it is really easy. The injection is subcutaneous, you don't have to find a vein or anything. Just pull up the scruff, stick in the base. I guess if needles really freaked you out it could be tough but you wouldn't even see it go in unless the cat had really short hair.
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Blogs like this break my heart.
I have 2 cats myself and the only problem we've ever had was had an infection with his gums and had to have a tooth removed. Cost a couple hundred dollars but was a no-brainer.
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I don't agree with keeping pets unless its for protection(dogs) or pest prevention(cats). This is because I think its kind of cruel to keep them locked up for their entire lives.
My sister has 3 cats and however cute and what not they are they are just a waste of money to accessorise her house imo.
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So glad you paid for the surgery. There is certainly a responsibility to taking care of an animal that a lot of people don't realise.
And anyone who is saying that it's cheaper to have it put down and get a new one, or that they're a waste of money, are seriously missing the point of getting a pet in the first place.
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hmm my friends dad spent like $10,000 on his dog (i shit you not) that dog went through so many surgeries.. it was just 1 thing after another..
so uhh.. be careful about that lol
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On September 01 2010 08:04 NuKedUFirst wrote:
I just spent like 200$ on surgery for my cat, so he is worth about 400$ now (this surgery and previous) aswell as all the food and headaches he caused. It's your call, putting him down and getting a new cat would be cheaper though.
.
I may be misinterpreting this, but that is really brutal man. Don't treat your pets like their financial investments, thats sick.
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On September 01 2010 08:46 Kezzer wrote:Show nested quote +On September 01 2010 08:04 NuKedUFirst wrote:
I just spent like 200$ on surgery for my cat, so he is worth about 400$ now (this surgery and previous) aswell as all the food and headaches he caused. It's your call, putting him down and getting a new cat would be cheaper though.
. I may be misinterpreting this, but that is really brutal man. Don't treat your pets like their financial investments, thats sick.
I totally agree, thats a horrible thing to say. If you invest in a living being, and something happens to it which you yourself caused, then you better be footing the bill. How could you even think to just shrug it off and put it down. $600 is not alot of money at all, so even suggesting to end life over that is pretty damn absurd. (imo)
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United States24679 Posts
On September 01 2010 08:36 Adeeler wrote:
I don't agree with keeping pets unless its for protection(dogs) or pest prevention(cats). This is because I think its kind of cruel to keep them locked up for their entire lives.
My sister has 3 cats and however cute and what not they are they are just a waste of money to accessorise her house imo.
Do you think many pets enjoy their life with their owner?
Separately, what if you adopt the pet to give it a better life than a shelter or being put down?
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On September 01 2010 08:51 eXigent. wrote:Show nested quote +On September 01 2010 08:46 Kezzer wrote:On September 01 2010 08:04 NuKedUFirst wrote:
I just spent like 200$ on surgery for my cat, so he is worth about 400$ now (this surgery and previous) aswell as all the food and headaches he caused. It's your call, putting him down and getting a new cat would be cheaper though.
. I may be misinterpreting this, but that is really brutal man. Don't treat your pets like their financial investments, thats sick. I totally agree, thats a horrible thing to say. If you invest in a living being, and something happens to it which you yourself caused, then you better be footing the bill. How could you even think to just shrug it off and put it down. $600 is not alot of money at all, so even suggesting to end life over that is pretty damn absurd. (imo)
I hope you're a vegetarian with that mindset.
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I'd pay that in a heartbeat. Be glad it's not a human. When I had to have my femur cut in half and reset it ended up being $875,000, thank god for good insurance.
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On September 01 2010 08:36 Adeeler wrote:
I don't agree with keeping pets unless its for protection(dogs) or pest prevention(cats). This is because I think its kind of cruel to keep them locked up for their entire lives.
My sister has 3 cats and however cute and what not they are they are just a waste of money to accessorise her house imo.
I agree when it comes to caged animals like birds, but disagree with cats/dogs/etc.
Domesticated animals often prefer to be indoors. If I open the door for our cat, she might go outside and eat some grass and roll around, but 30 minutes later she's begging to come back inside. And this isn't some Stockholm Syndrome nonsense- domesticated animals are very friendly and loyal, not "locked up."
In fact, I would call what 'you' call animal ownership cruel, justifying the adoption/purchase of an animal just for your own benefit. You're willing to chain up a dog outside to scare off robbers or getting a cat instead of getting your house sprayed and protected from pests.
Animals are supposed to be companions, not objects.
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On September 01 2010 09:06 iCCup.Diamond wrote:
I'd pay that in a heartbeat. Be glad it's not a human. When I had to have my femur cut in half and reset it ended up being $875,000, thank god for good insurance.
the FFFFFFFFFFFF?????????
