Hi, this is Dewey’s mom Kenna. Dewey is my 6 year old black cat who has been with me through everything

About 3 weeks ago (1/28) we noticed him limping, thinking he needed a little brace or cast, we took him to urgent care. To our surprise, the vet said his leg was not injured and rather, he was dealing with some kind of neurological issue (a tumor on his spinal cord, a stroke, meningitis, etc).

He came back from this visit completely unable to walk properly, only able to move a few feet at a time.

The urgent care vet referred us to a neurologist who recommended an MRI because he thought he saw signs that he had a stroke. We decided to have Dewey undergo the MRI due to the serious nature of the vet’s hypothesis, where instead they found his meninges (the tips of his nervous system) were being attacked by something.

He was prescribed a few medications and they have helped his walking significantly.

We are still trying to figure out what is causing the meninges to be attacked, and our vet recommended a blood test, but we had been hesitant to bring him back only to be sedated and get his blood drawn again, as it has been obviously very stressful for Dewey, as well as veterinary procedures having a high price.

Luckily through all of that, we had our pet insurance that I decided to get just last November.

A day ago (the evening of 2/22), I noticed him straining to urinate. I had a gut feeling to call the vet and they said to bring him in immediately as he could be blocked and it’s an emergency situation, sure enough, he was. He was hospitalized and his bladder was expressed.

This visit utilized the rest of our insurance coverage.

During his stay the vet did an x ray where they found a stone in his bladder, the perfect size to block his urethra. They told us he needs surgery to remove the stone to prevent it from blocking him again, as this is very, very dangerous and painful for cats to have a buildup of urine.

The surgery invoice shocked us, but we decided we had to do everything we could to ensure Dewey’s health, and decided to pay out of pocket for it.

He is due for surgery this morning (2/24).

The reason why I am asking for donations, especially for $15k, is because the majority of that is the cost of his surgery. He also has an ongoing neurological issue, which we still need to have more testing and eventual treatment for him.

Unfortunately, my business and livelihood are at risk.

I am humbly asking for any donation amount that makes sense to you. If you are unable to donate, please consider sharing this page.

Thank you. -Kenna

UPDATE!! 2/25

We brought Dewey home from the vet today. Surgery was yesterday morning. We got a call before the procedure that we needed to be aware that his healing process may be slowed because of the steroid he is on for his neurological issue. They decided to halve his dose to give his body a better chance of healing as soon as possible. We got an XXL dog crate thinking he would spend most of his time in there, but when we brought him home he was moving around way too much trying to escape. We made the decision to let him out and closely monitor him to ensure he was resting. He’s now resting and starting his healing process at home <3. Thank you again to everyone who has donated and/or shared. It helps immensely. - Kenna