Help Hamish get the critical care he needs

Hi, I’m Shannon and Hamish is one of my cats. Hamish is currently in critical condition and being treated at the NE BluePearl Pet Hospital in Portland, Oregon. Hamish was fine yesterday until dinner when he became suddenly ill. Right now I don’t know much, but know he’s receiving excellent care. This care is not cheap and comes after a recent diagnosis of feline diabetes which has entailed numerous vet visits, insulin and related supplies, and a change to his diet.

-update October 4, 2024 — 12.30 pm Pacific-

Thank you all so much for the support. I've just visited with my big man and he's a lot more alert than he was last night. He's even started purring and headbutting me. He curled up into my arms and purred and made some biscuits. They've figured out it's severe pancreatitis. His condition is still guarded but it's not time to give up hope yet. ❤️

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Hamish has more love than he can give and has brought joy to every person he’s ever interacted with. I’m really hoping he’ll pull through, but also know I may need to say goodbye far too early. Right now there is a chance he’ll get better though I’m also conscious of not putting him through treatments and procedures because I’m not ready to let him go (I signed 2 “do not resuscitate” orders and agreed to this verbally). I want to give him a chance. As I learn more I’ll update this post.

Current estimates for 2-3 days care are $8,000 to $10,000. If he doesn’t make it or the bill is for less than estimated, I will donate the remaining funds so others can get urgent care for the pets. You can read more about Hamish below.

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[Hamish with his BFF Arthur]

I rescued Hamish in August 2017 and he’s been such an amazing companion to me. Everyone who meets him falls in love instantly, even those who were on the fence about cats, and he loves everyone. He’s the chilliest, cuddliest guy you’ll ever meet. He doesn’t know the definition of personal space.

In mid-May he got really sick. He’s a big guy who averages 17-18 lbs and he suddenly lost nearly 4 lbs and was on death’s door. We found out he developed diabetes and we’ve been trying to dial in the dose of his twice daily insulin injections which has meant frequent trips to the vet to get blood drawn. He’s a champ about the daily injections and all the vet visits.

Yesterday (October 2, 2024) Hamish was playing, cuddling, and really behaving like his old self. Then at dinner time he took a bite of his food and started throwing up. He didn’t stop until there was nothing left. This morning when I got up to check on him he was clearly not doing well.

His regular vet took him in immediately and they started him on fluids and electrolytes to treat his dehydration. They determined he was having an episode of diabetic ketoacidosis, which can be fatal, and treated him accordingly. When I went to pick him up late this afternoon, he’d actually not improved and had actually gotten worse. My options were to take him home and keep a very close eye on him or get him admitted to an animal hospital. After I got a better look at him, and found out he’d also lost nearly 1 lb in the last week, I decided to take him to the hospital immediately despite the initial $6,000 to $8,000 estimate for 2 days.

He’s currently receiving care at the NE BluePearl Pet Hospital in Portland, Oregon. They immediately got him started on more fluids to help with his dangerously low blood pressure and did a scope to see into his stomach since he’s sensitive to touch. They’ve discovered extreme inflammation and fluid in his stomach. They do not believe he’s suffering from diabetic ketoacidosis. They are conducting various blood tests, ultrasounds, and X-rays to determine the cause of this alarmingly quick deterioration in his condition when he seemed like he’d turned a corner with the diabetes treatment.