875,000?
how is that justified? LOL seriously, woah wth
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On September 01 2010 09:44 travis wrote:Show nested quote +On September 01 2010 09:06 iCCup.Diamond wrote:
I'd pay that in a heartbeat. Be glad it's not a human. When I had to have my femur cut in half and reset it ended up being $875,000, thank god for good insurance. the FFFFFFFFFFFF????????? 875,000? how is that justified? LOL seriously, woah wth
Yeah seriously, I woulda just kept the broken(?) leg. lol
But seriously,
On September 01 2010 08:57 Rhyme wrote:Show nested quote +On September 01 2010 08:51 eXigent. wrote:On September 01 2010 08:46 Kezzer wrote:On September 01 2010 08:04 NuKedUFirst wrote:
I just spent like 200$ on surgery for my cat, so he is worth about 400$ now (this surgery and previous) aswell as all the food and headaches he caused. It's your call, putting him down and getting a new cat would be cheaper though.
. I may be misinterpreting this, but that is really brutal man. Don't treat your pets like their financial investments, thats sick. I totally agree, thats a horrible thing to say. If you invest in a living being, and something happens to it which you yourself caused, then you better be footing the bill. How could you even think to just shrug it off and put it down. $600 is not alot of money at all, so even suggesting to end life over that is pretty damn absurd. (imo) I hope you're a vegetarian with that mindset.
Lol  I agree with animal rights,etc,etc. But seriously, when a cat goes under alot of times they don't wake up. It is twice as disappointing trying to do the right thing and the cat dying anyways.
Look at my edit on the first page :/
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Good luck with the operation
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konadora
Singapore66161 Posts
omg that's so unfortunate D:
i really want a kitteh ;__; hope the surgery goes well.
if i had a pet i really loved, money wouldn't be my primary concern.
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On September 01 2010 09:06 iCCup.Diamond wrote:
I'd pay that in a heartbeat. Be glad it's not a human. When I had to have my femur cut in half and reset it ended up being $875,000, thank god for good insurance.
...What? I can't imagine that price being justified. I mean, did they have to take your femur, grow a replacement with some super-nanocell technology, implant a portable nuclear generator, and then manually weave all your blood vessels, vein by vein, through your leg afterwards? How can it cost nearly a million dollars?
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On September 01 2010 08:04 NuKedUFirst wrote:
It's your call, putting him down and getting a new cat would be cheaper though.
wow, that is a brutal statement. surely just leaving the bone broken would be better than outright killing of the cat.
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On September 01 2010 10:18 guN-viCe wrote:Show nested quote +On September 01 2010 08:04 NuKedUFirst wrote:
It's your call, putting him down and getting a new cat would be cheaper though.
wow, that is a brutal statement. surely just leaving the bone broken would be better than outright killing of the cat.
You honestly think that letting an animal suffer is better then putting it out of it's misery?
Son, I am disappoint.
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I've accidentally done that to my cat's tail, twice. Fortunately, she is unhurt. She's also been pretty forgiving, and has also stopped sitting right next to my chair.
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I probably wouldn't spend too much on my cat if it was hurt.
If it was going to take 3k to fix a cat, I would just put it down and go adopt 2 more cats from the pound and make a much cheaper and larger effect on the well-being if the kitty-species.
Oh yeah, and my two cats have a kitty door they can go outside whenever they want. I just kept them inside until they were 3-4 months old and then let them out.
I am rewarded for doing this by having to pick up dead birds off my floor 5-10 times a month.
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You must feel pretty awful hurting something so honest and innocent....that cat trusted you, and you just ran it over.
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Yeah I would have paid or at least find a way (hefty priiiice)
Just a minor question...what's with guys on the internet and cats?
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I would totally pay that amount to keep my cat around, he has been my best friend for almost 10 years-- and here is hoping that he is around for even more.
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On September 01 2010 12:02 OhThatDang wrote:
Yeah I would have paid or at least find a way (hefty priiiice)
Just a minor question...what's with guys on the internet and cats?
They're cute. The brain just sort of shuts down to make way for it.
>:3
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throw away your roller chair and pay for the surgery.
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Every time I roll my chair I make sure there is no cat nearby o=
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awwww :< poor cat
But yeah, you shouldn't guilt yourself over rolling over the cat. Totally not your fault, and it could have happened to anyone. Too bad your cat wasn't vocal about it... I bet your cat will be a lot more careful playing around that rolly chair from now on 
And yeah, $600 really isn't that much to spend. My family's dog ruptured her ACL a few years ago, and I think my parents spent at least a thousand dollars on her surgery. I can't think of a much better way to spend money than to make your pet happy. Good luck with everything, and I hope your cat makes a speedy recovery! he's very cute :3
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I had a similar situation once, OP.
