Binx, the mini house panther

*** UPDATE August 1, 2023 ---> Binx is now seeing the internal specialist on August 3rd!! There was a cancellation and so this spot opened up which we took...Binx isn't feeling good now & is eating very little so we jumped at the opportunity to have him seen sooner. Please continue to support & send prayers!!

Hi, I'm Caitlin and I'm Binx's cat momma. I'm fundraising to help cover his veterinary costs to see an internal specialist on August 8, 2023. Binx was taken to the emergency vet in March of 2023. Since then, it has been a roller coaster of vet visits and diagnostics. Now, with only a partial answer & Binx still not getting better we've decided to consult an internal specialist as per recommendation from our primary veterinarian.

Binx has an amazing life and I want to introduce you to him so you can get a glimpse into the amazing cat he is despite his health...

I have been Binx's cat momma for 6 years. In February 2017 Binx showed up on my porch with a punctured & inflamed left eye oozing puss. His ears were also extremely bitten, tattered, and infected with mites. A sad reality of cat fights amongst outdoor feral cats. I gathered a trap the next day and got Binx to the vet as soon as possible. Even though he was only an outdoor cat I had been feeding, I knew he needed my help. And so, our journey and friendship began. Binx went to the vet to get patched up, vaccinated, and neutered. He came back home with me and I began the slow process of letting him heal and hopefully transitioning him to an inside cat. He blossomed beautifully and has become the best cat ever. During his healing phase and getting used to being an indoor cat, I would read to him nightly and start feeding him wet food from my fingers. I'll never forget the first time he played with a toy, slept on my bed, and finally let me pet him. He has his own Instagram where these pictures/videos are public to see --> @ its_a_blackcatslife.

Binx became a happy, lazy, and contented house cat. He even got 2 doggy siblings to snuggle with. When someone asks me what do I look forward to most when I come home, its Binx. He is my best friend and my furchild. Despite his tipped ear, 3 fangs, short tail, and bb-pellet in his shoulder he loves life and everything and everyone. (Yes someone shot him with a bb gun when he lived outside before I rescued him). Binx and I moved to Virginia in 2019 where I accepted my first full time elementary teaching position. In 2020 Binx and I moved cross country to Colorado with my husband, now Binx's cat daddy! In 2022 we moved to the sunshine state of Florida. Binx is a world class traveling adventure kitty. He's taken a cross country road trip 3x, flown on an airplane, and is so relaxed and easy going. He loves watching bird videos, sitting on the balcony, and sleeping under the blanket. Binx is my best friend and he deserves the outmost of care. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for him.

Tragically, life events can turn at any moment. In early March 2023 I took Binx to my primary veterinarian for a bloated abdomen and constipation. Our vet did an xray which showed an enlarged and swollen small intestine. He urged and recommended we take Binx to the emergency vet. So my husband and I went there immediately and spent the next 3 hours waiting and praying and looking for an answer. The emergency vet informed us Binx had an abdomen full of free floating fluid, it wasn't bile or blood. There was no definitive answer for the accumulation of the abdominal fluid - and unfortunately as of now July 2023 we still don't have any information on the fluid in his abdomen...its still there. Some of the fluid was drained from his abdomen at the emergency vet. He had a full blood panel, xray, and ultrasound. We sent some of the fluid out to be cultured, it came back protein rich but inconclusive. In addition, upon his ultrasound it was noted he had an enlarged liver with nodules on the left lobe. His liver nodules were aspirated and sent out to be analyzed, those came back inconclusive but were deemed non-cancerous nodules!! YAY!! The emergency vet recommended a blood pressure diagnostic and to consult with our primary vet to discuss portal hypertension and ascites - this then occurred mid-March with no definitive results.

On March 17 Binx went to another vet for a second opinion to see what else we could do or what we could be missing. This vet was a specialty hospital so we were hopeful. Binx's ascites (fluid buildup was discussed) and suspected it could be from a variety of things so we opted for another blood panel, congestive heart failure testing, and liver funtion/ammonia testing. His heart & liver tests came back within normal range. On his blood panel his pancreatic enzymes were elevated and Binx was diagnosed with pancreatitis! We had somewhat of an answer. Binx was put on medication to control the nausea and inflammation of his pancreas. In addition he was put on a prescription diet and I did HOURS of research on pancreatitis and learned all the ins and outs of feeding him a good quality wet food diet with his prescription kibble.

That then takes us through March, plus into April and May where we saw our primary vet for the bp test which came back mostly normal, another complete blood panel, and another xray. These still yielded no conclusive findings. It seemed in April things were looking up and Binx's abdomen starting to shrink and he seemed to be pulling out of his pancreatic flair. Until May...

In May we were back at our primary vet for a big abdomen again and Binx seemed to be losing weight. Our veterinarian did another full blood panel. This time Binx was diagnosed and treated for a uti infection. His pancreatic enzymes had come down significantly since March indicating his pancreas was doing better! YAY!

But we still had & still have no answer for the fluid accumulation. As of now, July 2023 Binx still has a distended abdomen and is losing weight. As per recommendation from our primary vet that Binx has something more serious and intense than he is able to diagnose and something more than just pancreatitis, Binx has an appointment coming up in 3 weeks on August 8th with an internal specialist at a VCA hospital.

If you've made it this far in our story, I thank you with every ounce of my soul and from the bottom of my heart.

The world is always changing, and life is hard for myself and I know so many other people. For anyone going through tough times I pray for you because I know what it is like.

Here we are, I am fundraising to help cover some of the costs for Binx's upcoming internal veterinary specialist appointment...

* A donation of $20 helps cover a tank of gas used to travel to the vet speciality office.

* A donation of $50 helps contribute to fees, taxes, and disposal of equipment at the appointment on August 8th.

* A donation of $75 helps contribute to draining some of the fluid from his abdomen.

* A donation of $100 helps contribute to a complete blood panel.

* A donation of $100+ helps contribute to more extensive diagnostic testing.

** A donation of just $10 helps contribute overall. It helps contribute to my Binx. It helps contribute to my pets health. It helps contribute to more memories still left to be made. It helps contribute to hopeful feelings and thankfulness to good people out there like you.

My little family is my world. My husband, my self, and our little Binkers.

Please consider donating to help Binx get better.

Thank you, Take Care, I wish you well, and God Bless.

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