My family had an 8 month old Labrador retriever named Vinny. Anyone who's ever been around a lab knows how personable, playful, affectionate and fun they are. Vinny was no exception.
Around Christmas that year, my sister and I were playing with a bouncy ball to Vinny's delight. Try as he might, he couldn't mange to snag it, and everyone had a great laugh at poor Vinny's expense.
A few days later, though, Vinny stopped eating his food. He lost weight, but didn't show any signs of real illness. He just wouldn't eat.
After a day or two of this, we took him to the vet. Turns out Vinny managed to get a hold of the bouncy ball after my sister and I had finished playing with him. And, of course, he ate it.
... And, of course, it got lodged in his intestines. He couldn't pass it, and required surgery.
No one was laughing anymore. =\
But we went through with the (multi-thousand dollar) operation, and Vinny was back to his old self in no time.
These are the things we do for our pets.
<3
Best of luck to your kitty.
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Awww, poor kitteh
I would more than love to pay that ammount of money for any of my cats, they are a part of my family and they should be threat like they are. So go for it, so you and your lovely cat can have more wounderful days/months/years/decades to come
Wishing him and you the best of luck!
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Korea (South)1897 Posts
Yeah just pay it. I could live myself if I didn't because it's ur cat and it would pain me everyday.
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This thread makes me so sad. I hope your kitten makes a full recovery !
I love kittens =A=
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On September 01 2010 10:56 NuKedUFirst wrote:Show nested quote +On September 01 2010 10:18 guN-viCe wrote:On September 01 2010 08:04 NuKedUFirst wrote:
It's your call, putting him down and getting a new cat would be cheaper though.
wow, that is a brutal statement. surely just leaving the bone broken would be better than outright killing of the cat. You honestly think that letting an animal suffer is better then putting it out of it's misery? Son, I am disappoint.
That is not your argument. Your argument is that OP should put it to sleep because it is 'cheaper,' not because the cat will suffer if he doesn't put it to sleep.. Be consistent.
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In the course of about 2 years I paid a nice chunk of money to get my cat fixed.
The first time it happened must have been one of the most unlucky months of my life. I noticed my cat wasn't feeling good when he was in his litter box but he wasn't using it he was just laying in it which was really unlike him. When I tried to pick him up be moaned in a tone I had never heard from him before. I gave it overnight to see if it was just something simple like an upset stomach of some sort. The next day I noticed a reddish liquid seeping from his pee pee area (gross I know). He also kept going to the litter box without going but straining real hard to go. I looked this symptom up online and read that it was a urinary tract blockage and if i didn't take him to get help within 24-48 hours it would most likely be life threatening.
Well since 24 hours had already passed and it seemed like it was getting worse I had to take him. Unfortunately because it was a Sunday I had to take him to an emergency clinic which was the only place open in my area on a Sunday. So I drop him off and the next day a series of unfortunate events took place. First one being I woke up to find my car towed off the street. The plates were expired and although I was not driving my car I was unaware that a parked car could get towed for expired tags. I also got a ticket for parking in a no-parking area even though I was parked directly under a sign that said no parking on school days only (It was June or July).
Then I get hit with another extremely unfortunate circumstance in that I over withdrew my bank account. If anyone ever dealt with national city bank before, their overdraft policies are absolutely outrageous. Honestly it was mainly my fault for what happened and can't blame anyone but myself but I was unaware that simply checking your balance at an ATM that was not your banks charged a fee. On top of that they waited to collect all the fees at the end of the month and dumped them all on your account at one time. I've never been so rude to bank teller before in my life. I remember getting paid that day (my check was around $600) and checking my balance and seeing like 30 something dollars left and asking "my check just hasn't cleared yet, right?" I tried my hardest to get them to give me a one time courtesy but the lady at the teller was being a total bitch and even took her check book out of her purse and made some smart ass comment like "You see this? It's called a check book and people use them for a reason". Of course I had to snap back like "I get my shit direct deposit lady, who the fuck actually uses one of those".
So at this time I had to use what little money I had to get my car out of the impound lot but they said they wouldn't give it back to me because the tags were expired. This came as a priuority because there was a per day fee for leaving it at that lot. Well the reason why I didn't get my tags the month of my birthday was my car failed an e-check for my check engine light being on. I was car pooling to work and decided to procrastinate on getting a mechanic to fix it. So they said the only place they would tow my car was the e-check station. I knew I would fail the e-check still because my check engine light was still on but the tow truck guy just dropped me car off and I was allowed to drive off (finally a break in my luck).
So now I was broke and needed what I think was 600 dollars to get my cat back (they were able to unclog him). They said I had to pay everything before they gave me my ca\t back and since I was a first time customer, there was no payment plans and the bill had to be paid in full. I asked how long I had and they told me 7 days before they gave my cat to a lost animals shelter. Well I ended up finding the money through my own means and by borrowing a little from a good friend who had the extra cash.
A year later my I home to see my cat laying in the litter box again and immediately knew what the problem was from experience. I take him to a few local vets and they all tell me I need to pay money up front before they would even admit him. Unfortunately I didn't have money until pay day so I remember that the emergency clinic I took him to last time allowed me to pay money when I came to pick him up. I also remember how they said that return customers could set up payment plans so I decided to go back to the same place I took my cat the first time.
Well this ended up being a bad decision because they failed horribly this time. First off the bill was an outrageous $900 which at first was reasonable because we left without paying any money. The payment plan was $300 a month and I didn't have to make my first payment til the end of the month. The only thing that irked me was that a year before he stayed for 5 days and this time it was only a 2 day stay and somehow the bill came out to 300 more. The other thing that pissed me off was he wasn't ready to come home, they rushed him home before he was actually fixed this time. I could tell because he was moaning in pain the same night we took him home. I gave it a few days and things only got worse. He was cringing in pain and I was getting extremely emotional because I was once again strapped for cash.
So we take him up there and drop him off and the next day I get a call from the vet. They said they need to operate or he won't live and it's not going to be cheap. He said it won't happen until the next day anyways so he wanted me to think it over and call him tomorrow with my decision. Of course I wasn't going to let me cat die I loved the poor guy more than anything. So I call the vet back and tell him to operate on my cat. Things go well and I go to pick up my cat 2 days later dreading what to hear from the billing department. They said I had to pay the previous balance in full before anything and possibly even a portion of the new bill before they would give me my cat back. I told them it was bullshit I had to pay the previous balance (in a more polite phrasing) because my cat wasn't ready to go home the first time and they should have operated originally. That way everything would be on one payment plan instead of having to pay the for the first (useless) treatment before moving on to the next. Well luckily I was able to scrounge up the 900. I think I needed a pay day loan just to do it but I still managed to obtain the money.
Well the new balance for the surgery and his 2nd visit was a jaw dropping $2500 dollars and they said they needed "something" right there and then before I could take him home. Well I had to scheme something up fast because I just couldn't take out another pay day loan. I decided to give them my credit card or debit card, can't remember which one it was, and told them to charge it. The reality was, there was no money on the card and any sort of payment would be declined because I wasn't with national city anymore, I was with US bank and their debit card was a lot harder to over withdraw and would usually just come back declined in most circumstances. Well they must have not charged the card right there and then because I wrote down my card information, signed my name giving consent to charge the card, and walked away with my cat who seemed surprisingly cheerful considering his surgery. I thanked the people there for saving my cat and was actually really polite and positive towards the employees for their efforts.
Well I call them to make payment arrangements and they tell me that their policy on payment plans is 3 months to pay the balance in full, no exceptions. Honestly I might have been able to squeeze in 830 a month but I decided to just chalk my credit and let them send the bill to collections. It's been a year since the final surgery and my cat is alive and healthy and I'm glad I was able to save his life. It was worth every penny to me.
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I ran over my last cats tail a couple times with my computer chair. I felt really bad afterwards because he just always enjoyed sitting by me.
That really sucks about your vet bill, but what can you do really? I'm sure you love the guy.
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Man... I've done that before. The most terrifying thing ever. I can mention various times where I almost back up into my cat (with the chair), trip over him, step on him (middle of night + dark + black cat). I would hate it if I actually did do it by accident. Scariest thing ever...
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Our cat does the same kind of thing and just sits under my chair, or on it (he is black as is the chair) and gets sat on, trodden on and accidentally kicked, I feel so bad when it happens but I am glad nothing this bad has come of it. Maybe he should just gtfo the way but meh.
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Hey guys, thanks for all the encouraging info. I updated the OP because Peaches came home today.
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Poor little guy, thanks for the update. Hope he gets better soon....
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I would feel so bad if I accidentally hurt my kitty
Just let it rest and be super nice to it, not much else you can do until it heals.
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EPT![[image loading]](http://s3.amazonaws.com/twitpic/photos/full/106364023.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=0ZRYP5X5F6FSMBCCSE82&Expires=1283297223&Signature=TvxlrhmuEDzS3e1Ln7kw0ixrf1c%3D)
